Which boyfriend do I want....

After reading Jennifer Scanlon's article on "Boys R Us" it really opened my eyes to see this is reality. I guess you never notice these things when you're younger because you're too busy having fun with friends playing 'these' games. Now, I'm being faced to see what the social structure is really all about. I actually remember playing games very similar to this one, it was called MASH. The principle of MASH is very similar to these games that are being sold my multi-millionaire companies which is so shocking because I never realized it! For the game MASH you would choose as many categories and would have 3 options you like and dislike. For example, we usually listed boys/girls (and was always opposite gender), cars, jobs, how many children, pets and so forth. Then you would continue with the choosing of where you would live, who you'd marry, etc. I remember if I had an awesome outcome with the cute boy at the time I would show all my friends who I was going to marry and where we were going to live.

For a long time I was the youngest in my immediate family and you tend to forget the significance

games have on children. It wasn't until my first niece was born and when I would shop it was

always girls having the colorful pink aisles in toy stores and its all floral and full of boas and

the boy aisles have the darker colors. Things haven't changed, I remember all this from when

I was young.

This reading really opened my eyes just now. I have two nieces; one 5 and the other 2. They

both look up to me so much and constantly are curious when I'm getting ready, putting my

makeup on, painting my nails that they start picking this up. I'm learning that I'm having a big

role in gender, not just toys. They are learning gender roles from me, as I learned them from

my sister. She was CONSTANTLY dressing me up, putting makeup on me when I was very

young and doing my hair. I was like her little doll and I loved it and wanted to be just like her

was. But now I see the effect it can have on children. I also see the impact Disney movies have on young girls. The movies portray

to them that men are always the ones who are supposed to support you and 'sweep your from

your feet'. It's been so long since I've seen Disney movies and now watching them as I'm older

I really see how powerful they are to young girls. They're sending a message that you need

men in your life to make you happy at the end of the day. Things are far from that in the real

world!