Cinderella Ate my Daughter

By Laura Duncan on 02/01/2011 @ 12:58 PM

Peggy Orenstein became involved with the new girly-girl culture after realizing that her pre-school daughter had been teased for her train-themed lunchbox and would from then on reject any design that was not girly enough. Soon, she could recite the names of all Disney Princesses. The popular Disney product line was launched in 2000 and today accounts for $4 billion in global retail sales. Orenstein’s 2006 article What's Wrong with Cinderella stirred controversy and prompted several responses, some of them angry at her suggestions (“I pity Peggy Orenstein’s daughter”) and others thankful that this issue had finally been brought up (“I have been waiting for a story like yours”).

The responses suggested to Orenstein that she had touched on a sensitive topic, one that ought to be further explored. The result is her most recent book, Cinderella Ate my Daughter: Dispatches from the Frontlines of the New Girly-Girl Culture. At an event this week, she shared a unique look at girly culture.

Orenstein realized that, despite the fact that girls are doing better than ever before, the pressure to define themselves by their appearance has greatly increased. A sign of this is the obsession with the color pink, possibly a marketing ploy that has now resulted in the rejection by girls of objects of another color. Orenstein reports that if there is only one pink Lego box in the store, girls will only go for that box. These limitations are a serious problem because girls should be allowed to consider all options.

In her book, Orenstein also addresses the “real life princesses,” such as the Hannah Montana star Miley Cyrus. A common trend among these princesses is the initial marketing of innocence followed by a transition into sexualized images. This tendency, accompanied by the availability of products previously directed to older age groups, such as make-up, short skirts and high heels, has led to the sexualization of young girls. Orenstein is quick to remind us that girls should be encouraged to discover their sexuality, but that this movement has taught them to worry about looking good, and not feeling good.

Peggy Orenstein knows that she has a tough battle ahead of her. Her book offers parents the opportunity to consider more carefully the effect of this recent cultural movement on their daughters. Change is not impossible; after all, parent’s pocket books control the industry.

Click here to view a promo of Missrepresentation, a new film about the portrayal of women in the media.

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