Open Letter to American Girl Dolls
Mazel tov on the newest of your historical dolls, 9-year-old Rebecca Rubin, introduced on May 31, who lived in a lower East Side tenement with her Russian-Jewish immigrant parents, siblings and "Bubbie!" You took great care to veer away from stereotypes, paying particular attention to hair color, settling on brown with russet highlights, tasteful enough to have been executed by Frederic Fekkai. I commend you for passing up the temptation to make her ultra-orthodox, which would have afforded the opportunity to sell a wardrobe of wigs. Or were you concerned the $20 you charge to style a doll's hair might be too steep for a collection of hairpieces during this recession? Rebecca garnered the approval of Abraham Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League, who deemed her kosher. We're eager to see what she'll be wearing at next year's White House seder.
Thanks to American Girl, for only $100, a girl can own a doll that will expose her to poverty and hardships, designed to straighten out her priorities so she'll value friends and family above possessions. What little girl wouldn't light up at a chance to have Addy Walker, a slave doll, that's all hers? Addy's bio tells us that she lived on a plantation in 1864 before escaping to Philadelphia with her mother.
Those of our daughters whose parents' portfolios and 401 K's have recently shrunk or disappeared are lucky if, during better times, they'd gotten Kit Kittredge, a doll who struggled with the hardships of the Great Depression. How comforting to be able to clutch Kit closely when a "For Sale" sign appears next to the family's country house. Kit emerged from the dismal period with a complete wardrobe, a $58 bed and $159 trunk. One has to hope the next generation will fare as well.
Your new Rebecca took me by surprise. Given the popularity of Molly and Emily, patriotic girls who grew up during World War II, I was sure those attending birthday parties at American Girl Place must have been desperate for another doll from that time period. I could almost hear them whining, "I want a survivor doll!" That's why I was expecting Miriam, who'd come on the scene with a splashy party at the Holocaust Museum, her bio revealing that she'd been hidden from the Nazis by a family in the Ukraine, now honored in Yad Vashem's Garden of the Righteous. Filling out the story would be that Miriam's entire family, including her younger sister, Rivkeh, had been wiped out in one of the camps. Our girls would order the striped pajamas to match Rivkeh's from your catalog, making them the envy of their bunkmates at Maine sleep-away camps.
The other doll I'd been anticipating is Ming Lee. We learned that she'd been adopted from a Chinese orphanage and flown to America to join her celebrity family and meet her Ethiopian and Cambodian siblings. Ming Lee would show girls that in the bleakest of moments, life can turn around in a nanosecond with one nod from Angelina Jolie. Interestingly, China tightened its laws, refusing to allow adoption by anyone whose net worth is under $80,000. Ming Lee would be the gentle reminder that you need big bucks to get a Chinese child or doll.
I've no doubt that your birthday parties -- $450 for eight children (not including gratuities, wardrobe and shopping) -- are the place to see and be seen. You've gotten favorable press by donating to charity, but, even so, parents may be considering more modest ways of celebrating, perhaps at home, in a park or at Chuck E. Cheese. My hope is Rebecca Rubin, when she marries and becomes Rebecca Rubin Rabinowitz, will make that choice for her daughter.
You report having made the effort to avoid offensive stereotypes in the development of Rebecca Rubin. Am I the only one questioning your selling a triple bunk bed priced at $215 and a doll storage chest for $349 to accompany dolls purporting to impart values? And how are poor girls to learn about struggling? Oh, right, they have real life for that.
Last year you took in an impressive $463 million, but given the current economy, profits are likely to slack off. Girls may have to drag out an old Barbie and redress her in today's fashion statement. Maybe Pink Slip Barbie?
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For what it's worth, when I was growing up (there were 5 dolls then) my parents refused to spend that much money on a doll. Instead, they encouraged me to save my own money, and for two years, I did just that. I saved my (small) weekly allowance, did weeding and other garden chores for neighbors, sold lemonade, sold cookies, and did just about everything else I could to get the money for that expensive Kirsten doll.
And I did it. And you know what? That doll meant a lot to me, more than it would have if my parents had just bought her for me because I wanted her. I worked for her, and I got her. She was expensive, but she was worth it to me. I never got any of the other AG outfits, never got any of the expensive AG accessories. And I lived. My mom sewed outfits for my Kirsten, and I found outfits in stores made to fit those dolls even though they weren't official Pleasant Co. outfits. I made do.
And I lived quite happily.
So sure, the AG dolls are expensive. But no one is forcing parents to buy them for their daughters. Maybe an AG doll is a good way for girls to learn, like Kit, how to make do in a recession -- by saving!
I love the AG dolls and buy them for the girls in my family. They are expensive, probably the price of 5 barbies, whch I don't buy. The girls love them and the books that go with them. I am not a doll collector but I am buying Rebecca for myself. She reminds me of the stories told to me by my Jewish friends grandparent's about coming to America. When I read the article in the New York Times about the new doll, It brought back many fond memories.
We don't buy the dolls (too expensive), but my daughter has been devouring the books. It has made history come alive for her. She loves them. And it has helped her become interested in and learn about history.
History isn't boring and abstract. It revolves around characters that she knows and cares about. We borrow the books from the library so we get them for free.
I have learned some myself. Did you know that hobos in the 1930s had their own little villages with their own free stores and their own writing system?
As for the dolls, my daughter prefers Webkinz. They are stuffed animals, but to her they have human attributes. Remember, a good toy can become a thousand different things- it isn't restricted by what the toy manufacturer built if the child uses her imagination.
PART TWO:
If AG wants to share a rich history of Jews who fled pogroms, filled NY sweatshops and lead way for major labor and civil rights movements of 20th Century, plus filled our lives with music, Broadway and movies, Rebecca Rubin isn't gal to pave the way.
Gimme a gritty curly haired brunette who DOESN'T look like other dolls. Make her like Chatty Cathy, assertive Jewess who stands out from crowd, more concerned with social issues than clothes and accessories. Mazel tov for thoughtful article.
Sybil, I laughed / agreed with all you wrote! I wrote earlier on Facebook: "American Girl dolls released FIRST Jew, Rebecca Rubin. They spent YEARS in R & D, [yet] how many Russian Jewish girls have hazel eyes and light brown, wavy hair vs dark brown eyes, dark curly hair? Oy vey, they wanted to break down stereotypes (sell more dolls). NO way does Becca (also my maternal grandmother's Russian name) look like any of my many cousins nor Russian Jewesses I meet. We always bond over our curly hair!"
I was limited by space, but originally wrote costs over $500 for doll and accessories. I'm going to order all the books from Amazon, but not doll.
I appreciate the comments of mothers who felt dolls were good investment and enjoyable for their daughters, I cannot justify expense (am 59 and voluntarily childless, do collect dolls at times). I have very first two Barbie models ever produced. I spent many hours playing with them, and they've held up very well for nearly 50 years! I see no reason a family should give up things to provide a doll for their daughter(s).
I love your comment about Holocaust pj's. I'm with Mel Brooks: best way to deal with Holocaust is with humor, as sad as that is. Sure, as Spielberg said, every American Jew lost family in the Holocaust. But we gotta laugh or it hurts too much.
You're so right. It's the outlandish prices, exactly! Who wants a mortgage for toys? The AG dolls are a reach for most people, and a luxury for anyone. In addition, they're a slippery slope. You start the girls out on AG dolls, and when they get older they start watching Sex in the City, and before you know it, they think they're getting Manolo's for the Midlle School prom. How do we teach them about
PayLess? Wait for Connie, the Trailer Park girl.
AG has been one of the most positive things in my kids' and my lives, which have had many challengeshardships. The books are accounts of kids handling similar challenges and overcoming obstacles. The characters aren't perfect/goody-goody, just striving human beings like my daughters. I thank goodness for the books.
As for the dolls, we've purchased them by cutting back on other things, and their quality's well-worth it. In fact my whole ecomonic life has been in a personal recession, a life of thrift stores, not eating out, old cars, etc. ; if I'm going to go through life always with so little material wealth, I'd like to be allowed one thing that I love or consider a hobby without feeling guilty about it. That thing is American Girl, and if it were to take that from me, my girls and I would feel the loss of the one&only sweet luxury we've ever had. Please allow that different people have their own luxury (whether it is gaming, cars, cruises, manicures, jewelry, designer shoes); please don't randomly pick on American Girl. I never judge or pick on other's chosen luxuries. There is possibly some product perhaps you have splurged on. I would not imply that your thing is negative. It is forgiving&right to allow others to pursue their hobby and interests without commenting negatively. There is too much negativity already.
You sound lovely and I hope you don't construe this as attacking you. I respect your right to get whatever you want, but would feel better if the company didn't create such outlandish prices so that you have to give up something to afford their products. I totally understand wanting to support our kids and bravo to you for making that point.
Very nice wit! Despite my love for the early American Girl company (known as "Pleasant Company" in the 80's and 90's), I totally appreciate this piece.
I've always felt the the dolls were meant to be companions to the characters in the books, not the other way around. I had an American Girl doll growing up and few dresses for her, but I read ALL the books for ALL of the dolls so much so that the covers started to come off. It was fascinating to see history from a young female perspective when almost everyone of historical importance seemed to be male. I also waited by the mailbox every month for the American Girl Magazine and read them to the point of wearing out the pages in some spots. There wasn't the enormous pressure back then to have every expensive piece that they made. Most of my friends did not have a doll, but we loved the posters in the classroom that simply commanded us girls to "Read". We loved the paper dolls, the historical craft and cookbooks, and writing notes to each other on stationary with pictures of our favorite characters. Does anyone even do that anymore, or is it all about having the newest and most expensive bit and bob?
I feel a bit sad at the fact that her educational potential will be seriously eroded in a tidal wave of consumerism.
That was such a well thought out comment. I appreciate it and your feelings.
Sybil's observations are incisive...and really funny.
Does the "mom" of the newest American Girl doll have to save her Chanukah gelt to afford Rebecca's bar mitzvah?
what about a walk in an apple grove?
what about picking a ripe berry on a plant?
how about a watercolor of an icy sea?
such nonsense and pressure lurks
in american girl shops.
thank you sybil for mixing humor and
reality and making us see what we might
not want to be looking at. bravo!
Oh, please. Dolls do not, cannot, teach values or "straighten out a child's priorities." That is a parents' purview (and responsibility) not a toy's.
What the AG doll exposes a girl to is history, which often contains "poverty and hardships" (along with joyous celebrations, opposing viewpoints, and hard choices). The dolls & books provide INFORMATION...and what girls (or students, since I used the books in my second grade classroom) take from that information depends on the values/viewpoint they 've already been taught and the discussions that take place after they are exposed to that information.
No toy will teach a child to "value friends and family above possessions." That lesson comes from a child's parents, family, and teachers because those toys are just possessions themselves.
As for my girls, I will continue to encourage them to play with their AG dolls (some passed down, since they are heirloom quality toys with a lifelong unconditional guarantee). I will continue to spend part of our (hard earned, very middle class, enlisted military) salary on AG products on birthday/Christmas gifts quite happily, pleased that the books, dolls and accessories (in addition to just being darrned fun to play with) will enrich their educations and begin discussions that help me impart my values and morals to them. And some day, when their video players & games, obsolete computers and Barbies are long gone my daughters will pass their AG dolls on to their daughters and the cycle will begin again.
Yeah, I'm not sure what the author is really getting at. I've read the article twice and I must be missing some cultural understandings. Is it simply the price for the dolls? If that's it then I'm embarrassed for having wasted too much time on the article. Is the complaint simply that the company tried to do something "Jewish"? I don't think so, but again, I think I may be missing something here.
You might gather from my user name that I live in Wisconsin. I live close to the American Girl offices and I know a couple people who work there but I do not myself. They ones I know are good people, no surprise there. Not just good 'mind their own business'-people, but proactively good people. Too bad the article is so dismissive as I know it has upset some there and for all of the biting witticisms I wish I could grasp the point. I'm suspicious the author simply saw an opportunity to make a joke and did so regardless of the logic behind it. Seems really forced.
Finally, and again, I just don't get it. Is it really just that the doll's are $100 in a recession? If so, weak.
Hi,
I have no problem with this particular doll and hope to clarify my intention by connecting the dots. I used her as a launching point for some fun. An article in the "NY Times" stated that she had been in development for many years and that the company had gone to great lengths to avoid being offensive. I applaud that and am pleased they succeeded, but a company that charges $100 for a doll, $20 to style the doll's hair and over $200 for a bed and $300 or more for a chest of drawers offends my sense of how money should be spent. You can put together a bedroom at IKEA for that.
I don't doubt that the people you know are good people, and you're a loyal friend. Employees rarely set policy. I thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and would be interested in why your friends found what I wrote dismissive.
Wow. It feels good to have a grown daughter and one in college and two grandsons. I've managed to keep my head buried deeply enough to miss the American Girls line. If I have to learn about this stuff it's great to find out via a smartly, incisively, humorous post like this one. I'll go back to hiding from reality but will come up once in a while for a peek and a smile.
Holocaust Barbie. Now there's a concept.
I bought a Molly doll for my daughter the first year American Girl opened. At the time, Molly was the only doll we could find that wore glasses, as my daughter did.
My daughter loved that doll. And the bed. And the clothing. And the books. And the matching human-sized pajamas. Loved loved loved that doll. For two years. Then she moved on to Legos. The doll is now stored in the back of the closet in the hope that we can ammortize it (I figure it breaks down to more than a thousand bucks a year, all in.) by passing it on to a granddaughter.
First child insanity, is what I call it. Needless to say, no American Girl anything for our second daughter.
Keep up the good posts!
How about putting it on eBay? Thanks for your support.
or just present it to the second daughter as a special gift from her big sister... she might love it. And your daughters might play together with the older one teaching the younger one what she learned about Molly.
Sybil Adelman Sage's Open Letter to American Girl Dolls is brilliant and biting and hits its mark.
The very idea of Rebecca Rubin, holocaust survival doll is repugnant, but Ms. Sage manages to
make that point with wit and intelligence and irony. Dayenu with the "historical" dolls. For $100 better to buy a few books that teach the terrible truth. Read them with your daughters and discuss.
Thank you!!!
My daughter has 3 American Girl Dolls, one that was bought new and two that were purchased on Ebay, including the Addy doll. We purchased Addy on ebay, not because she was less expensive, but because we wanted a pre-Mattel doll as they have softer vinyl and much nicer faces (our opinion only).
My daughter loves her Addy doll and she loves the stories. The fact that Addy is born a slave is a major part of the story, yes, but it is not any near the entire story. I would venture to say that the majority of 9 year old little girls living in the year 1864 were born into slavery if they lived in the South. The stories have opened up many interesting conversations between my daughter and I.
We are making a trip to American Girl Place in LA in July and I hope that my daughter decides to purchase the Rebecca Rubin doll (with money she has saved). I look at it as another opportunity for her to learn about history in a fun and interesting way.
As far as the cost, I don't mind spending $100 on a doll as much as I mind spending $50 on a video game for my son that he will be bored with in a matter of months. I find it interesting that $100 is considered way too much money for a quality doll, but $400 is perfectly acceptable to most people for a video game system.
I'm not sure what you mean when you say that the "majority of 9 year old little girls living in the year 1864 were born into slavery if they lived in the South"? Can you elaborate?
"Addy" is the black doll. Hence the commenter was trying to say that the majority of little black girls -- like Addy the doll -- were born into slavery.
Beautiful!
When it was Pleasant COmpany, started by a school teacher; back when the middle class wasn't so squeezed...............it was a great history teaching tool. Then MAttel bought it.....and like any other corporate profit making machine it had to keep escalating.
If you are looking for a good doll for a child.....consider the Mary Hoyer Doll Company in Lancaster PA.
The Grandaughter of the founder is running the company and all dolls & accessories are MADE IN LANCASTER PA!
My cousin and I used to play with them, and if play stimulates dreams for the future these dolls with their trench coats , sunglasses, skis, skating outfits etc. did their job because the 2 of us, had many exciting International adventures, pre-programed in childhood!
I found the Mary Hoyer Dolls on the internet and they cost between $189 and $209 a piece! That is double the price of an American Girl doll. Their eyes don't close when you lay them down either, which is just creepy. I think I will pass, I don't care if they are made in Lancaster, PA.
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