Journalist Peggy Orenstein wrote "Cinderella Ate My Daughter" out of concern over what messages the "pink, princess" girl culture was doing to her daughter Daisy. Far from being a harmless phase, Orenstein says the girl culture that's aggressively marketed to children actually sets girls up to focus on their appearance and become sexualized younger and younger.
What's a parent to do? "Lock our daughters in a tower," Orenstein joked to TODAY's Ann Curry. Hmmm, tempting. What do you think of the 'pink, princess' girl culture?
Now. My first reaction to the "princess" culture of little girls is one of annoyance. I think it's great for girls to dress up, play around with traditionally "girly" toys, etc. The problem comes in when girls have the princess-like sense of entitlement or prissy attitude. alternately, i it's dangerous for boys to be taught an over-inflated affection for violence. My brother played cops and robbers and various games (heck, I joined in) and he's not a violent person today, nor did he get in fights growing up. Yes, society barrages children, teens and adults alike with both subliminal and not-so-subtle marketing techniques, but ultimately, parents have a lot of control over what their children are allowed to do, see, watch.
On a slightly snarky note, I found it laughable that Orenstein was up in arms about the "pink, princess" culture and its effect on her daughter. and in the next sentence we discover that she named her daughter daisy.
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