Emma Nelk

Prof. Newcomb

ENG170_41: Writing and Rhetoric

4 Mar. 2022

Nerf Guns

            There are many toys of childhood that become definitive symbols by popularity and nostalgia, for some people Nerf guns are that symbol that defined their childhood. The creator of Nerf, Reyn Guyer, was the man who started the fascination of plastic guns that blast foam darts. Nerf defines childhood as the outdoors, socialness, and active creativity. Nerf is still keeping up with the new generations of children by creating new variations of toys.

When people think of childhood, they think of their past experiences and the nostalgia that went along with it. The nostalgia of a child playing outside in the dirt and goofing off with a bunch of friends is a major part of what defines childhood. The Nerf section on Guyer’s website discusses his story in how he and his fellow inventors came up with the foam ball that had “…broken the parental rule [of] no throwing balls in the house” and the creation of the name Nerf (Guyer). The way Guyer is so personal in his article by speaking in the first person and how he describes his inventing experiences as if he were a man but a child at heart tossing foam balls around with his friends makes him feel relatable and trustworthy. Everyone likes to break the rules and take those fun safe risks and be a child again when they have the time because they long for the simpler days of playing with friends. Childhood is a time many people now long for to return because there was a lack of carefree responsibility and freedom that came with it.

It’s amazing how such a small singular product can later be blown up into a much bigger company that manufactures multiple products sold to millions. Children had the freedom to make up games with their friends to play and enjoy inside or outdoors. It was stated in the article “The History of Nerf”, that Reyn Guyer partnered with the Parker Brothers in the creation of most of these products and at some point, Nerf was eventually under the capabilities of Hasbro. No matter who officially owned Nerf, the brand Nerf didn’t change that much and instead developed in a productive direction.

A Nerf gun just a simple toy that was made for fun and engaging children’s creativity. Some people may misconstrue the look of guns for violence and some kids may get into gun usage later in life by first owning a Nerf gun. Nerf guns don’t define childhood as a start of violence or a preparation of future violent abuse of guns. To grow up playing with toy guns or not, having those toys doesn’t mean that a child will eventually turn to gun violence because a different part of that topic has to do with parenting. Some could even buy and resell the guns for personal profit because the Nerf guns are a popular product with young kids. In the beginning of Nerf, it could have been said that Nerf is subjective to a specific gender and more tailored to the wants of young boys. However, that isn’t the truth in present days as Nerf can’t be definitively defining for one specific gender group. Granted, Nerf is probably mostly used by boys, but that’s not to say that girls can’t play with toy guns as well. There have been a series of Nerf guns for girls, in which the guns are just in colored pink and/or purple plastic for a more feminine look.

Nerf defines childhood by letting children use their imagination to find adventure and create their own rules. The initial inventor, Reyn Guyer, created a product that flew much further than he thought and was one of his most popular inventions. Nerf was a major part of childhood that brought kids together to create whatever game they could using their imagination and their own rules; such as capture the flag. Such a creative and adventurous outlet for kids who crave to be outside all the time is what is needed for the kids of today who don’t always want to play outside to have fun.

 

Work Cited

D, Thomas, “The History of Nerf (From Foam Ball to Billion Dollar Brand).” Blaster Central, 8 Feb 2022, https://www.blastercentral.com/nerf-history/, accessed 10 Feb 2022.

Guyer, Reyn, “Nerf Story”, Reyn Guyer, 2016, http://www.reynguyer.com/nerf.htm, accessed 26 February 2022.