Bruce Sterling Woodcock (that's SirBruce, and not Bruce Sterling) has a piece up over on The Escapist on the subject of in-game cross dressing. One of the great curiosities of MMOs is the fact that men are three to fives times more likely to "gender bend" in-game. Christmastime really hammers home awareness of gender-ised play, I think, seeing all the pink stuff on the shelves for girls, and the camo-and-guns stuff for boys. But while I'm often disheartened by the candyfloss inanity of the girls' toys, I've been really struck at how oftentimes the boys' fate can be worse.
Example: DisneyWorld was hosting a 'Princesses and Pirates' day in the Magic Kingdom, whereupon littlies who turned up in their favourite princess or pirate costume would get a pressie (actually a blue foam wand or a plastic sword, if they went to Cinderella's Castle. I got the sword, yay). The promotional flyer showed a little girl in a princess outfit, a little girl in a pirate outfit, and two little boys in pirate outfits.
No little boy in a princess outfit, of course, because that would be somehow unacceptable (although I personally think it'd be superb). How is it that we're accepting of girls playing with boy toys, but not the other way round; is it healthy for boys to grow up without ever being able to play around with girls' stuff? No wonder chaps complain about not understanding women - see any copy of Maxim for examples - as adults. Play is educational, after all.
Oddly, there wasn't even an option for boys to come as princes, I suppose because the princes of disney and fairytales are all very muted characters. Background fodder. So there aren't any costumes to sell...?
It was all Princess/Pirate in the Disney store before xmas too, and I don't think I've ever seen a dressed-up Prince, but in searching, the costumes do exist. Very cute, but from a kid's perspective.. meh.
At the Disney kids' party this year, they had two different storytelling sessions: Cinderella, and -yep! - a pirate. No boys in with Cin; she held court with the very young girls. Unsurprisingly the rambunctious pirate was popular with older kids of both genders.
Posted by: Jen | December 28, 2006 at 09:48
>littlies who turned up in their favourite princess or pirate costume would get a pressie (actually a blue foam wand or a plastic sword, if they went to Cinderella's Castle. I got the sword, yay).
Demands pictures of Princess Alice.
Posted by: k | December 28, 2006 at 14:56
Speaking as an sorta-ex-Goth - yup. The range of clothes available for women compared to those available for men used to be a major topic of conversation over a snakebite and black.
However. There's one very significant factor as to why boys aren't usually recommended to try on girls' clothes, for example: whilst women look good in jeans or a trouser suit, say, men, or indeed boys, tend to look damned stupid in a dress.
The fashion industry's had more than one crack at this one. Jean-Paul Gautier has had a go. His stuff all sucked. Various other people have had a try at getting men into dresses. They all sucked too.
Honestly, the only dress-like thing a bloke has ever looked good in is a kilt.
Which, in itself, is interesting. Why is it that women look hot in power suits (there may be some personal preference intruding here) but a bloke just looks goddamn stupid in an evening gown, even one tailored for him? To what extent is it the lack of secondary sexual characteristics that the dress has evolved around, and to what extent is it societal?
Posted by: Hugh "Nomad" Hancock | December 28, 2006 at 22:11
It's true- the Prince in these fairy-tales turned Disney products is usually more of a plot device, rather than a character. A Rex ex Machina, if you will.
Perhaps that *is* why so many Americans seem to have problems relating to the other sex (at least according to all those popular self-help books)- the girls grew up with princess fantasies, but the boys grew up with pirate fantasies. Perhaps you should write a book, "Men are from Pirate's Cove, Women are from Enchanted Kingdom" in order to capitalize on this insight. It would certainly be a damn sight more reasonable than the "Men are from Mars..." nonsense.
Hugh- given all the cultures where men wear kilts, robes, sarongs and other items of clothing that are most definitely non pant-like, I'd say it comes down to societal convention more than anything. Many western dresses may be designed with the female form in mind (and thus are a poor fit for men), but there is nothing about the dress itself that is inherently female-centric.
Posted by: bob | December 28, 2006 at 23:36
*whistles innocently while locking his closet*
Posted by: Saborlas | December 29, 2006 at 21:46
Chortle.
Utilikilts are a start. A very good start. Chaps in kilts are hawt.
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Posted by: Birthday Party Supplies | January 16, 2010 at 06:49