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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

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Original poster

Oh dear sainsbury's, boys surgeon's outfit?

28 replies

Bumperlicioso · 07/05/2011 16:29

Just picked up a few dressing up outfits in the sainsbo's sale (stocking up for birthdays Grin. Picked up two builder's outfits (one that dd1 chose for herself) and a surgeon's outfit. Wasn't paying attention to the builder's outfit but when I scanned the surgeon's one it came up 'Boy's surgeon's outfit'. They were all jumbled up so not divided into the usual annoying boy/girl divide but presumably the girl's equivalent is the nurses outfit.

I know people think it doesn't matter, but when they were jumbled up my daughter picked the builder's outfit, but when we were in Next they have toys near the counter divided up and dd walked passed the 'boy's' stuff, supermario, Lego, Ben10 and said 'those are boy's toys' and went to the Peppa Pig/Hello Kitty section and said 'these are the girl's toys'. So the artificial divide rather than the subject matter is having an effect even at 3 years old.

OP posts:
catsareevil · 07/05/2011 16:31

Struggling to imagine how a girls surgeons outfit would look different Grin

belgo · 07/05/2011 16:31

yes you're right. The nurse's uniform they sell is very old fashioned. I never noticed the toys being separated, but it's true, they are.

DontCallMeBaby · 07/05/2011 16:45

Till receipts sometimes have some rather strange descriptions on them that lead me to suspect the people who enter them aren't entirely singing to the company hymn sheet ... I just wish I could think of an example!

Original poster
Bumperlicioso · 07/05/2011 16:45

Just thinking about and the boys get builders, surgeon, police, super hero, girls get Disney princess/fairy hybrid, nurse, little red riding hood.

I just think that confronted with a bunch of toys dd will play with whatever she fancies, but when the toys are divided she goes for the ones she thinks she thinks are supposed to be for girls.

OP posts:
StewieGriffinsMom · 07/05/2011 16:51

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

AnnieLobeseder · 07/05/2011 16:57

Well, at least it was only on the till slip not the actual outfit, but it's still far from good.

My DDs have various fairy princess outfits, along with a builder, a surgeon (one of their favourites Grin) an astronaut and a police officer.

I spend far too much of my tiny dissuading DD1 that only boys have short hair, only girls wear pink etc etc. Gah!

And at the park yesterday, one of the mums was telling a hilarious story about how her DS had announced that he has going to marry one of the girls in the class and then she's be Katy Hisname. The other mums just laughed at this without the slightest worry about it. Hmm

The stereotypes and social conditioning just start so early, don't they?

AnnieLobeseder · 07/05/2011 16:57

tiny = time Blush

Original poster
Bumperlicioso · 07/05/2011 17:00

Well, the thing is they were only jumbled up because they were in the sale. Presumably when not in the sale the surgeon's outfit is with the boy's dressing up stuff.

OP posts:
AnnieLobeseder · 07/05/2011 17:13

At our Sainsbury's the dressing up clothes are always all together.

Journey · 07/05/2011 17:25

Did the label say you can't buy it if it's for a girl?

Did the shop tell you you can't buy it if it's in the boys' section and you wanted it for your DD?

Can't girls enjoy sterotypical girls things and vice versa without all this political correctness?

If a girl wants a boy's item then you're free to buy it.

Straight2Extremes · 07/05/2011 17:33

I think the OPs point was that there shouldn't be any need to label a toy/outfit boy/girl.

WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes · 07/05/2011 17:36

They shouldn't label it, but they are lovely outfits, both my DS and DD have them, and they get used lots.

jenniec79 · 07/05/2011 17:52

Struggling to imagine how a girls surgeons outfit would look different

Hmm. I wear my pink theatre shoes at work interchangably with my black ones, and I guess the colour-coded tabs for the sizings might be more on the larger side for the chaps. I do wear skirts for clinics (although mainly weather dependent)

Nope, all in all girls or boys could dress up as me pretty much the same.

I did spend a while talking to boss's kids a while back (3-4 yr olds) They'd come to visit with Daddy on a saturday - he in minidoc outfit and her as little nurse. After that she wanted her brother's hat!!!!

Original poster
Bumperlicioso · 07/05/2011 18:28

As I said, my point is DD sees the outfit in the boys section and assumes it isn't for her, because she has been conditioned (not by me, just generally) that there is the boys section and the girls section, it's fairly obviously with clothing anyway, so she doesn't go for the boy's stuff, and she is going to think that being a surgeon is a boy's domain. As I also said she chose the builder's outfit herself, but that was from the big jumble of clothes that were all together, i.e. no distinction. I don't have a problem buying her 'boy's' toys but she generally doesn't go towards them and is conscious that they are 'boy's' toys. They have quite a rigid grasp of the world at this age I find. I get told off for wearing DH's boxers (to sunbathe in Blush)!

OP posts:
WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes · 07/05/2011 18:45

In our branch they are on the aisle end, so not obviously with the boys or girls clothes.

housemum · 07/05/2011 19:36

Argos are as bad - Lego and K'Nex are "boys toys". Obviously you buy them for whoever you like, but it is pointless to label them. Just have sections for dolls, dressing-up, construction toys, action figures etc - no need to assign a gender to them.

melpomene · 08/05/2011 00:56

I wanted to buy new electric toothbrushes for my dds in Sainsburys today. Obviously I don't want them to have the exact same toothbrush (as they would get mixed up.) There were two types of children's electric toothbrush available - Barbie ones and Spiderman ones. DD1 grabbed a Barbie one and I suggested that dd2 have a Spiderman one. Cue meltdown and cries of "I'll never brush my teeth ever again." The Spiderman one was labelled 'boys' toothbrush' on the label on the shelf, while the Barbie was labelled 'girls' toothbrush' but I'm not sure if my dds noticed.

In the end they noticed that the Barbie toothbrushes came in two different colours (no prizes for guessing which colours!) so they were happy.

I agree that segregation on the shop shelves, or explicit labelling of something as 'for boys' or 'for girls' is detrimental to free choice and equality in play. I think that most children over 5 or so would be reluctant to choose or play with a toy if they are told that it is for the opposite gender.

Original poster
Bumperlicioso · 08/05/2011 09:47

Agree, especially when on the one hand we are trying to train them to follow certain rules of society, kindness, politeness etc, how do you then explain that gender stereotyping is a rule they can subvert?

OP posts:
housemum · 08/05/2011 14:05

Totally agree - things only become a gender issue to children when you tell them they are. DD2 (age 8) has Ben 10 pyjamas, because no one has told her yet that they were for boys, she just likes Ben 10.

CoffeeMum · 08/05/2011 14:14

housemum - isn't that annoying when your kid decides who they like on their own, and THEN the sterotyping is enforced?! My DS, aged 3, loves Dora and I was looking at Dora toys online for him. ALL the pictures showed little girls playing with Dora toys, they were all pink, etc. Why do you have to be a girl to like Dora? Because she's a girl?!? Can't she just be a little person, having adventures, who happens to be a girl? Just like any film with major characters who are girls becomes a chick flick?? Blush

housemum · 08/05/2011 16:05

coffeemum I'm guessing that's why they brought out the Diego character alongside, though don't know why they can't make unisex Dora stuff. Perhaps it would be different if she was "Dora the Bikini-Waxer" but she's an explorer - a totally non-gender-specific role in any way!

Original poster
Bumperlicioso · 08/05/2011 16:13

I'm not sure if Diego/Dora is intentionally a gender thing, I see it more as an age thing. I think Diego is a bit older. Incedentally 3 year old dd loves Diego and can often be heard shouting out his name in her sleep!

OP posts:
Strumpypumpy · 08/05/2011 16:20

My DS had a Dora and a Diego. No issues there. The only problem was clothing really if he wanted a Dora t-shirt it would have been pink or white, no problem, but the gathered capped sleeves might have been. FWIW my DS and DD both under 6 have no clue what a surgeon is anyway.

CoffeeMum · 08/05/2011 16:21

Of course. That's why they brought out Diego - how depressing! What a good opportunity wasted - to my mind, Dora would be an ideal role model for boys AND girls without being some generic Barbie princess type, and doing lots of cool exploring! Anyway, I already buck the system by buying my DS the Peppa Pig stuff he loves Wink

CoffeeMum · 08/05/2011 16:23

Oh yes - would definitely buy the Dora merchandise for DS anyway, already get him Peppa stuff. Very happy to hear of girls who like Diego, and other boys who like Dora. Nearly got DS a Dora doll recently actually, until i saw it was £13 for a tiny little thing Blush