My American Girl Doll: The American Female Role Model

Nothing says “female empowerment” like women using capitalism to cash in on female empowerment; otherwise known as the American Girl phenomenon. American Girl dolls came about in 1986 when a Midwestern woman sought to create a better female role model than the bodacious Barbie. The original American Girl dolls had a deep impact on the developmental years of thousands of young girls who grew up in the nineties. Samantha, Kirsten, and Molly were the original three dolls. Each doll was accompanied with its own historical story and personality which was revealed through a series of books. Felicity and Addy were soon added to the collection, creating a more diverse selection of dolls. The dolls and the books that accompanied them portrayed social issues that allowed young girls who owned the dolls to grasp heavy concepts such as class differences and manifest destiny. The stories of the American Girl dolls was the first impression many young girls had of America’s history, and they did not
It involves day-dreaming, playing, new friendships, and slowly gaining independence. Being at these ages also means starting to discover oneself and the toys chosen to play with play an immense role in the developmental process. Owning an American girl doll is something almost every little girl dreams of. The new obsession over these dolls is the My American Girl collection; a doll that looks just like you, because what could a person love more than themselves? The “doll who looks like me” phenomenon has been around for a while, and there is inherent narcissism in the very concept. But the My American Girl collection takes the idea to the next level in its advertising that manages to use almost every highly individualistic word and aphorism in existence. “Her new My American Girl doll will help her feel like she can anything,” reads a copy of the ad. “She’ll create a unique special friend unlike any other