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Lego Commercial History

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Evolution of Toy Commercials: A Breakthrough Or Not?
Barbie dolls and LEGOs have always been traditionally considered as typical toys for girls and boys. Growing up with having Barbie dolls, I once believed so firmly that Barbie dolls were only made for girls to play, just like LEGO for the boys. As the society becomes more and more tolerant and liberal, people start to speak for gender stereotype problems. In the Barbie doll commercial of 2015, Mattel Inc. is promoting the Barbie dolls and outfits designed by Jeremy Scott, the creative director of Moschino. The Barbie doll is known as "Moschino Barbie". The highlight of this commercial is the involvement of male character for the first time in fifty-six years of Barbie's history. The LEGO …show more content…

In LEGO's commercial, the name of the product "LEGO" never appears in the commercial. Instead, the white girl as a narrator is very articulate and eloquent: "I don't always want you to help me. Do you know why? [It is because] I want to figure it out on my own, even it doesn't turn out the way I want." "I know what's not wrong because you taught me how to think, and how to dream." "I am about to make something that I know will make you proud." (LEGO) The girl is constructing arguments in a logical manner throughout the monologue, which shows her ability to think deeply and independently; therefore manifesting her inner maturity and intelligence, even though her appearance is not deliberately …show more content…

The presence of the boy with some feminized characteristics in Moschino Barbie commercial suggests an attempt to break the gender norm of playing with Barbie. Firstly, instead of saying, "Moschino Barbie is so fashionable", he says, "Moschino Barbie is so fierce!" According to the Urban Dictionary, one of the definitions of fierce is "A term that gay men used … to describe absolutely everything that is of ‘exceptional quality'." Furthermore, the gesture of the boy holding the mini bag – using the thumb and forefinger to hold the bag and keep the other three fingers straight up – is also considered as being feminine. Finally, the color theme of Moschino Barbie commercial consists of black, white and gold that is considered as gender-neutral colors. Those three colors appear on both Moschino Barbie and the boy's outfits, indicating the male identity on the little boy has been reduced. Through all of these details, the Mattel, Inc. is sending a message to the audiences that the Barbie doll is only for girls and feminized boys to play. It is not appropriate for the normative

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