Parents of young girls (or boys):
This should scare the shit out of you. I know it did it to me.
A few quotes:
For generations, parents have been wailing “they’re growing up so fast,” while, according to many academics and psychologists, the smallest among us are being exposed to more and more adult themes at younger ages. The effect is impossible to quantify, but in the progression from Barbie to Bratz and beyond, much can be learned about how society has blurred the lines between children and adults, and sexuality and gender roles.
Handler’s great insight was to see that from the way girls played with paper dolls, there was a market for a doll that looked more like a grown-up, one who was pretty and fashionable. Barbie’s original target audience was 9- to 12-year-olds.
Today, the idea of 12-year-olds playing with Barbie dolls seems ridiculous. The “tween” market has exploded in recent years — to the point where designer Marc Jacobs is taking 12-year-old actress Dakota Fanning as the face of his spring 2007 clothing line. Chuck Scothon, president of Mattel’s Barbie division, emphasizes the multiple incarnations of the brand — “I always say, there’s a Barbie girl for every age” — but says that “Barbie toy strength is cornerstone for ages 3 to 7.”
“It programs them to do stuff they can’t understand and we don’t want them to understand — being sexy. They learn the appearance of sexy before they know what it means (bold mine).”
A 2000 study commissioned by the Girl Scouts of America called “Teens Before Their Time” concluded that “Physically, girls’ bodies are maturing earlier than ever before. Cognitively, they are acquiring information about the world at an accelerated pace. … The dilemma is that these same girls do not have the emotional maturity, nor do they have the information, to match their accelerated aspirations and expectations.”
Extreme gender divisions, she said, can hurt future relationships. “When you’re taught that what females are supposed to be are objects, you’re taught that happiness comes from being the right object, buying the right object, not from deeper, more internal, more meaning-making things,” Levin says, noting that doll play is where girls internalize that message. Levin worries that when it comes time for romantic relationships, both genders will have narrow expectations of each other.
Okay, so there are more quotables from the article and I have many thoughts on this, but will probably flesh that out in the comments section, so please comment. I know that saying so means nobody comments, but hey. This post has been marinating for too long and it’s time to get it up here. Or perhaps I’ll add an update edit to the post.
I wonder where Polly Pockets fall in that line… Not real sure, but I will guarantee you Judah will not be getting any Bratz dolls. I know what you’re thinking - famous last words. People thought we’d give up on the cloth diapers and electronic toys too, but we haven’t.
LOOK AT HER LIPS!!! Not only are those dolls teaching girls about “sexy”, but also a bit about “getting a little work done.”
I don’t have very much of interest to say on the matter, except how interesting it is to put Barbie right next to Bratz and see the difference! I’ve personally never had a problem with Barbie - I played with them when I was a kid (okay, up until I was about 13 or 14) and really they were just great for learning how to French braid.
But I see people’s issues with her.
But put her next to a Bratz dolls and those issues suddenly seem so miniscule in comparision! I detest Bratz for the very reason you quoted - the sexy factor. I have no desire for my daughter to play with Bratz anymore than I desire her to wear 85% of the clothing now being manufactured for young girls. (Can we say thongs for 3-4 years???)
Oh gosh, don’t even get me started on the clothes thing.
yes, i would sling curse words and wipe lots of shit off the face of the earth man. i wish i could really do something that woul dmake a difference and lasting change, like really fast and all that. but im impatient.. and God one day will make things new.. but until then, this all is crappy. I’m restricted on what I want to say here, because I’m not the best at communicating very effectually. I do think they should make dolls with tiny boobs and pudgy bellies. i wish our culture thought reality was beautiful.