Vermont Toy and Hobby
by An in depth analysis of culture in a Vermont toy store.
Some things that are part of everyday life are actually brimming with cultural meaning, or in some cases, the lack thereof. The Vermont Toy and Hobby Store at the University Mall in South Burlington, Vermont is an example of the latter. Like most toy stores, there are board games, stuffed animals, toy figures, coloring books, and toys for assembling, such as legos; each of which appeals to different types of children. Children as a consumer are a highly marketed, successful business. However, cultural items such as race and gender don’t seem to be illustrated well in the Vermont Toy and Hobby store. An in depth look at the store provides a view of cultural incorporation, or lack thereof in the toys that children buy.
In the early nineteenth century, as consumerism was shaping the market, childhood marketing boomed. Children as consumers succeeded the advertising development as a new way for the consumption of commodities to aid in growth of economy, as well as to expand the nuclear family concept.
The nuclear family is a great toy for children. In Vermont Toy and Hobby, there are several packages of families for children to enjoy. Each of these families is a white family with a father, mother, sister, brother, baby, and a dog. Is it fair to teach children that all families are homogenous white, heterosexual, nuclear families? Shouldn’t children be able to explore the multi-cultural family? The exclusion of homosexual couples is understandable, however, how do black children feel when they walk into a toy store and can’t find a family set that looks like theirs?
In the doll section of the store, there are several dolls with brown skin. However, in the toy figures section, there are pirates, wizards, soldiers, movie characters, etc, none of which are black. There are characters from the popular movie Pirates of the Caribbean, which had black characters; yet, none of those figures are available. In a review of all the characters available in the store, excluding the brown-skinned dolls, there are two black characters. One is in a box set about a construction crew that included “Lewis, the Foreman.” The other is in a box set with dinosaurs that had a black woman and a white man. This also leads to an interesting view of the female characters available.
All the female characters in the store are mainly parts of families. There are several sets called “playground friends” including a boy and girl character. All the other females are dolls or princesses. Should children only assume that females are mothers or princesses? Why are there no female characters in the construction set? The only other female character displayed in the store is Dora the Explorer. She is a character that speaks Spanish and English. Children all around the United States are learning to speak Spanish thanks to Dora the Explorer. So why aren’t children learning about other cultures as well?
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Post CommentAlex Summers
On June 15, 2008 at 12:04 pm
Oh, please! I’m so sick of everyone with their liberal, tree-hugging mentality. McLure cries about pollution left me nauseated. Bad ventilation? Health concerns? And then to have the brass to say that the toys from VT Toy and Hobby manufactured create pollution! I’m sure you drive a car, own a computer, use plastics, consume and dispose of objects like everyone else, McLure. There are bigger problems to address than the health concerns and pollution at VT Toy and Hobby. And then the whole thing with caucasian toys and not being able to buy black versions of the family, or diverse cultures! C’mon gimme a break, please! Instead of wasting your time writing such trash, why don’t you go to China – then you’ll see a ‘diverse society’ that cares less for the enviorment than we do.
Chris Gamache
On October 9, 2008 at 11:35 am
I worked at VT Toy and Hobby, not only is the physical environment polluted but the culture and overall work environment that the management and ownership creates toxic. I will not shop there because the guy who owns Vermont Toy and Hobby is a jerk and cannot be bothered to listen to his employees.
Don’t Shop VERMONT TOY AND HOBBY, they are not as warm and friendly as you would think.
Everyone assumes local companies are better. That is not the case for Vermont Toy and Hobby.
Jack Callahan
On May 28, 2009 at 11:47 am
Oh My God! We are talking about a Toy Store. I thought the point was to have fun and enjoy the earlier years. Children aren’t concerned about what is politically correct. They aren’t aware of issues that are based on our own personal adjectives or limited experiences as adults, nor should they be. It’s when we bring these adult issues to children that we cross the line and start to confuse them before their time. As far as culture is concerned, it is the responsibilty of the family, not the toy store. There are other available resources for parents if they feel so strongly about introducing their child to a black baby doll. It isn’t the responsibility of a toy store to be everything for everyone.
Maybe if we as Americans had the balls, we wouldn’t have farmed out jobs to other countries for the sake of the all mighty dollar. The country is in the state we are in because we let it happen. We turned a blind eye because we didn’t care as long as we got what we wanted. We are gluttens and pigs. So don’t talk about all the pollutants and products that come from China. If we manufactured our own toys, kept our jobs in this country, then we woudln’t have to rely on China. But face it. We’ve backed ourselves into the hole and have to rely on them.
The author of the article has nothing better to do than to blame everyone else, criticize, and try to shove all this politically correct crap down our throats rather than offer a solution to the real problem. The fact of the matter is, is that he is just as responsible through his own actions as anyone else and helped create this mess. Gee, I wonder if it was because he didn’t have a black doll to play with as a child. Poor deprived child….now look at him!
Mel Allen
On December 18, 2009 at 6:02 pm
I believe I see what McClure is getting at here – by commenting on the perceptions of a world around us based, by and large, on the selection of items in a toy store. I don’t disagree with many of the statements made.
However, the premise is flawed. We are, of course, speaking about a locally owned shop, and in Vermont no less.
Capitalism isn’t PC, it isn’t fair and it certainly doesn’t offer a view of the world that makes everyone cozy and nestled in a hug. What it does offer are goods that are selected by the ability of the consumers that have historically entered that store, and their purchasing choices. Nothing enters a retail store unless the buyer believes it will move.
In a state where the population, at last check, was just shy of 90% white, it makes sense that the large percentage of products would reflect that. VT Toy and Hobby Shop doesn’t profess to carry locally made products, just ownership. As a majority of the affordable toys are made overseas where labor laws are scarce and cheap labor isn’t – the best chance for profitability comes from purchasing wholesale goods produced in those countries.
I would love to tell McClure, and the children shopping in stores that this is a perfect picture of bliss, but it’s a retail store. No more, no less – it isn’t a reflection on society, unless you choose to see society only for their consumerism and the choices made to serve it.