What is wrong with Toy Story?

When my sons were little they loved watching Thomas the Tank Engine on DVD, we watch it for enjoyment.  I, nor my sons, cared about the number of male characters to female characters, however, as we know, it worried the feminist movement who complained about the lack of female characters and that most were relegated to secondary roles. (only eight of the 49 main characters in the current Thomas shows are female).

Toy Story 3 was last week, a children’s movie that my 22 year old son went to see and one which he thoroughly enjoyed.  However I wonder if he noticed the ratio of male to females characters, no he didn’t.  In case you haven’t either, there is a ratio of seven males to one female.  O dear.   It also contains a “nagging” mother (getting cross at her 17 year old son) and a "hyper-feminine" and "overly emotional" Barbie.  Yes, you have guessed it, feminists are complaining that the family film is sexist or to be more correct “careless sexism” (not a term I have heard before) and that it may damaged children.  I better warn my son that he might have been damaged from watch this G rated movie. To quote the magazine who is complaining: "Kids who grow up watching sexist shows are more likely to grow up internalising stereotypical ideas of what men and women are supposed to be like."   That would be the one of mum wearing pretty dresses and caring for the baby whilst dad going off to work, we can't have that.

 

The article also argues that the film is homophobic in its depiction of the doll Ken as a "closeted gay fashionista with a fondness for writing in sparkly purple ink", stating that: "Pairing homophobia with misogyny, the jokes about Ken suggest that the worst things a boy can be are either a girl or a homosexual." What ever that is meant to mean.

 

Do children pay attention to this sort of thing. No, they don’t and I very much doubt that watching Toy Story and Thomas the Tank Engine will damage any child.   Have these women nothing better to do, but count female characters in a child’s movie and be concern about young girls "internalize gender role stereotypes".  How very sad.