Cinderella Ate My Daughter, Chapter 1

Speaking as a girl who rejects most things pink and who was never into the whole “princess” movement, I agreed with Orenstein’s dismay at her daughter’s sudden switch from Thomas the Train Engine to the dress-up corner. There is definitely a social construct that limits girls – and boys – to certain toys, and it upsets me a little. And as sad as the idea is, this social norm does not go away, nor can it go away. Orenstein mentions that princess-obsession disappears by college, but I beg to differ. Princess-obsession doesn’t disappear; it evolves. During o-week, while visiting new friends, I noticed a stark difference between girls’ and boys’ dorm rooms. Girls’ rooms were more “dressed-up,” or so to speak, with colorful bedding and walls filled with hundreds of pictures and fairy lights (even the name harkens back to princesses!), while boy’s rooms were much simpler, with solid colored sheets and a single poster on the walls. Sure, college girls no longer dress up as princesses, but the underlying social construct is still present.

A lot of times, it seems as if this “dress-up” culture is a bad thing. But the question is, do we do it because we genuinely like it or do we like it because we have to do it to fit in? Orenstein dawned on an interesting point. The popularity of the Disney princess could have made it easier for girls to become more in touch with their feminine side, for those who like that side. But for others, it may be a chore to wake up, dress up, and put on makeup just to match social standards. As for me, I like decorating because I like art, but I do not like wearing makeup because I want to look like the purest form of me. Maybe it was my limited exposure to Disney princesses – who knows? But even though some people might like dressing up, I still don’t understand how a new princess culture saves women from “dieting, plucking, and painting.” I know a few girls who started wearing makeup because they initially liked it, but now, after the novelty has worn off, they feel bound to it because nobody knows what they look like without it. They have become slaves of the feminine standards. And don’t even get me started on the social stress placed on having a thin and flawless body. It’s a vicious cycle of wanting to look good (but what/who defines good?) and others defining how you look.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~