• “‘Toddlers & Tiaras’: TLC Sinks to a New Low.” Examiner.com. 25 Jan. 2009. 2 June 2009 This source questions the beliefs of beauty pageants for young children and the reality television show Toddlers & Tiaras. Children are forced that the importance of ideal beauty are in beauty pageant. Young girls are becoming sexually exploited to layers of makeup.
Andrew Rawlins Mrs. Bonham English 12 ACP 12 October 2012 Too Much Princess In both The Princess Paradox by James Poniewozik and Cinderella and Princess Culture by Peggy Orenstein the authors suggest that there is an over exposure of princess themes to young children and that they have many different effects. Poniewozik offers evidence from Hollywood and different movies that have been released with an underlying princess theme to them. Then, Orenstein takes the approach from the social aspect stating that young girls are thought of being “princesses.” Although both of these authors have the same underlying claim, their approaches are very diverse and one author is much more effective in supporting their claim than the other author. Poniewozik,
In the poem, the speaker states the girlchild has “wee lipsticks the color of cherry candy” (4), showing that she already wants to alter her appearance. As children grow into young adults, they become aware of outside judgments; as the girlchild was made aware in the poem. “Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said:/ You have a great big nose and fat legs” (5-6). Girls are pressured into looking the way media portrays beauty. Unfortunately, outward appearances take on a more important role than other characteristics to teenage girls.
All over the world, girls often go through a "princess phase", made up with anything pink and pretty. When it happened to Peggy Orenstein's daughter, the writer decided to examine the phenomenon. She found that the “girlie-girl” culture was less innocent than it might seem, and can have negative consequences for girls' psychological, social and physical development. From a very young age, girls learn to define themselves from the outside in, and a lot of researches suggest that our culture’s emphasis on physical beauty is the root of problems such as negative body image, depression, eating disorders and high-risk sexual behavior. I strongly agree with the Peggy Orenstein’s article.
“Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said: you have a great big nose and fat legs” (5-6) altering anything and everything this little girl ever knew to be true about herself. One comment ruined her entire view of herself and other girls, that she had to be like them since they did not like who she was born being. The “Beauty Myth” by Naomi Wolf states things like, “The more legal and material hindrances women have broken through, the more strictly and heavily and cruelly images of female beauty have come to weigh upon us... During the past decade, women breached the power structure; meanwhile, eating disorders rose exponentially and cosmetic surgery became the fastest-growing specialty...” all of this saying that the stress put on
As Peggy Orenstein’s three year-old daughter entered the “princess phase,” Orenstein became increasingly frustrated. As a feminist, she worried about the negative effects the princess obsession would have on her daughter and other young girls in their futures. In “Cinderella and Princess Culture,” Orenstein sets out to discuss these effects. She discovers that although it seems as if this princess craze is creating negative gender stereotypes at an early age, maybe princess enthusiasts are really benefitting from their obsession. Orenstein has gotten accustomed to adults assuming her daughter likes pink and princesses.
Andre Guy Mr.Zumer-W131 16 March 2015 Comparative Critique Paper Comparative Critique of Personal is Political: A Feminist Defense of Cinderella and Cinderella and Princess Culture Shoshanna R. Schechter is also a strong feminist who in turn doesn’t believe the princess culture is bad for girls but is a stage that they go through. Peggy Orenstein is a feminist who believes little girls that believe in the princess culture and enjoy dressing up and pretending to be princesses are falling into gender stereotypes at a very young age. Orenstein, in her article seems to go through a journey, in which, she comes to this conclusion. Both Schechter and Orenstein are well known feminist who share almost exact opposite views on the princess culture idea and how it affects young women and children. Although Schechter and Orenstein seem to share these similar feministic views on princess culture, it may seem to be that Schechter carries a more liberal, open minded view on princess culture and Orenstein has a more radical closed minded view on princess culture.
Toddler’s and Tiara’s on TLC, Television Learning Channel, is a prime example of child exploitation. It primarily shows little girls, age 18 months to early teens, parading in scandalous outfits while the parents are cheering on. Is there something wrong with this picture? Thankfully, I am not the only person that is infuriated by this show. Beauty pageants originated as a marketing tool in 1921 by an Atlantic City hotel owner who wanted the city’s tourists
Let me remind you again that this is why girls under 16 shouldn’t be allowed to be models. The fashion industry is to blame for most girls’ fixation on being thin according to the 89% of respondents who took part in a survey conducted by the Girl Scouts of Australia. Psychologists and eating-disorder experts are worried about this and so should we all. These children are part of the future generation. No one wants to see what could have been bright and healthy futures taken away from them simply because of their diet.
Then the author uses the word “magic” to describe puberty as if it is something spectacular. Once puberty occurs the girl is accused of having a “great big nose and fat legs” which are looked down at in modern society. Even though she is also acknowledged as “healthy” and “tested intelligent” which is something most try and fail to achieve she goes around “apologizing” for her looks. This plainly demonstrates negative peer pressure since all she can focus on is the negative aspects of her life and no matter how she good she is in everything else “everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs”. Some advised her to “play coy” a trait many girls go by while others told her to be “hearty”, fit in with the boys, neither of these were her.