tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post5275617464438518360..comments2023-06-28T04:54:16.142-07:00Comments on Anthroslug the Much Put-Upon: Princesses, Barbies, Daughters, and PanicsAnthroslughttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12455234504938025982noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-74874415809257348162012-07-24T13:57:27.470-07:002012-07-24T13:57:27.470-07:00The women in your daughter's will life affect ...The women in your daughter's will life affect what she strives to be; The men in your daughter's life will affect how she interacts with the opposite sex; and siblings affect her ability to cope. It's an oversimplification, I know, but it sounds cool.<br /><br />Unfortunately people vote with their wallets and that means the Princess meme dominates the female gender specific toys. The same with books, mostly because girls (or their parents) don't differentiate whether they will read a book based on the gender of the protagonist, boys will.<br /><br />We let our girls do as they like for playtime and we're pretty happy with the result.<br /><br />And those are my clumps of random thoughts.Evan Davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16182133151384159011noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-77738543276896454812012-07-17T22:52:33.123-07:002012-07-17T22:52:33.123-07:00I appreciate your unconcern.
However, you may fin...I appreciate your unconcern.<br /><br />However, you may find it as frustrating as I did, when I realized that 90% of the children's picture books out there have male protagonists. It's completely mystifying. And also not at all.<br /><br />Is there a connection between that and the fact that my daughter thinks it's much more fun to be a "pirate boy" than to be a "pirate girl"? Maybe, maybe not.Shawn Kilburnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01731863648750407654noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-72313224473311831872012-07-06T14:45:03.935-07:002012-07-06T14:45:03.935-07:00It came off as a discussion, and a good one, not a...It came off as a discussion, and a good one, not as an attack. So, no worries.Anthroslughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02047686739793030565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-87135190764881669382012-07-06T14:39:59.781-07:002012-07-06T14:39:59.781-07:00I see your point and agree. I wasn't trying to...I see your point and agree. I wasn't trying to attack your argument, in case I came off that way. I like exploring this issue. Thanks for this discussion, its gotten me to re-examine my opinions.Allisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13062453286031077483noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-21218450075766299442012-07-06T14:25:01.770-07:002012-07-06T14:25:01.770-07:00I agree that there are real issues that need to be...I agree that there are real issues that need to be dealt with. However, when we focus our attention on what we think to be causes without doing the work to determine what, if any, role those things actually play, we are more likely than not going to waste energy and resources tilting at windmills, leaving the actual problem essentially untouched. Worse, by attacking the wrong things, people can actually make the legitimate efforts to improve things look bad.<br /><br />So, for example, you cite the research on media portrayals of women. Arguing in favor of changing the media portrayal of women to a more realistic (at least physiologically realistic) representation of women is probably helpful, based on research done on the issue. However, in the public mind, and in political discussions, this legitimate argument tends to get lumped in with people who upset over things that either are or appear to be irrelevant to the larger issue, which serves to give the people who don't want a change a rhetorical tool that is very effective, based on my admittedly anecdotal experience, in painting the people to whom they are opposed as over-reacting and therefore not to be taken seriously.<br /><br />A good comparison from my professional life would be the fact that I (and most of my colleagues) recognize that we can't save every site, so we argue for a reasonable effort to determine which sites are eligible for preservation and which are not based on a set of criteria spelled out in federal and state law. However, we are routinely lumped in with people who will not accept that a site might be damaged in order to build necessary infrastructure. As a result, it is a rare project where I do not find myself involved in some sort of political fight because somebody in a position of power doesn't think that I am trying to stop all work everywhere.Anthroslughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02047686739793030565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-21043543247179896422012-07-06T12:34:37.182-07:002012-07-06T12:34:37.182-07:00I think the fear that the toys could effect young ...I think the fear that the toys could effect young girls comes from the huge problem women have with body-image. There have been studies showing that after adolescent girls view images with models, their body image is lower. While there are probably other factors in our culture that contribute to this, I would say that how the media portrays women can be detrimental to young girls. So finding out what is harmful and what isn't is complex. Having women in their life they can look up to, as you say, is really important.I don't know of any studies that have to do with toys kids play with and body image so I tend to agree with you that people are over-reacting in some cases. But the fear is based in a real issue of body image for women in our society, and not completely irrational.Allisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13062453286031077483noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-19224633410825435622012-07-06T09:09:30.754-07:002012-07-06T09:09:30.754-07:00"I've never heard anyone complain that ch..."I've never heard anyone complain that children shouldn't be forced to play play princess"<br /><br />That's why I said, "Your experience may differ".Narfihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14796410308785524785noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-1011274641608622592012-07-05T14:46:06.168-07:002012-07-05T14:46:06.168-07:00So, Tannara, I remember us having a few conversati...So, Tannara, I remember us having a few conversations about strange times when our paths nearly crossed prior to us actually meeting in Santa Barbara...well, this is another one.<br /><br />My friends Sarah and Kirin were graduating from UCSC that same year, and I was in the audience during that speech.Anthroslughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02047686739793030565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-53412273471232122622012-07-05T13:06:25.540-07:002012-07-05T13:06:25.540-07:00When I graduated from UCSC the president of my col...When I graduated from UCSC the president of my college gave a speech. I don't remember much about it except this one part where he talked about this subject raised here. He talked about being concerned that his daughter was given Barbies by extended family members, but that his concerns were put to rest after he took her up to San Francisco for a peace march/protest (this was around the start of the war in Iraq). That night when he went into her bed room to help her get ready for bed he found that the stuffed animals, led by Barbie, were marching though the bedroom chanting "The people, united, will never be defeated."Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11148850635150464639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-2022000544773365782012-07-05T10:58:39.154-07:002012-07-05T10:58:39.154-07:00Fair enough, and I have a similar revulsion to toy...Fair enough, and I have a similar revulsion to toys and tropes that, for example, portray Native Americans as "noble savages" or "primitives." <br /><br />But the problem isn't that people don't want their children exposed to these things because they find it offensive or in some particular way problematic. That I get. Hell, I don't want to buy into this stuff because I find the way that it has been turned into a marketing scheme by Disney to be offensive. <br /><br />The problem is that it is very common for people to assume that these things are harmful to the children themselves because of a popular narrative that simply doesn't recieve much critical evaluation.Anthroslughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02047686739793030565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-71166181378512442362012-07-05T10:50:49.810-07:002012-07-05T10:50:49.810-07:00To me, the issue is not that the princesses will c...To me, the issue is not that the princesses will corrupt a little girl. Its more that they, and Barbie, and the other myriad representations of women girls play with are poor portrayals of women. They are offensive because of what they portray. I would want my daughter to be able to play with toys that don't represent stupid tropes about women Not in fear that it would harm her, but because they are offensive.Allisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13062453286031077483noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-46061039105594308072012-07-05T08:54:02.437-07:002012-07-05T08:54:02.437-07:00I've never heard anyone complain that children...I've never heard anyone complain that children shouldn't be forced to play play princess, only that they shouldn't be allowed to.<br /><br />Now, if it's a matter of not forcing them, then I can get on the bandwagon there. But the formulation that I keep hearing is much more absurd.Anthroslughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02047686739793030565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3540283839479085577.post-13241122633338331672012-07-05T01:13:51.589-07:002012-07-05T01:13:51.589-07:00While there are some people who say that girls sho...While there are some people who say that girls shouldn't be allowed to play princesses, the much more common complaint I've heard (your experience may differ) is that they shouldn't be FORCED to. Girls should be ALLOWED to be knights, explorers or detectives.<br /><br />I understand that you're unlikely to force your child into a princess role, but those people exist, and should be opposed.Narfihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14796410308785524785noreply@blogger.com