Is it normal that i'm a guy and i enjoyed playing with barbies?

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12 Comments

So, when I was younger, I used to babysit these rich kids down the road. One of the kids was a seven-year-old girl, and her favourite thing to do was play Barbies. All of her previous sitters had been girls, so she was noticeably dejected by the fact I was a guy. At first, we'd all just watch movies together, or play LEGO. After a while, I got really sick of cleaning up the LEGO before their parents got home, so I asked the kids if they'd rather do something else. The boy said he just wanted to watch TV, but the girl dragged me into her room and told me I had to at least try playing Barbies once, and that if I didn't like it, she'd never ask me again. So I gave in.

Turns out, I absolutely loved playing Barbies with her, and we did it pretty much every day of the summer. I had always assumed girls just sat there, trying outfits on, mindlessly brushing the dolls' hair, but this kid had her own little melodramatic world. There was even the occasional murder mystery to solve. For a kids' game, it was really involved and entertaining.

Anyway, this girl actually had her parents buy me a Ken and a Skipper to play with at her house, and I still have them. Obviously, I've never shown anyone. But I still kind of miss playing Barbies, as much as I miss remote-control cars and SuperSoakers.

So, yeah, I know this is beyond weird, but had any of you other boys ever tried playing with Barbies or Bratz with your sisters or female friends? After all, girls can play with any boys' toys no problem, but for whatever reason, a guy playing with Barbies makes him automatically a freak in the eyes of society. Double-standard if you ask me.

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75% Normal
Based on 55 votes (41 yes)
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Comments ( 12 )
  • RoseIsabella
    9 years ago

    I would have loved a big brother like you when I was a little girl.

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  • green_boogers
    9 years ago

    You would be a nice brother for a younger sister to have.

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  • Cuntsiclestick
    9 years ago

    It's normal. No toy should be gender segregated.

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  • OtherSide
    9 years ago

    Tell me more about your barbies. My barbie is a level 14 Rogue Elf with a +5 Cloak of Shadows and an Archery Skill of 110, and my Ken is a level 15 Paladin.

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    • Anonymous Post Author
      9 years ago

      My Ken's hair is immovable.

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  • LornaMae
    9 years ago

    That is quite endearing. I'd love to have you over to play Barbies!

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    • LornaMae
      9 years ago

      BTW, how cute is this? :)

      http://www.pleated-jeans.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/To-avoid-perpetuating-gender-stereotypes-I-gave-my-daughter-a-mix-of-dolls-and-toy-cars-to-play-with-This-is-what-happened.jpg

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      • shuggy-chan
        9 years ago

        hahahaha that is amazing

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  • helpful_demon
    7 years ago

    it's totally normal! no toy should be labeled a "boy's toy" or a "girl's toy", that's just wrong. it sounds like you had so much fun and i'm happy for you! keep being awesome, friend! :)

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  • Anonymous200
    9 years ago

    I remember my barbies! Of course we don't just dress and undress them, that would be boring. I used to force them to fight over something stupid or something like that. My favorite was popping the head off one of mine and pretending that she was a magician doing a trick.

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  • [Old Memory]
    9 years ago

    While there's nothing wrong with it, it is absolutely not normal.

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    • Anonymous Post Author
      9 years ago

      I think some boys might play with dolls if the dolls were geared more toward them. They already play with dolls in a sense with action figures, but I think a grown man's power fantasy is sort of misattributed to boys with action figures. I think if there were guy dolls in guy clothes that represented all different types of pre-teen/teenage guy, some boys would be able to get past the whole history of dolls being a girl thing, especially if they were young enough not to care. The dolls could be in a club or something, but instead of being interested in different fashions, they'd be into different sports, different hobbies, different music, etc. There could be a punk doll, a geek doll, a jock doll, etc. Or maybe the dolls could be border-line fantasy; like they could all transform into an animal or something. This would be akin to Sailor Moon dolls; a mix of the power fantasy of action dolls and the everyday social world play of Barbies.

      I think toy companies shy away from trying to create toys that develop a boy's social skills. Business is the last sector to shy away from longheld stereotypes.

      There's an idea behind dolls that I think is universal: a type of play that almost all kids find stimulating is creating and maintaining a universe of their own; playing God. Anyone can do this in their imagination, but toys are like tools that make it more accessible and immediate. Some boys already have tons of figures or stuffed animals, dolls don't have to be a girls only toy IMO.

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