Toy store investigation - Essay Example

Toys “R” Us When I entered Toys “R” Us, I got a quick sense of warmth because of all the teddy bears that were piled up when I entered the store. The girls’ section was the first to catch my attention because of the bright colors. The whole section was covered in all different shades of pink. Each aisle in the girls’ section were categorized by different themes, such as “Girl’s Gourmet Cooking“, which consisted of cooking tools, as well as fake food. Another aisle called “Fashion Dolls” is where you can find make-up, wigs, nails and dresses.

There was another aisle called “Little Mommy”, which consisted primarily of baby dolls, stroller, baby bottles and fake diapers. The final aisle was called “Princess and Me“. This was my favorite aisle, because it was so fascinating and eye catching. It was filled with princess crowns that are covered in fake jewels. It also had adorable shoes with heels, as well as fairy tale wings, tutus and ballerina shoes. There were many things I found very disturbing about this section. The first thing was the way they portrayed a woman’s role to these young girls, particularly at this age because their brains are like sponges.

I feel this is just teaching them when they grow up they have to cook, clean and take care of their children while looking fabulous. I was also shocked by the career choices that are given to young girls as well. Motherhood was the number one role that was illustrated in this section. They also expect the girl to be friendlier and less violent because of the language used on the packages. They frequently uses words like ‘pretty‘, ‘lovely‘, ‘friends‘, and ‘together‘. These words are displayed in a round smooth lettering.

The boys’ section was directly across from the girls’ section, decorated all in blue. This section was also categorized by different themes. The first aisle I came to was called “Home Depot” which contained fake hammers, screwdrivers, hard hats and tool belts. There were about two aisles dedicated to action figures of all types. The next aisle was called “Battle Force” and this aisle contained mini saws, shields and war action figures. Another section was called “Outdoors and Sports”, which was filled with all types of balls, baseball gloves, bats and hockey sticks.

This section portrayed men to be hard working and athletic. The boys’ section I felt had better career opportunity than the girls’ section. This section came with doctor, fire and police jackets, as well as plumbing supplies. The other thing I noticed about the boys’ section was the language used on the packaging. For the boys they used words like ‘force‘, ‘fast‘, ‘battle‘, ‘tough’ and ‘ultimate‘. These toys to me would promote some sort of competition and strength. They were in a very sharp and pointed lettering.

The boys and girls’ sections were about the same size and cost of the toys was about the same. It just depended on what you were looking to purchase that day. The aisle I choose to walk down and do a count of gender was filled with stoves, shovels, outdoor houses, etc. When I was done counting, I ended up with 7 boys’ toys and 23 girls toys. This is just another example of how females are portrayed to young girls. Children learn gender in many different arenas and from many different people.

One way kids learn about appropriate gender behavior is through toys. As a society we cannot be upset when men grow up expecting women to have dinner cooked, the house to be cleaned, caring for the children while looking fabulous because these roles are forced on them as children. When the situation becomes problematic, that is when we will pay attention. The last aisle in the store, the farthest to the left, contained board games, computer software games, and puzzles from ceiling to floor. This is the only aisle in the store that does not have merchandise separated by gender or age.

In the future, I think that toys should not be separated into girl and boy toys. I think that children should be free to choose the toys that interest them the most without society and their families telling them that these toys are okay to play with, while those toys are not for you. I think that in the future people will be more open to letting children play with whatever toys they want.