Christensen Response

Quotes

Quote 1

"...Cindy Ellie's main goal in life is not working of the homeless or teaching kids to read. Her goal, like Cinderella's, is to get her man. Both young women are transformed and made beautiful through new clothes, new jewels, new hairstyles. Both have chauffeurs who deliver them to their men."

- This quote stood out to me because I find it very important to teach children at a young age that material items are not what sets their beauty. Not even just their appearance, but I see more and more nowadays how a child's social status and happiness is being defined by the items they have (cell phones, video games, etc.)  

Quote 2

 "Sabrina said: "I realized these problems weren't just in cartoons. They were in everything - every magazine I picked up, every television show I watched, every billboard I passed by on the street."

- While reading this article and thinking about all of the negative images society implants in youth's minds, I could not help but consider how some new societal changes could impact the next generation. For example, Barbie has just put out a new collection of dolls entitled "The Evolution of Barbie". In this collection, customers can purchase dolls categorized by curvy, tall, petite and original. It makes me happy knowing that children are now able to become more knowledgeable of different body styles and races. Another example is companies like Sports Illustrated and Aerie have recently advertised for "Untouched" photos of their models. 

Comments:

This previous Christmas one of my three year old sister's favorite presents was her gift set of about ten Disney Princess Barbie dolls. While playing with her, I could not help but notice their bodies: hourglass figures with perfect hair and makeup. Being a Disney lover myself I never really thought about how their apparel could potentially affect young girls and their implanted images of how beauty should look. While some critics look with further speculations, Disney overall has introduced Princesses from different races and cultures.