On the over-sexualization of our daughters
I've noticed some toddler beauty pageant sifts floating around lately, and I thought this was an interesting article to share.
More misogyny in the media stuff and how it's affecting young girls at a young age.
My daughter was never allowed to play with bratz dolls or the ilk, or be subjected to commercial advertising in the home. It's kind of a struggle to raise a child who is neither a total social outcast or a total brainwashed consumed child, lacking a true sense of self and who she is. Interestingly, I have found it markedly less difficult to raise a boy with a healthy identity, without being bombarded by marketing, who is still able to fit in cohesively with a more mainstream peer group at school. I wonder how much of this is their individual personalities and how much of this is example of little girls being more susceptible or specifically targeted by media that dictates "how to be".
http://www.redbookmag.com/kids-family/advice/sexualization-of-young-girls
Rachel Combe makes the case that little girls are acting too sexy, too soon and why.
From the article:
"Princesses are just a phase," Orenstein writes, but they mark a girl's "first foray into the mainstream culture.... And what was the first thing that culture told her about being a girl? Not that she was competent, strong, creative, or smart but that every little girl wants — or should want — to be the Fairest of Them All."
Orenstein builds her case with stats showing that the more a girl is exposed to girly-girl culture, the more vulnerable she is to depression, eating disorders, distorted body image, and risky sexual behavior. She describes one study in which college girls shown just two commercials with stereotyped portrayals of women — a girl raving about acne medicine and a woman thrilled with a brownie mix — expressed less interest in math- and science-related careers afterward than girls who hadn't been shown the ads. These days, the average child in America watches an estimated 40,000 ads a year.
Anyone else have daughters? Anyone else have an opinion?
More misogyny in the media stuff and how it's affecting young girls at a young age.
My daughter was never allowed to play with bratz dolls or the ilk, or be subjected to commercial advertising in the home. It's kind of a struggle to raise a child who is neither a total social outcast or a total brainwashed consumed child, lacking a true sense of self and who she is. Interestingly, I have found it markedly less difficult to raise a boy with a healthy identity, without being bombarded by marketing, who is still able to fit in cohesively with a more mainstream peer group at school. I wonder how much of this is their individual personalities and how much of this is example of little girls being more susceptible or specifically targeted by media that dictates "how to be".
http://www.redbookmag.com/kids-family/advice/sexualization-of-young-girls
Rachel Combe makes the case that little girls are acting too sexy, too soon and why.
From the article:
"Princesses are just a phase," Orenstein writes, but they mark a girl's "first foray into the mainstream culture.... And what was the first thing that culture told her about being a girl? Not that she was competent, strong, creative, or smart but that every little girl wants — or should want — to be the Fairest of Them All."
Orenstein builds her case with stats showing that the more a girl is exposed to girly-girl culture, the more vulnerable she is to depression, eating disorders, distorted body image, and risky sexual behavior. She describes one study in which college girls shown just two commercials with stereotyped portrayals of women — a girl raving about acne medicine and a woman thrilled with a brownie mix — expressed less interest in math- and science-related careers afterward than girls who hadn't been shown the ads. These days, the average child in America watches an estimated 40,000 ads a year.
Anyone else have daughters? Anyone else have an opinion?
Load Comments...
Discuss...
Enable JavaScript to submit a comment.