A friend bought an expensive handmade doll for her 4 years old daughter as a Christmas present.
to buy that doll was a difficult as it's very popular. You have to be very ready at the computer and place your order as soon the maker puts them on sale on her website.
Well you know what? when I asked my friend if her daughter was happy for that beautiful present, she told me that she was going to put the doll away until C. could understand the true value of handmade.
Now my point is, why are children often attracted by plasticky, glittery, shiny, and environmentally unfriendly stuff?
How much influence has a parent on the way a child will develop his/her taste and understanding of issues such as the environment?
Here's a picture of me at 4 with my favourite and only doll, Pippi Long Stocking.
11 comments:
Darling, I love this photo of you! So adorable and the fact that you liked (and i bet you still do) Pippi is so great... I used to draw myself as her when I was a kid. So we have another thing in common!
About shiny things and children... jupp, it's true... the more it's kitschy the more they prefer it... I am not sure why that is but we mentioned this topic in school many times... I guess they find shiny object special...
oh, this could be a long debate but I have to go back to Renaissance in Italy... :) we could talk about that also, huh? :)
What a lovely spread Alessandra :)
My son can get very attracted to things that he see on comersial (often plastic things) while my daughter is very critical against all things she see in that kind of contexts. For him it is often technical, moving or staging things that draw his attention. So even if it is a plastic "dead thing" that they are showing with motion and "awesome" sounds, he would want to have it. But I guess that he would be as attracted if there was a handmade and nice toy as well, as long as the surroundings would be "cool". But there never are nice toys in those comersials...
love that photo with you and your doll:)
but you're right, one never has to learn a child how to love sweets or kitch, it seems to be a natural proces:)
All that plastic flashy stuff lasts 3 minutes. It's the toys you see at target that draws your child in with noises and lights.
Once they get any of those toys home they end up in a corner unused and ignored. It's the toys they don't oo and aah over at first that seem to last. The ones they keep coming back to.
So your friend should not dispair. And yes it can be taught. You keep the good toys out and the lame ones go in the garage. Taste is taught.
I really like your blog! This is very interesting about plastic toys. It seems that in the end my children discard them. They do not have the staying power of something that feels "real." My cousin's child collected and played with sticks and stones and pinecones when he was little! I love the photo of you with the Pippi doll. I adore Astrid Lindgren (my son and I are reading "The Brothers Lionheart" right now). I even make a doll that I named after her - "Astrid Doll." You can see one on my flickr if you click to my blog, if you want.
hi Alessandra. ah plasticky, noisy and shiny toys! and the power of advertising and commercials. i think we, parents, can try and limit access to those things but it is hard to avoid them. to me the less the better, more books, more paper and crayons!
Your friend's doll wasn't one of mine, was it??
to Fanja: no, it's one of these: http://www.happytoseeyou.fr/
(you might know them already...I suppose).
Oh ! You're so cute !
Ha! Sounds very familiar, hence this:
http://kickcanandconkers.blogspot.com/2009/08/move-over-barbie.html
Ah you are so right! I had fun reding it as well, thanks.
:)
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