This morning I came across advertisements displaying the latest toys for girls and boys. After just a moment, it was clear to me the toys for girls fell into three categories:
1. Toys to make you pretty (make-up).
2. Toys to help you become a mommy (baby dolls).
3. Toys that allow you to cook a meal (kitchen sets).
My god. Are those the only toys little girls want to play with? Or do we force those stereotypes on girls at a young age?
I'm proud to say that a majority of my girl-friends are in fields that are male-dominated (medicine, engineering, law, biology), so I can't say with complete certainty that these toys are harmful to women. So I'll ask THEM...do you think these toys are harmful? Do you feel you would see more women in your field if little girls built toy cities rather than bake cupcakes?
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2 comments:
I had dolls and barbies but I also had transfomers, science sets, telescopes, legos, etc. I'm not sure if this was because I have a brother who is fairly close to me in age, my parents' leanings, or my own preference.
I had Barbies growing up, so I guess it didn't have a nefarious effect on me since I went into science. But like D, I did have transformers and a chemistry set, etc. So maybe what a kid needs is variety. And to not feel like they only have to play with "girl toys". Follow-up question ... isn't GI Joe just a male-acceptable Barbie?
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