I work really hard to keep advertising to a minimum in my house. we don't watch tv and i try to pre-screen youtube clips for advertising before showing them to my daughter. The other day i took her to Target and we wandered thru the toy section. She was fascinated by the 'princess' aisle. They had put a tv monitor at her viewing level with big obvious buttons for her to push (see video: sorry for the lack of sound, but you get the point). We didn't stand a chance. It made me angry that a company was targeting my daughter for the 'princess treatment'. Their version of a princess looks nothing like Kate Middleton (eg. a REAL princess). Instead they look more like a comically disproportioned version of movie stars on set.
and don't even get me started on disney's advertising campaign that is all little girls telling the audience what is a princess. ("it's about standing up for yourself and your friends") when theyprincess dolls they sell would not make it past a truck stop without at least one proposition. But truthfully, the biggest issue i have with these dolls is they all depict the girls from their least powerful moment in their stories. In the movie Mulan, this costume was what she wore to meet the matchmaker. She sings that this look isn't who she is, she wants to be seen and loved for who she is inside. Belle is dressed in her outfit for her first date with Beast. It is the moment in the film where she shows her personality least. Her love of books, her love of stories, the love of her father...all gone in place of a date with a grumpy man thing. Ariel is dressed as a mermaid, when she is least happy with her life. I'll give Snow White a pass, even though they've given her such a heavy make-over that she looks like her step-mother's daughter. Aurora and Cinderella are both dressed in their "date" clothing, just like Belle.
So in short, (who am i kidding, this isn't short) the Disney Princess line gets two thumbs down from this mum. and a big "LEAVE MY CHILD ALONE YOU SCARY OLD MAN, DISNEY"
