Toy Story

By Alexis DeVries

Photo by Xavi Cabrera

When I was growing up and my parents asked what I wanted for my birthday or Christmas, I commonly asked for toys such as race cars, LEGO sets, and Nerf guns. All the boys in my neighborhood had these toys, and I was envious. They refused to share when I came over to play and insisted that I play the princess trapped in a tower so they could save me instead. My family rejected my wish list and bought me boring clothes and baby dolls. Society enforced gender norms on me through toys before I knew what they were.

When you walk through a toy store, the girl’s aisle and the boy’s aisle are entirely different worlds. One has pink, purple, and yellow colors, while the other has blue, orange, and black tones. Even toys traditionally marketed to boys like Nerf guns and LEGO sets are in the girl's aisle but in pink and have a complete line specifically “for girls.” What does “LEGO for girls” mean? Shouldn’t LEGO bricks be for everyone? What I find especially disturbing is how young girls are constantly being marketed toys that gear toward having a baby or cooking and cleaning. This indoctrinates women from a young age on their place in society long before they should worry about it. Toys like Barbie also traditionally give young women an unhealthy image of what their bodies, skin, and hair should look like. Even an old Barbie commercial states, “Someday I’m going to be exactly like you. Until then, I know what I'll do. Beautiful Barbie.” This slogan gives the message that young girls aren’t beautiful now and won’t be beautiful when they're older unless they look like Barbie.

The same issue is true for boys and masculinity. Boys are marketed toys that are career-based instead of family-based, such as engineering, military roles, etc. This teaches them to have confidence in their technical abilities and that they must work to provide for their family someday. They are trained to want big muscle-y arms like those of the military soldiers, while girls are taught to be skinny and frail like Barbie. Many researchers are now finding that this can cause body dysmorphia in men, too. Boys are often shamed and called derogatory slurs by peers if they dare to pick up a Barbie doll. Gender-marketed toys are harmful to all sexes and should instead be promoted to all kids equally so they can decide for themselves what they like and where they fit in.

References:

https://youtu.be/9hhjjhYGQtY

https://youtu.be/9X382bCvVvo

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/may/28/toys-kids-girls-boys-childhood-development-gender-research