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This is he-man

90 replies

McBear · 10/08/2014 22:02

I've just seen (on fb- sorry) a picture with an image of barbie and he-man. Underneath barbie, it has the caption 'This is barbie. Throughout the years she has been the centre of much controversy because feminists claim she represents an unrealistic, unhealthy and unfair standard of beauty leading to a 'crisis' for young girls and their self esteem.

Underneath he-man it says 'This is he-man'

I'll try and find a link to the picture but it did get me thinking... He man is the 'epitome of manliness' as are a lot of comic book heroes/boys dolls. (Not including weedy captain America and Peter Parker, though obviously they 'improve' when they are handsome, tall and muscular) Why are they not seen as damaging to young boys?

I, personally, think it's because of the pressure society puts on women and them stereotypically seen as weaker. Women are taught to compete for male attention, men compete for jobs/sports and therefore success.

It does raise a good point for me though that men are shown the same ideals but do not feel the same pressure to comply.

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itsbetterthanabox · 14/08/2014 00:59

Machair if women do do that then why do think it is?

CaptChaos · 14/08/2014 00:41

How?

All those women owned magazines maybe? The woman owned newspapers? Fashion houses? Fashion retail CEOs?

Those women?

machair · 14/08/2014 00:24

I actually think that women put the pressure on women to look a certain way.

DoctorTwo · 12/08/2014 19:48

When my daughters were young they adored the Powerpuff Girls as they always won. My son loved them too, as did I. They showed female super heroes and are a massive positive. I think anything that empowers my DDs is a good thing, even if it's a cartoon.

LineRunner · 12/08/2014 18:50

Buffy for me has it spot on.

TheSarcasticFringehead · 12/08/2014 18:48

It's telling boys that to be a superhero, or to be a 'real man' you must be big and strong and muscly. I think that's a big problem because we should be telling boys (and girls!) that you can be a superhero and important without muscles or height, and by being you, any body shape, any build. By making sure boys and girls receive that same message, then the boys would learn to be more accepting of the fact that girls can be superheroes too...after all, they've learn the body doesn't matter really.

rosabud · 12/08/2014 18:42

Wasn't going to post any more on this thread - but had to, just had to, come back to shout BINGO (more important issues etc etc) - and to roll around with hysterical laughter at the failure to spot Buffy's explicit sarcasm. Oh the irony Smile

C4ro · 12/08/2014 16:03

False pairing for a start. GI Joe or Eagle Eye Action man is the nearest boy equivalent to a barbie. They didn't have a particularly distorted bodyshape. Barbie doesn't have a cowardly tiger that turns into a battlecat, she has a (pink) car or a (pink) moped or a (white and pink) horse or any of a bunch of lame-o jobs... it's distractingly close to reality and that's the insidiousness of the whole thing.

Barbie annoys the shit out of me but sadly my DD (4) thinks she is fantastic. Barbie having loads of jobs is irrelevant against the larger weight of the "just look pretty and be pink" message being pushed over.
www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/barbie-limits-girls-career-choices/

King1982 · 12/08/2014 15:40

Oh a cape that you wear. Forget the coastal issues.

Branleuse · 12/08/2014 15:32

buffy, i love your water aid analogy and am gonna steal that one.

Branleuse · 12/08/2014 15:32

although still eye roll at people that think barbie is some sort of important feminist issue

BuffytheReasonableFeminist · 12/08/2014 15:17

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King1982 · 12/08/2014 15:04

Ha ha. I'll start with the coastal issues at your request.

BuffytheReasonableFeminist · 12/08/2014 14:50

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BuffytheReasonableFeminist · 12/08/2014 14:48

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King1982 · 12/08/2014 14:38

Buffy - I give a massive shit about female role models. I just don't think that this is a massive issue when there are so many more obvious concerns in 'real life'.

King1982 · 12/08/2014 14:35

Should a doll or a cartoon need to be anatomically correct though. The hip joints and leg position are probably more down to manufacturing and cost of production than anything else.
Most cartoon aren't anatomically correct. I'd think it would weird to aspire to be a doll. I suppose people have changed themselves to look like cats, so each to their own.
I think she is impeccably groomed because she is a cartoon, marge Simpson rarely has a bad hair day.

Being undimensional straight up and down must be the cheapest to design and produce. I don't really see it as really being an issue.

BuffytheReasonableFeminist · 12/08/2014 14:24

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BuffytheReasonableFeminist · 12/08/2014 14:22

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CaptChaos · 12/08/2014 14:18

I agree that there are bad male role models, but, and this is I think the crux of it, there are so many good male role models around, so many that you don't even notice them and very few female ones (that are known to the general public).

If you want to show your sons good male role models, you can open the paper or turn on the TV and you will easily find loads. If you want to show your children good female role models, you have to look much harder for them. Which is why things like Barbie are worse as symbols of femaleness, because there are far fewer positive symbols about, so it's less diluted.

This is probably why female role models are held to a much higher standard than male ones? Maybe?

King1982 · 12/08/2014 14:18

I wanted to look like barbie so i had surgery to wire open my eyes. I haven't blinked for over a decade. I have had my knee joints fixed with steel rods. I have had my hip mobility reduced to just flex ion and extension. I'm saving up to have my fingers stitched together.

machair · 12/08/2014 14:13

I don't remember having any wish to look like Barbie when I was young (and I still don't!). We used to have Barbie v Action Man fights with my Brother and Barbie used to get to drive Action Man's vehicles. I think that the female airhead, stick thin, cheap, so called celebrities we see so much of on TV are a much worse influence on young girls. (there's alot of bad male rolemodels for boys too)

King1982 · 12/08/2014 14:08

In what way is it's packaging of femaleness a feminist issue? What inparticular about its packaging?

BuffytheReasonableFeminist · 12/08/2014 14:05

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King1982 · 12/08/2014 13:55

In what way Buffy?