We have, of course, posted a number of examples of toys that socialize girls into motherhood and housework (for instance). But this 1960s commercial for the Suzy Homemaker line of toys, sent in by Monica B., is the most comprehensive example I’ve ever seen, including everything from cooking, doing laundry, vacuuming, to looking pretty:
I’m not quite sure why, but I find this commercial really creepy. Maybe it’s the underlying message that you should do housework and be pretty at the same time if you want to be “queen of your home” and, presumably, the housewife everyone else admires and envies.
Comments 19
Shay — September 25, 2009
I think the narrator makes it pretty creepy, too... the soft, sing-songy tone and constant repetition makes me think of that Twilight Zone episode about the talking doll.
Maybe I've just heard too many people kinda imitate that type of voice for horror movies and the like!
Tiago — September 25, 2009
it's way creepy, like you said, it just covers pretty much the whole field... it just doesn't go so far into the bedroom in terms of what else is expected of this girl in the ad. if I wanted to show someone who has never understood this before, I think I might start from this ad.
what's worse is that we may not have quite the same ad on television today, but a sort of a more diluted version of it is still going strong.
Alyssa — September 25, 2009
Yeah, I agree, it's completely creepy. Like Shay, I also thought of the Twilight Zone when I saw this. The girl brushing her hair at the end of the clip looks like she's been either thoroughly brainwashed or lobotomized.
Travis — September 26, 2009
The oven is pretty awesome, I have to say. I always wanted an Easy Bake Oven as a kid, but they were too expensive.
I just wish they weren't so heavily marketed to girls. Boys like to cook, too! (And what kid doesn't love cake???)
Buffy — September 26, 2009
Buy the whole Suzy Homemaker line and you can become the perfect Stepford Wife.
Penny — September 26, 2009
The current Hasbro Easy-Bake oven is available in turquoise and silver (rather than pink):
http://www.hasbro.com/easybake/default.cfm?page=Products/Detail&product_id=22205
There's still a girl on the box, but the toy itself isn't pink or frilly looking, if you know a boy who really wants an Easy-Bake. (Me, I'd rather just teach a kid to use real kitchen equipment rather than a plastic toy version.)
SJL — September 26, 2009
I find it creepy that housework, which many people perceive as drudgery, is marketed to girls as part of playtime, like its fun or something. were boys sold equally menial tasks as play?
Kate — September 27, 2009
'This is the world of busy girls'.
Implying that if you're not busy, you're a Bad Girl™? And also that your world is always in the home, even from childhood, and it involves not just the fun stuff (srs I would have killed for that oven) but also the drudgery or laundry and vacuuming...
Rachel Kennedy — October 2, 2009
Wow! This is absolutely positively creepy. I could not help but open my mouth and say WOW.
I agree with what Kate said about the lawn mowers being marketed toward boys. But I think she's right when she says it's not as daily and menial. I think these negative socialization things can be more dangerous SOMETIMES for girls, because our appearance is so often tied to it, which is so so so closely connected to who we are that if it's not okay, we're not okay.
Laundry: Women Have Always Done It » Sociological Images — December 2, 2009
[...] examples, see these: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, [...]
S. Clarke — January 18, 2010
I loved seeing this. It brought back a lot of good childhood memories. I had the Suzy Homemaker: washing machine, soda fountain, mixer, grill, and iron. I thought it was great!! I still talk about all those great toys and how lucky I was to have them, as my parents were not rich. I know they gave up a lot for me to have them and they did make a big impact with me.
mike grella — April 7, 2010
everyone is way too serious! Nothing creepy about it! This was marketed back in the 60s it was right on target for the times. These toys had alot of play value and taught you to be able to take care of yourself.You may think its sexist or whatever but remember it was the 60s.We had the suzy homemaker appliances i think all of them.Glad it was a part of our childhood.
V. Stevens — September 19, 2010
I loved suzy homemaker. Matter of fact I bought one for my granddaughter and me to play with. It was the 60's and that is what little girls did. But many still grew up to be Drs, Lawyers, firefighters and policemen. Some did grow up to be homemakers but so what. If you have brains you are smart enough not to let a toy decide your fate.