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Katie Braman

Professor Quimby

WMGST 121-​ ​Toyland Assignment

March 5, 2019

Who Plays With Barbies?

Growing up in the Twin Cities, there was not a shortage of toys stores. Zany Brainy,

Toys”R”Us, and Creative Kidstuff specialized in fun for kids of all ages. I loved going to the toy

store to play with games, dolls, art supplies, puzzles, balls, and jump ropes. As a youngster, these

stores seem to have it all. Unfortunately, with today’s heavy competition from big box retailers

like Target and Walmart, Creative Kidstuff is the only one still in the game, pun intended! Busy

families want a place to shop where they get everything on their list in one place and be able to

pick up groceries, clothes, get prescriptions refilled, and even toys in one stop brings consumers

to retailers like Target. With about 1,800 stores in the United States, Target has a presence in

many communities throughout the country. The assignment to visit a toy aisle brought me to the

big red and white bullseye, Target.

Walking into the Midway Target in St. Paul is always a slice of Americana. It is in an

urban neighborhood filled with diversity of every kind: economic, racial, ethnic, gender, and age.

Being a frequent Target shopper, I knew right where the toy department was located. Regardless

of where they are situated, Target stores for the most part are clean and free from clutter. In the

Target I visited, the toy aisles were in the back of the store probably so mom and dad have to

walk through several other departments before they get to the toy area and hopefully drop some

things in their cart to buy on the way. The toy department has signs everywhere to direct

consumers. On my visit, there were several children and adults milling about the aisles which did
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not surprise me. This brought me back to a childhood memory when my Grandma Barbara

would bring me to Target for a spoiling day which meant I could basically select any toy in the

store and she would buy it for me.

Children are exposed to multiple gendered messages from a very young age. This notion

was obvious and apparent throughout the toy section with the exception of the toddler toys that

were organized by age appropriateness versus gender. There were approximately four aisles that

were geared for boys and had signs in the area that were mostly blue, yellow, and green. The

rows of “boy” toys featured Nerf guns, Tonka trucks, Jurassic dinosaurs, the Incredibles,

Pokeman, Spiderman/Batman, Hot Wheel cars, and of course, lots of Lego building sets. The

next four aisles attracted girls with pink and purple signs. In the “girl” aisles, I found one full of

just Disney princess items. Others had Polly Pockets, food and craft activities, Shopkins, knock

off Cabbage Patch Kids, American Girl-like dolls. What caught my attention the most was the

massive section of Barbie dolls.

Before delving into the iconic Barbie and what it tells us about the process of gender

socialization, it is important to define two important terms: gender identity and gender

socialization. Gender identity refers to each individual's personal sense of their own gender.

There is no guarantee that a person's gender identity will be consistent with his or her biological

sex. In ​Threshold Concepts in Women's and Gender Studies: Ways of Seeing, Thinking, and

Knowing​, gender socialization is the processes for example: social feedback, institutional

organizations, and policies that communicate socially appropriate feminine and masculine roles.

(Launius & Hassel, 2018, p. 235). Where and how people socialize is vital. Some of these

environments include families, schools, places of worship, through pop culture, sports and

activities, and the media (Launius & Hassel, 2018, p. 37). To reinforce the concept of gender
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socialization, families and more specifically parents/caregivers influence how and what young

children play and interact with. For the most part, it seems that adults still tend to encourage

young boys to play with trucks and legos and young girls to play with dolls.

The official Barbie website reports that Ruth Handler created Barbie in 1959. Over the

course of the last sixty years, the Barbie doll has been reinvented so that she remains relevant,

current, and modern. There were some significant milestones for the iconic doll. In 1968, the

first African American Barbie named Christie was available. Reinforcing the original motto that

girls can be whoever they want, Barbie launched a “We Girls Can Do Anything” ad campaign in

1985. With the growing interest in technology, Barbie came out with a Feature Length Film in

2001, an “app” for electronic devices in 2010, and started an Instagram account in 2014. In the

past couple of years, Barbie has continued to change by offering more dolls with different skin

tones, disabilities, different body types, and an updated Ken doll. The Barbie doll line continues

to evolve with an awareness of cultural norms and societal expectations.

The reinvented 2015 ad campaign, “You Can Be Anything” line produced over 200

different career Barbie dolls. While the doll is available at many toy and big box stores, the

average price of a Barbie doll at Target is under ten dollars which seems economical. I must

admit that I had a couple Barbies when I was about ten years old, but I do not recall playing with

them that often. My Barbies all looked the same: white, skinny, and big boobs. Today, while

women are defying gender roles and are pursuing any imaginable career, Barbie has also adopted

that point of view. The latest additions to the “You Can Be Anything” line include a dentist,

music teacher, barista, firefighter, astronaut, athlete, political candidate, politician, chef, and dog

groomer.
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This particular ad campaign is showcased on the end of an aisle at Target and draws a lot

of attention to consumers walking by (see Fig. 1). This particular display represents a small

fraction of the broad range of occupation themed Barbies. The packaging of the product is

Fig. 1. Barbie Display at Midway Target in St. Paul, MN

colorful, attractive, and engaging. I can understand how a child would want one of these dolls,

especially since there are so many choices. Down the aisle from the endcap display is another

complete row of more Barbies. The volume of inventory and the space these products occupy on

the shelves is quite impressive to me. Representing a diverse offering of racial backgrounds, I

noticed a small selection of different skin-toned Barbie dolls. Also in the same aisle, there are

supplemental collections of Skipper (Barbie’s younger sister), Chelsea (Barbie’s youngest sister),

and Ken (Barbie’s boyfriend) dolls. The three dolls have been part of the Barbie brand for a long

time.
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Looking at how Barbie dolls impact gender socialization, there are some basic

considerations in regards to how children play with them. Dolls in general are thought to be

played with by predominantly girls. Parents, educators, daycare providers often relay a message

that it is appropriate and acceptable for girls to play with dolls, and Barbie is no exception. The

message to boys is the contrary. Part of the reason for this is that most dolls are considered to be

female gendered and therefore girls tend to want to play with toys aligned as being of the same

gender. In general girls tend to want to be like their mothers and therefore they are more likely to

play with dolls, to change their clothes, play “house” and other imaginary situations with them.

In addition, girls may see the nurturing qualities of their mom and mimic those behaviors with

their dolls. For a boy to play with a doll, even a male doll, some people believe that it is not an

appropriate male behavior and that boys should be playing with more masculine type of toys like

cars, trucks, and guns. Most stereotypical roles that cultures and communities have defined for

boys and girls are entrenched in a historical context. As our society becomes more gender neutral

in thought and practice, there seems to be more tolerance and open-mindedness to allowing

children to play with whatever they want.

Marketers on the other hand are still packaging products to attract a certain demographic

like gender or age. As I mentioned earlier, Barbie’s packaging is appealing. I do not think that

Mattel intentionally tries to attract only females to their products. In fact with the growth of more

male dolls that have different hair styles, represent different ethnic backgrounds, and reflect a

variety of skin tones of modern society, one may conclude that more boys may be interested in

playing with dolls because they may look like them. In fact, I found it interesting at Target that in

the “You Can Be Anything” line that there was a darker skinned Ken doll with a “man bun”

dressed as a coffee barista (Fig. 2) Even if boys choose not to play with or possess Ken dolls,
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Fig. 2 The Ken doll is featured in Barbie’s “You

Can Be Anything” line as a Barista

many girls may still want a Ken doll in their collection because playing with both Barbie and

Ken dolls represents real life: females and males interacting with each other.

In my opinion, Mattel has made deliberate efforts in their marketing of the Barbie doll to

be inclusive in promoting gender, race, and ethnicity. Their career line of Barbies includes dolls

promoting typical female careers, non-traditional female careers, in addition to contemporary

and creative careers like a chicken farmer. The company wants to reflect modern society in an

effort to sell dolls that consumers can relate to. Like many toys that have withstood the test of

time, Mattel has been progressive and willing to change their products, including Barbie, given

the current political and social demands of society as well as for their own economic benefit .

Since its creation, the Barbie doll has tried to break traditional gender stereotypes and

foster an “I can do anything” mentality for young girls who play with the dolls. While Mattel

does not seem to promote their dolls, specifically to boys, I do not think they are discriminating

against them. They recognize and develop the relationship with their niche of consumers, young
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girls and their parents/caregivers. We live in a gendered society and perceived and projected

gender roles influence children at home, in school, and throughout their communities. Looking at

toys as things that foster socialization and perhaps influence gender roles is a way to understand

the human condition and the diversity that surrounds it. When it comes to measuring how the

Barbie doll impacts gender socialization, it seems that Mattel is trying to break the glass ceiling

about appropriate roles for girls. By reinforcing the mantra that she can do anything or be

anything, from a firefighter (Fig. 3) to a chicken farmer (Fig. 4), Barbie represents the ideal

Fig. 3 In the“You Can Be Anything” line, Barbie

represents unconventional careers like a firefighter
or Fig. 4 a chicken farmer

that one can pursue whatever she or he wants regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or social class.

Granted toys are just one factor in how children learn gender socialization, however, it plays a

key role in human development. The cultural and societal values and stereotypes influence how

children socialize and adapt to the world that is often filled with mixed messages about gender.
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Works Cited

​ arbie​. R
(2019).​ B ​ etrieved from www.barbie.mattel.com.

Launius, C., & Hassel, H. (2018). ​Threshold Concepts in Women's and Gender Studies: Ways

of Seeing, Thinking, and Knowing​. (2nd ed.). New York, NY, Routledge Press.