Gender roles

             Around the holidays toy stores such as Toys R Us and Kay Bee Toys are buzzing with activity. They are two of the more popular places to shop for toys. For the purpose of this project, I visited the Toys R Us in Lake Grove. Let me just tell you, it was a big mistake to visit the one by the mall, because the traffic, on top of the mall traffic was ridiculous! I should have chosen a different location! Anyway, since I was younger, not much has changed in the variety of toys that is available for children to play with. The toys are available though and the way that they are merchandised in the store or in catalogs can pass along stereotypes of gender roles to children.
             In walking around Toys R Us, there are many toys available for children under the age ten in this store. The way that the store is merchandised has a lot to do with the passing along of gender stereotypes. The toys for the boys are in one area of the store, while the toys for girls are in another. Toys such as games and puzzles, which some of them could be considered to be gender neutral, are located in a different section of the store. To top it all off, the packaging for the boys toys is mostly in blue, and the toys for girls is mostly in pink. The toys for boys consisted of action figures, toy cars and sporting goods. The toys for girls consisted of Barbie dolls, stuffed animals, more dolls and arts and crafts. These toys teach girls about nurturing and physical beauty, while most of the toys for boys teach them about their physical strength abilities.
             Boy's toys tend to be very "manly". Take Tonka Trucks for example. They are mostly made and marketed toward the male gender. They can be played with inside as well as outside. Outside is probably more exciting for young boys, because they can fill the dump truck up with dirt, dig ditches and have their own little construction site. There are also workbenches and other tools, as well ...

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Gender roles. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 01:43, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/25937.html