Everyone expects children to be divided. Boys are expected to play with hard and sharp toys, similar to action figures. It symbolizes the tough act that they are expected to understand, learn, and adapt to. Girls are expected to play with soft and smooth toys, similar to stuffed animals and dolls. It symbolizes the damsel in distress (or the princess culture) that young girls are expected to pretend to be afraid, have fear, or be clueless and have the knight in shining armor (or Prince Charming) rescue them, in order to make all their fears and troubles vanish into thin air. These toy preferences are learned and embraced by the age of four years old and are accepted within their gender qualities.
This little girl gives a powerful representation of learning, comprehending, and adapting towards toy preferences and gender expectations. The colors of the little girl’s princess dress symbolize her purity and femininity. The soft colors on the stuffed animals in the corner of the pink bed also resemble her femininity and the toy preferences that are expected of her; however, the dark colors of the Ninja Turtles decals symbolize that she acts tough, plays rough, and plays with weapons- toys that are of a boy’s toy preference. Her pose strikes a soft, confident look that portrays the knowledge of knowing what is best for her in spite of her age. She resembles a strong-willed and powerful young girl ready to take on life’s adversities.
In response to everything that surrounds the little girl, she seems to be overstepping the boundaries of the gender stereotypes that are aligned with the social learning theory. It portrays both a feminine and masculine balance between the division of labor and hierarchy. The way she stands asserts slight aggression and leadership skills but shows less of a nurturing, loving caretaker. The little girl abandons the traditional role to be a more nurturing, gentle, and kind lady as she gives off a sense of bravery, determination and assertiveness that a boy is expected to embrace and live up to.
In contrast, boys that step out of line can be put to shame. Anything that belittles or poses any questioning of masculinity and oversteps stereotypical boundaries, then these boys can be looked down upon, be misled, be criticized, and even be looked at as if they are more feminine than masculine. Boys that play with girl toys and want to pursue female occupations when they get older are scorned and mentally, emotionally, and sometimes physically abused. Girls and boys are expected to follow the directions the first time they are verbally and mentally given to them.
Society allows girls to embrace both toy preferences because it does not downgrade her femininity yet expands her identity. This gives her an understanding of social acceptance and an increase of self-consciousness because it enables an easier transition into adolescence due to general ideas of what the adolescent life entails and its beauty expectations. Expanding her identity will also pave the way to balance and maintain relationships. The only gender that gains any form of acceptance towards having both feminine and masculine traits, characteristics, and occupations are females due to the acceptance of gender stereotypes and preferences.
1 comment:
From: Madeline
This picture seems to resonate particularly with the "Two Cultures of Childhood" in the best way. It's a balance of feminine and masculine stereotypes of children (princesses and ninja turtles) and how they can intertwine. I really appreciate how even though the girl is not the most dominant part of picture, physically, she is still where your eye is drawn to due to her very confident and unapologetic posture. The fact that she is dressed so femininely does not detract from the dominance of her stance and her eye contact. The room itself is also representative of the balance. There is pink furniture and stuffed animals and typical things associated with femininity, as well as ninja turtles decor. The balance is emphasized particularly well in how neither of those things takes up a majority of the photo space, their are equally portrayed. The essay for this photo says that this balance couldn't work if the child pictured was male, and I agree. When it comes down to it, it is generally considered good for women and girls to cross over into masculine things, but when it is the reverse men are looked down on.
Post a Comment