Toy Store Visit

        Although, I haven't been inside Toys R' Us for quite some time, I must mention how shocked I was at how the toys are marketed to boys and girls with such a clear division, instead of inclusion. It was a very different experience to go there not as a shopper, but for the purpose of noting how advertising speaks to parents and children regarding gender and identity.

     As I began walking through the electronics isle, I noted the colors that were used to indicate which ones were intended for boys, or for girls. On one side of the isle there were cameras, alarm clocks, head phones, MP3 & Video players, Text Messenger gadgets etc...that were mostly shades of blue, grey, black, or yellow. On the opposite side, these same items for girls were in various shades of pink, purple, and white. As I continued perusing around the store, I saw the Home Depot Toy section. These were specifically marketed to boys because there were only pictures of males on the front of the boxes. I saw toy drills, hammers, construction sets, and even weed trimmers. I thought this to be very disheartening, due to the fact that I have known girls who enjoy using a hammer and nails to create things out of wood, too.

    Looking up and down the shelves, the color pink seemed to be everywhere. Anything that was intended for girls screamed PINK. Now, I know that there are many, many different colors in the Crayola crayon box! As I walked further, I saw a sign that read Housekeeping. I headed to this isle and saw pink grocery carts filled with plastic toy food, kitchen sets, and even vacuum cleaners with only girls pictures on the front of the boxes. I have known quite a few boys that have enjoyed playing house with the girls and pretending with those items, too. When I saw the isle that read, Military, Rescue, Future, and Adventure, I walked over there. Most of the colors, of course, were many shades of camouflage - greens, blacks, browns etc...Interestingly...but at this point during this visit... not very shocking... all the boxes and sets had only boys pictures on the front. Clearly, there are many women serving in our military that hold some very high positions. They also fly planes and helicopters, and even have graduated from West Point.

     I concluded my visit in the sports isle. I realized that there was no difference in how some of sports were marketed to boys or girls. In fact, there were soccer ball sets and T-Ball sets that had only boys pictures on the front. This was unbelievable considering the Olympic Women's Soccer Team and all the girls soccer teams in schools across our country.

   I began to wonder how girls and boys feel when they end up in a certain isle looking for a specific item, but they don't see their gender on the front of the box.  Are they disappointed? Confused? Does it register in their subconscious? Do they begin to question their desire for certain toys, or even feel bad, or even ashamed about it?

Communication & Gender class - Post #1

     Well, this is my very first blog and I'm actually excited to come out of my shell to post some thoughts I have regarding the themes of this class. After allowing some of the main ideas to simmer in my mind for awhile, I started to think back on my childhood in the late 60's and 70's, and how the themes of femininity was masculinity were presented to me in my house.

     From my earliest memory, I wanted to look pretty. My mom never left the house without having her makeup on and styling her hair. I liked to watch her in the bathroom performing her morning routine. As for my Dad, he was in the car business and he never left the house without wearing a suit and tie. For my third birthday, I have a vague memory of wanting my hair curled before the party because  I always watched my mom roll her beautiful red hair in curlers at night before bed. One of my favorite gifts from that day was a basket filled with  "little girl" nail polish and some small little plastic compacts of blush, powder and lipstick. There is actually a picture from that day in one of my mom's many photo albums. I was sitting on the floor wearing only the slip that was under my party dress and I was playing with the contents of that basket. I know that I was in my glory by the huge smile that was on my face in the picture.

     During my adolescence, I loved my Barbies. I had the Barbie Camper, the Barbie Car, and a couple of the portable Barbie wardrobe holders, complete with the miniature pink hangers. I could never have enough clothes and high heel shoes for my dolls. (To this day, I still love clothes and high heeled boots and shoes... but for myself!)  Eventually, I had to have the Ken doll to play with, too. Barbie and Ken would go on trips in the camper, or take rides in their car to various destinations that I made up. 

My brother is 3 years younger than me and I remember him playing with his hot wheels, Lincoln Logs, and Tonka dump trucks. Our roles as girl and boy came natural to us and we never questioned anything different. I realize that for many people the role of gender is not so basic, or as "cut and dry" as my own, so I am looking forward to learning about how the identities of others were presented during their childhoods, and how they came to view their gender role(s).