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naomikritzerI grew up in Madison, so I started getting American Girl catalogs shortly after the company was founded. I remember thinking several things as I paged through:
1. Holy crap, are these dolls ever expensive.
2. They're awfully nice, though. And look at all the outfits. And accessories. And books.
3. I would have given my right arm for one of these back when I was still young enough that I played with dolls.
4. I never would have gotten one, though.
(For the uninitiated, a very quick introduction: the American Girls company makes dolls, each of which goes with a set of books about a fictional nine-year-old girl living in a particular historical period. For example, one of the original dolls was Kirsten, a 19th-century Swedish immigrant who goes to live in Minnesota. In addition to the doll, there are outfits that correspond to the stories in each book, and a wealth of accessories.)
My mother was both fascinated and repulsed by the dolls. On one hand, she approved of the fact that these were dolls with outfits and accessories that weren't Barbie dolls. On the other, she was appalled by the prices. ($80 gets you one doll, the outfit she's wearing, and a book.) She also perceived the girls in the stories as being extremely privileged. I remember her grousing about the lack of "Suzie, the Little Sharecropper Girl" who'd have only one outfit and no accessories because her family was penniless.
The company says that the books are the heart of the company. This is BS, of course: the books are a marketing tool for the overpriced dolls. But they're surprisingly well written for a marketing tool. Molly has now read nearly all of them; I've picked up and read several, including the entire Kit series. And, I have to say, my mother was wrong that the stories reflect privilege. Most don't.
There isn't a Suzie the Sharecropper, but the character Addy (not one of the original characters, but added early) is a slave at the beginning of her story, and escapes to Philadelphia with her mother during the Civil War. The war ends partway through the series of books, but her family is not fully reunited until the last book. (Addy's mother leaves Addy's one-year-old sister behind with a relative when they flee.) One of Molly's favorites was Kit, the Depression-era girl: her father loses his business in Meet Kit and over the course of the series, he never finds a job. The family converts their house into a boarding house to make ends meet, and even with that extra money, they come close to homelessness. The books tell stories about making do and doing without -- in the Christmas stories, they emphasize friendship and family, and the girls who receive presents get mostly small tokens that they're grateful for.
But the dolls. Oh, my.
My sister![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
springbok1 volunteered a number of years ago with an organization that provided services to single mothers in need. (I can't remember if it was a shelter, or a transitional housing organization, or what, exactly.) There were a number of children she worked with, and most had very little. One girl, however, owned an American Girls doll. Everyone knew what it was, and it was viewed as a mark of exceptional status. How could they not? Everyone knows how expensive these dolls are. The books are in libraries everywhere (because you know, they're really pretty good) and the catalogs of dolls are everywhere.
At the other cost extreme are Polly Pockets. Molly has a box of these and plays with them regularly. They're thumb-sized plastic dolls with rubbery plastic outfits you can (with some dexterity and patience) get on and off. They're dirt cheap. A set of several dolls and outfits will run you $10. A single doll with outfit (in a case with a keychain attached) is $3.
Last year there was a set with a DVD included. One of Molly's friends wound up with the DVD, and her mother groused to me about how utterly obnoxious the DVD was. Polly and her rich friends fly off to a private rich-girl island for a private rich-girl party! Ew ew EW. We bonded over our shared disgust for that kind of thing.
It's a weird thing, the values that are taught by a toy, versus the values that are implicit in the toy. Because the values that are TAUGHT by the American Girls collection are unimpeachable. The dolls originated in Madison, Wisconsin, and if you read the books closely you'll see them sneak in historically plausible liberalism. The girls themselves are plucky and independent, while maintaining close, loving relationships with their parents or guardians; they get into trouble, but usually out of positive motives. They fight with their siblings but resolve their problems peacefully. They learn that it's better to be a true friend than to be one of the in crowd, that it's better to give than to receive, that there's nearly always someone worse off than you (and if you try, you might be able to help them out).
Yet the values implicit in the toy are, There's always more to buy. If your parents really love you, they'll spend whatever it takes to make you happy. Dolls are so important, it's reasonable to spend $80 on a single doll.
The values taught by Polly are frankly awful. Clothes make the girl! You can never have too many clothes! Really, clothes are all you need, so long as you have lots and lots and LOTS of them!
But, the values implicit in Polly aren't too bad. They nearly always come in packs of two, so they can play with each other; friendship is clearly a big part of Polly's life. They're cheap and simple and compact: you can have fun without spending a lot of money and without taking up a lot of space.
*
Molly made it at least halfway through the series before she realized there were dolls to go with the books. In the back of one of the books, she found the postcard to send in for a catalog. I helped her fill it out; looking through catalogs of unattainable toys is in itself a pleasure of childhood, and one I remember rather fondly. So, she can have a catalog.
1. Holy crap, are these dolls ever expensive.
2. They're awfully nice, though. And look at all the outfits. And accessories. And books.
3. I would have given my right arm for one of these back when I was still young enough that I played with dolls.
4. I never would have gotten one, though.
(For the uninitiated, a very quick introduction: the American Girls company makes dolls, each of which goes with a set of books about a fictional nine-year-old girl living in a particular historical period. For example, one of the original dolls was Kirsten, a 19th-century Swedish immigrant who goes to live in Minnesota. In addition to the doll, there are outfits that correspond to the stories in each book, and a wealth of accessories.)
My mother was both fascinated and repulsed by the dolls. On one hand, she approved of the fact that these were dolls with outfits and accessories that weren't Barbie dolls. On the other, she was appalled by the prices. ($80 gets you one doll, the outfit she's wearing, and a book.) She also perceived the girls in the stories as being extremely privileged. I remember her grousing about the lack of "Suzie, the Little Sharecropper Girl" who'd have only one outfit and no accessories because her family was penniless.
The company says that the books are the heart of the company. This is BS, of course: the books are a marketing tool for the overpriced dolls. But they're surprisingly well written for a marketing tool. Molly has now read nearly all of them; I've picked up and read several, including the entire Kit series. And, I have to say, my mother was wrong that the stories reflect privilege. Most don't.
There isn't a Suzie the Sharecropper, but the character Addy (not one of the original characters, but added early) is a slave at the beginning of her story, and escapes to Philadelphia with her mother during the Civil War. The war ends partway through the series of books, but her family is not fully reunited until the last book. (Addy's mother leaves Addy's one-year-old sister behind with a relative when they flee.) One of Molly's favorites was Kit, the Depression-era girl: her father loses his business in Meet Kit and over the course of the series, he never finds a job. The family converts their house into a boarding house to make ends meet, and even with that extra money, they come close to homelessness. The books tell stories about making do and doing without -- in the Christmas stories, they emphasize friendship and family, and the girls who receive presents get mostly small tokens that they're grateful for.
But the dolls. Oh, my.
My sister
springbok1 volunteered a number of years ago with an organization that provided services to single mothers in need. (I can't remember if it was a shelter, or a transitional housing organization, or what, exactly.) There were a number of children she worked with, and most had very little. One girl, however, owned an American Girls doll. Everyone knew what it was, and it was viewed as a mark of exceptional status. How could they not? Everyone knows how expensive these dolls are. The books are in libraries everywhere (because you know, they're really pretty good) and the catalogs of dolls are everywhere.At the other cost extreme are Polly Pockets. Molly has a box of these and plays with them regularly. They're thumb-sized plastic dolls with rubbery plastic outfits you can (with some dexterity and patience) get on and off. They're dirt cheap. A set of several dolls and outfits will run you $10. A single doll with outfit (in a case with a keychain attached) is $3.
Last year there was a set with a DVD included. One of Molly's friends wound up with the DVD, and her mother groused to me about how utterly obnoxious the DVD was. Polly and her rich friends fly off to a private rich-girl island for a private rich-girl party! Ew ew EW. We bonded over our shared disgust for that kind of thing.
It's a weird thing, the values that are taught by a toy, versus the values that are implicit in the toy. Because the values that are TAUGHT by the American Girls collection are unimpeachable. The dolls originated in Madison, Wisconsin, and if you read the books closely you'll see them sneak in historically plausible liberalism. The girls themselves are plucky and independent, while maintaining close, loving relationships with their parents or guardians; they get into trouble, but usually out of positive motives. They fight with their siblings but resolve their problems peacefully. They learn that it's better to be a true friend than to be one of the in crowd, that it's better to give than to receive, that there's nearly always someone worse off than you (and if you try, you might be able to help them out).
Yet the values implicit in the toy are, There's always more to buy. If your parents really love you, they'll spend whatever it takes to make you happy. Dolls are so important, it's reasonable to spend $80 on a single doll.
The values taught by Polly are frankly awful. Clothes make the girl! You can never have too many clothes! Really, clothes are all you need, so long as you have lots and lots and LOTS of them!
But, the values implicit in Polly aren't too bad. They nearly always come in packs of two, so they can play with each other; friendship is clearly a big part of Polly's life. They're cheap and simple and compact: you can have fun without spending a lot of money and without taking up a lot of space.
*
Molly made it at least halfway through the series before she realized there were dolls to go with the books. In the back of one of the books, she found the postcard to send in for a catalog. I helped her fill it out; looking through catalogs of unattainable toys is in itself a pleasure of childhood, and one I remember rather fondly. So, she can have a catalog.
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no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 07:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 02:09 pm (UTC)She is not saving up for a doll.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 11:06 pm (UTC)*grin*
I'd forgotten about the American Girl thing (thinking back to discussion of kid books a couple of weeks ago) but my daughter enjoyed the books. It sounds as if the series has expanded since those days (Gillian is 24 now). She did have a significant My Little Pony herd and an incredible collection of assorted stuffed animals and such, but she was never into dressing up dolls. She would, instead, involve her various dolls and animals in complicated fantasy adventures (and today her favorite activities include fantasy role playing games ranging from sitting around tables with many-sided dice to running around in medieval costumes).
no subject
Date: 2006-12-12 05:04 am (UTC)In addition to her $1 per week, she has squirreled away all dentist money. (Molly, who has really godawful teeth, gets a $10 payout for each dentist visit where she holds still, cooperates, and allows them to do all necessary work.) She has been saving since July or August and has barely spent a dime. She is almost there. She wants a Samantha doll.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 11:30 am (UTC)I suspect that someday my Samantha might want the Samantha American Girl doll. I am glad that my girls have an indulgent grandmother with disposable income, because that's the only way they will ever get one.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 02:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 12:52 pm (UTC)I have been uneasy about the dolls' costs, too. But the way we do it in our family works well:
Getting stuff for the doll is an opportunity for the girls' loving grandparents to spoil them rotten, with stuff that is actually good for them.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 02:11 pm (UTC)And I remember the St. Lucia story, that was cool!
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 01:30 pm (UTC)But yes, the "collect all 1,000,000 outfits and accessories!" approach is very troubling. Actually, the marketing around all toys these days is troubling -- it's not just the toy, there's the toy and the clothes and the music and the DVD and the gummy snacks and ... it just goes on and on! And in presenting all these tie-ons, I feel like it's limiting the child to specific ways he or she can play with the toys. We got Meg a couple of My Little Pony ponies and a CD of My Little Pony music (she picked it out herself), and the music -- which emphasizes sparkly tea parties, etc. -- has pretty much dictated how she plays with the ponies.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 02:12 pm (UTC)Oh, yeah. That's another thing that bugs me about modern toys as a whole. I do my best to insulate the girls from that sort of thing, but it's hard.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 03:55 pm (UTC)[side note] I'm already appalled that our best friends two year old (who watches no television, listens to no radio except NPR, and generally exists in a media vacumn) has gone utterly ga-ga over Elmo. Why is she ga-ga over Elmo? Because she saw him on her diaper, heard Mom and Dad say his name once and decided that she must have Elmo.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 04:37 pm (UTC)The girls do get to watch TV at the health club childcare. So they're not fully insulated.
We also try to avoid books that are obvious tie-ins to TV shows, etc. Again, this isn't absolute. Molly developed an obsession with Dora at one point, and we have a bunch of Dora books and some other Dora cack.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 02:48 pm (UTC)But my experience aside, I think your observations of the economic message vs. the actual economics is really interesting. I'd never thought about it before.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 02:57 pm (UTC)I had "My Friend" dolls when I was growing up. They were wonderful Fisher Price dolls, a less expensive precursor to the American Girl dolls (though I think they may even be able to share clothing--I was too old for them by the time the American Dolls came out, so I never tried), but they're a wonderful 'kid' doll, like an 8 yr old child with a firm cloth body and plastic limbs. I think my Becky doll (redheaded like me) was new, which in retrospect must have been a considerable investment since our family was way poor at the time. And what was really helpful was that while you could buy all sorts of cute outfits, you could also buy a book which was all patterns for the outfits. So one year my mother gave me the doll and a whole *stack* of outfits for her that she'd made. (and I think, since she was making me clothes at the time too, that we probably had a matching outfit at one time.) I still have Becky and all the rest of the dolls that I collected over time in a trunk in my bed room. Waiting, I guess, for me to have little girls, or little boys who like playing with dolls too. :)
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 04:39 pm (UTC)Those were great dolls. High quality, and much cheaper than the American Girls. They didn't sell separate outfits, though, which was a perennial frustration to me. I didn't know about the pattern book (and wasn't very good at sewing anyway). I wanted multiple outfits; Barbies had the gazillion outfits and accessory sets, but even if my parents had been willing to buy Barbies for me (they weren't) I liked Jenny better. She was a kid, rather than a grownup with an implausible waistline.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 05:34 pm (UTC)And the only doll from the Barbie family I had (or wanted) was Skipper who is aproximately a 13-14 yr old girl, and shaped appropriately.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 05:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 05:58 pm (UTC)And Madeline is an excellent name for a doll. or in general.
I loved the American Doll Collection
Date: 2006-06-22 02:58 pm (UTC)Re: I loved the American Doll Collection
Date: 2006-06-22 04:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 04:10 pm (UTC)So even though the company's main goal seems to be profit, profit, profit! they do churn out some great books that really spark kids' imaginations. My mom did, much to my total surprise, buy me an Addy doll, which I adored. But not nearlyu as much as the books (Addy is now in a closet, where as the books are in my livingroom.)
Just thought I'd share.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 04:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 04:44 pm (UTC)I just looked them up; they're $55 a piece, now. No way would we have had them if they were anywhere close to that in the 70s and 80s; we were on free lunch, for god's sakes.
I somehow missed that your husband is a New Englander. Jan is, and is a Red Sox fan. We pay for the MLB subscription so he can watch every goddamned game if he wants to. That's several Vogue Dolls, right there!
no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 05:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 06:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 03:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-22 05:51 pm (UTC)She especially loved Starter Kristen - as my family is Swedish, and immigrated about the same time Kristen did in her books (but to the Gulf Coast, in my family's permanent defense). But yes, me and my older cousins used to joke about Aryan Power Kristen. Even the grandchildren of Swedish immigrants couldn't take her seriously.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 04:54 am (UTC)We're going through this struggle too. Cassie really wants a Felicity doll (she's in love with Felicity and her time period.)
Maybe she will save up her allowance. Maybe she won't. But we both take pleasure in the stories.
Hmm
no subject
Date: 2006-08-05 05:34 am (UTC)Alas, even now I can't afford the darn thing!
Samantha's Arrival
Date: 2007-02-14 02:02 am (UTC)