The Unnecessary Need for Toys - Essay Example

Immediate gratification took away the pain many suffered as a result. Our future offspring and what tasks were needed to survive in the 1950s as a functional model of society became the main focus. The start of this revolution wasn’t intended to create failures in society; it was to teach our young the importance of societal rules and what is expected of them as adults.

The first ‘mini mom’ model of a kitchen and vacuum cleaner came to the market. The idea was new to most households and families wanting to beat the Jones’ at being the first to have the finest toys possible. Society says it is acceptable and expected to mimic our parents and the roles they play. This is good training, Right? Barthes says, “French toys are based on imitation, they were meant to produce children who are users, not creators” (Barthes, pg. 55). Social acceptance of gender-based toys was positive and this increase in popularity enticed engineers to create even more plastic, gender-based toys forgetting the roots of what society was made from. Girls cooking on plastic miniature stoves, setting the table for the family, or ironing their husband’s clothes before he heads off to work – these roles they play are socially obligated and expected in the future. This tells the girls of our future – it’s not our place to engineer or design the tallest building in the world. We must leave it up to the men in our society to construct and design. When I was in high school, I was told not to apply to college. I was to be a housewife and mother; there was no need for me to waste my parent’s money by attending college. We are to accept our ‘place’ in society as shown to us by our parents.

These “French Toys” (Barthes, pg. 53) restrict children and condition them for failure. Children look up to their parents for guidance. If they say we should play with these toys they are bringing home, why are we to question their motives? Barthes implies the use of simple wooden blocks as a “demiurge” (Barthes, p. 54) rather than just a user of the objects. The Builder creates the foundation of all buildings, bridges, homes, schools, and more. Creating the largest building of the physical universe with only the limitations of his/her imagination is a great accomplishment as a child. A little girl smiles wildly, “Mom, look what I built!” just as her brother ploughs through them. “Mom, Now I have to start all over!” The success of a masterpiece or the destruction from your brother as he swooshes his arms through your newly constructed bridge builds your knowledge base and your foundation in understanding what it takes to make things stand on their own. Barthes refers to the Vosges Mountain range (Barthes, pg 55) to bring a personal relationship to the wooden blocks. It’s harder to dismiss an object if it has a name. These skills and knowledge are needed for future development to start and complete tasks.

The value in learning how to manage a project from start to finish is imperative whether it is building a house out of blankets throughout the living room or building a skyscraper out of blocks. There is no feeling of accomplishment when playing with pre-made toys. The user is simply the user (Barthes, pg 54) going through the motions of imitation. As the user of “French Toys” (Barthes, pg 53), the overstimulation will cause the need for a continued supply of new objects to keep their attention. The lost art of using the imagination and the overstimulation necessary to keep kids’ attention will create the need for more pre-planned toys. This keeps the toy manufacturers happy, but what about the growing minds of our children?

We can reconnect with ‘yesteryears’ toys. We can bring back the imagination, the drive to succeed, and excitement at completing tasks. Today, we see a constant supply of video games, kitchen designs, and Barbie dolls with so much detail they mimic live situations and events, good and bad. The challenge will be to recreate imagination by bringing back the basics. We need to allow our children to play with simple toys, for instance: a big empty refrigerator box, a pile of wooden blocks, or several blankets to make a house. Let us bring back the intellectually challenging thought that provokes a whole day’s worth of play.