Response to “Toys”

In Roland Barthes's Mythologies, one of his myths is about toys. Before reading this piece, I had never thought of the fact that most all of the toys made for children are miniatures of adult life. There is a common belief that adults never really grow up and are children at heart. Barthes gives examples of the toys that mimic adult careers and jobs, and other tasks adults perform. He also does not like the fact that many toys are no longer made out of wood, which makes the toys seem unfriendly and break sooner. I think that plastic toys are better in some ways. They allow the toys to become available to more people, because they are cheaper and more can be produced. Also, just because adults make toys for children that may mimic their own lives, it doesn’t mean the children don’t like those toys. Little girls love playing house. With just plain dolls, little girls manage to come up with ways to play house. This, in part, shows that sometimes children want to imitate their parents, because they feel they want to be like them. This belief can come about without the influence of commercial toys. Barthes says that these toys don’t help the children become creative, just users of products, and I agree with him on that point. However, children have great imaginations, and, maybe without using these toys, they can be very creative in making something into something else, such as a box or dryer. Children will always be able to play with something, whether it is a commercial toy or not.