Rose Petal Cottage
I watch a lot of television, but I frequently zone out during commercials. Well, last night Aaron pulled me out of my fantasy time asking if I wanted a toy muffin-baking set like the little girl in the commercial was playing with. I said that I most certainly did not, because the muffins looked really lame, but then I continued to watch in horror the full advertisement for Hasbro's Rose Petal Cottage. Holy Christ!
I couldn't believe this awful awful toy that blatantly molds little girls into the perfect 1950s homemaker. Not only does it come with "a little blue play stove with knobs that turn and an oven that really opens" (OK, I admit that my absolute favorite toy as a child was my "fake food," but keep reading!), but parents can also buy nifty additions such as a signature rose print lounge chair, muffin baking set, kitchen sink, nursery set, and washing machine.
Apparently I'm a little out of the loop, as Salon
I'm not saying that we shouldn't encourage kids -- both boys and girls -- to dream of having their own homes, families and baking sets. I'm just surprised at how unabashedly anachronistic this one seems -- I mean, couldn't you balance out the scene of her doing laundry with a shot of a pretend computer? Or a desk? Or maybe, I don't know, a book? [...]
But even if you think that analysis sounds harsh, you've got to agree that there's something a bit ironic about showing a little girl putting laundry into the dryer as the narrator describes Rose Petal Cottage as a place where she can "contain her imagination."
and Jezebel.com (go here immediately to watch the creepy commercial!)
All we're saying is that there could be a little more balance among the choices Dreamtown offers little girls, so that it accurately reflects life as a woman. After all, when these kids grow up, they're going to realize that cooking and cleaning aren't so much dreams as nightmares.
have both blogged about this toy, but my God. What makes this playhouse so appalling is not so much the kitchen or nursery set or washing machine individually, but rather that they are presented as a set to be a realistic glimpse into little girls' dreams.
After the commercial, Aaron and I were trying to think what the little boy equivalent of this toy would be: a garage with a tool bench and a living room with a football game "playing" on the television perhaps?
I couldn't believe this awful awful toy that blatantly molds little girls into the perfect 1950s homemaker. Not only does it come with "a little blue play stove with knobs that turn and an oven that really opens" (OK, I admit that my absolute favorite toy as a child was my "fake food," but keep reading!), but parents can also buy nifty additions such as a signature rose print lounge chair, muffin baking set, kitchen sink, nursery set, and washing machine.
Apparently I'm a little out of the loop, as Salon
I'm not saying that we shouldn't encourage kids -- both boys and girls -- to dream of having their own homes, families and baking sets. I'm just surprised at how unabashedly anachronistic this one seems -- I mean, couldn't you balance out the scene of her doing laundry with a shot of a pretend computer? Or a desk? Or maybe, I don't know, a book? [...]
But even if you think that analysis sounds harsh, you've got to agree that there's something a bit ironic about showing a little girl putting laundry into the dryer as the narrator describes Rose Petal Cottage as a place where she can "contain her imagination."
and Jezebel.com (go here immediately to watch the creepy commercial!)
All we're saying is that there could be a little more balance among the choices Dreamtown offers little girls, so that it accurately reflects life as a woman. After all, when these kids grow up, they're going to realize that cooking and cleaning aren't so much dreams as nightmares.
have both blogged about this toy, but my God. What makes this playhouse so appalling is not so much the kitchen or nursery set or washing machine individually, but rather that they are presented as a set to be a realistic glimpse into little girls' dreams.
After the commercial, Aaron and I were trying to think what the little boy equivalent of this toy would be: a garage with a tool bench and a living room with a football game "playing" on the television perhaps?