From: Sarah
In this photo two of my young cousins are playing with water guns by the pool. Kathryn is running with the water gun to go shoot it at her older brother who is not in the photo. Her other older brother Nick is next her preparing to shoot his water gun. I took this picture to show that not all children play with what are seen as gender appropriate toys. I also took it to show that social learning does have some effect on the toys that children play with. Kathryn is playing with a water gun which can often be viewed as a more masculine toy. More often than not boys are the ones that are more likely to play with weapon toys than girls are. I would say that Kathryn was playing with the water gun because she thought it was fun, but the fact that she has three older brothers could have affected her decision on the types of toys she plays with. I made the photo in black and white except for Kathryn so that she would stand out more and she would be the main focus in the photo. I also wanted the color and type of bathing suit she was wearing to stand out. She was not wearing a common stereotypical bathing suit that many seven year old girls wear. In the photo she is wearing a pink surfing top and a blue bottom. The colors of the bathing suit represent both her feminine side and her masculine side. I also made Nick's bathing suit not in black and white to show that he is wearing a more common boy's bathing suit that is blue, which is often referred to as being associated with boys. I made the water guns not in black and white to better show that both of the kids are playing with the same type of toy despite their different genders.
2 comments:
I agree with your photo, I feel as if the younger the children, the less they see the roles gender plays. Once the young girl or boy gets older, they starting worrying about what it gender appropiate. I feel that your photo also shows how when children are around their family or close friends, they always forget the roles gender plays. I know in my family, when the younger girls are around their older brothers or cousins, they don't feel as if they have anyone to impress, therefore they will play with the legos or waterguns as well. The boys will also cooperate and play house with the young girls, until they see that someone else is watching, such as an older brother or father figure.
Overall, I enjoy your picture, I agree with what you are saying.
This shows that boys and girls both play with the same toys at some point and time. Gender roles do not always divide the two sexes. It is seen that sometimes girls will play violently with boys even though it is always known to be that way.
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