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the
Myths
and the
Faithfully
Plastic

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Preface

Once upon
a time...

Toys are the forgotten significance. It holds a substantial memorial. It became a mystic item, as the years passed. The dust, a remnant of a different life.

It’s early 2000. We visited grandma. She lived in a flat, build in the post-second war in the Netherlands. I still remember the smell of the staircases in the concrete hallways. It smelled wet, and old, yet musky and nice.

My grandma lived on her own in this little apartment. Her husband - my grandfather and my father's father - died already a long time ago. I have never met him in my life. Her apartment was chic yet old-fashioned decorated. The dark wooden furniture is accentuated with crochet doilies with flowers. Even the television furniture got blessed by a crochet doily, just like her coffee table and the radiator.

You would hear always the following sounds. Ticking from the golden clock, which was held by a white sculpture of a woman. A Christian choir, sung on the television. The tones of a little silver spoon, stirring the cup of coffee of my father. Because he was the only one who drinks his coffee with milk and sugar. And of course; the sound of my grandma talking. The most imperative sound, which made it my grandma’s apartment. Because she could talk a lot.

These memories of my grandma’s apartment are still strong till this day. And I know exactly why. There wasn’t much to play with. So I often found myself being in the moment or daydreaming away. By looking at one of the paintings in the house, for example. In the hallway there was a painting of two women, sitting, almost lying, casually at the beach, looking at the beholder. It looks like a painting made in the 1800s.

‘If I look away, maybe they will move?’ ‘What would they talk about?’ There was also a fake Rembrandt in her house. An image of Titus as a child, the son of Rembrandt. I had a little crush on him. Because he had curls and sweet eyes. Which is still my kinda type. Now it hangs in my room while I type these words.

Then there was this huge closet in another room of my grandma’s apartment. You can easily call it ‘the Closet to the realm of Narnia’. From the Novels of C. S. Lewis. A fantasy world of magic, mythical beasts, and talking animals. The closet was made of a glossy type of wood and felt monstrous. As it curled up at the ceiling. I could eat me up, if my parents and my grandma wouldn’t pay close enough attention.

But suddenly, my dad came up to me with a huge brown suitcase. Filled with little railroads, plastic horses, pigs, cows, trains and cars. It wasn’t much, but it felt as if I made a mystic journey back to the 60s. When my dad was just as old, as I was then; playing on the carpet at my grandma’s place. Hearing the same clock, the Christian choir singing on the radio, surrounded by the same paintings. Maybe his dad was stirring the same cup of coffee with the same little silver spoon as my dad did in my childhood.

Chapter 1

The Toys

The History

A toy is a tool that is practiced for life experiences. For kids to understand the world in a broader sense, discover their identity, help with cognition, learn cause and effect, explore relationships, become stronger physically, stimulate creativity, and practice skills needed in adulthood. We take on roles, speak and use body language to represent our character – or our own. We engage in verbal storytelling and act in the character’s world.

“Play is the highest development in childhood, for it alone is the free expression of what is in the child’s soul…. children’s play is not a mere sport. It is full of meaning and import.”

F.W. Fröbel


Friedrich Wilhelm August Fröbel was a German educator. He is the founder of the first kindergaden or Kindergarten as spelt in German language, in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg. It was an institute for children under the age of six, which he occupied with all sorts of self-invented works that he considered instructive. For example, the folding of paper. Children would become acquainted with geometric forms. This kind of play resulted in one of the most known toys to children: the block box. what would give a huge influence on some ‘rebels’ in Germany, 100 years later. Which made these wooden toys popular until this day. More on this later. Let’s go back. Where or when did the invention of toys start? How was the relation between children and toys throughout the years? And what made the toys so culturally popular and how?

Toys, as we know toys;
It all began with the doll…

The origin of the meaning of toys is found in the doll. The earliest documented dolls go back to the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Which would be around 2000BC. The dolls had wigs and movable limbs which were made from stone, clay, sticks, wax and wood. These dolls were blessed with a protective mimic spirit to confuse the evil spirits. They also created these dolls to give to the new infants.

In Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, children also played with bows and arrows, and yo-yos. When Greek children, especially girls, came of age it was customary for them to sacrifice the toys of their childhood to the gods. On the eve of their wedding, young girls around fourteen would offer their dolls in a temple as a rite of passage into adulthood. Here we already see the toy in a ritual manner. I will go more extensive about this topic in Faith and Collecting Repiques. Until the first millennia AC, toys were to embody spiritualism, superstition and ritual, instead to comfort and joy as we know today.

Toys were also important during the medieval era.This was also the time that toys, as term, got documented. With my own hypothesis, this must be due to the upcoming of book pressing. Various historians and archaeologists have been able to demonstrate the reflecting matter of the relationships between parents and children in these times. A large majority of toys from this era were made from decaying materials like wood, wax, cloth, or even grass. As such most would have decomposed leaving little evidence for the archaeological record, although some toys did survive.

The toys of the young royalty and high nobility were, not surprisingly, of better quality and thus more likely to be well preserved. With the highly craftsmanship, suggesting the owners of these toys were valued individuals. Most toys for princes were also related to the art of warfare to prepare them for what was, considered to be, their main task in adult life. A playful introduction to war and reigning, that is.

Moreover, sick children could be given toys to pass the time and make them feel better as for Charles VII, future king of France, who fell ill at the age of 2 in 1404 and was given a toy cauldron to play with. Although he was a prince, poorer parents must have behaved similarly with less expensive toys to the extent of their means.

Throughout the first quarter of the 20th Century, most toys were made in Germany. German toys were often made of wood. Hand carving was commonplace and considered manufacturing. Because remember the “rebels” I told you about? Those were the students and graduates of the Bauhaus. Alma Siedhoff-Buscher gave a fresh new breath to the block box that was developed from the plays of Frobel.

Alma Siedhoff-Buscher, was a German designer who studied at the Bauhaus Dessau from 1922. She graduated in 1927. Since she started working in the woodwork shop, she created various child toys and puppet theaters. Some men weren’t always keen on her working on three-dimensional design and were better working with two-dimensional patterns in the Weaving Workshop. Walter Gropius, head of the Bauhaus, and often depicted as a visionary and architect or designer, was in fact quite a problematic figure when it came to the emancipatory project at the structuring of the curriculum of the Bauhaus, where women had to predominantly study textiles etc. and were not very welcome in the other classes such as engineering and architecture. (Always those men with their ‘opinions’) Alma designs are until this day praised by many designers. Stated by many: “a timeless design”. Unfortunately, Alma was later killed during an air raid during the WWII. She was 45. A woman with a life full of potential that was lost amongst so many.

Many of toys either had to be skillfully made at home or else they could cost quite a bit of money since mass production had not yet started in the 1920s. In the 1900’s, toys for children were more uncommon than we might think. Unfortunately, child labor was more common to children, than it was to play. Some as young as four, worked in factories, mines, fields, canneries, and tenement sweatshops. This was seen in any country where industrialization was at its peak. The commonplace was that 18% of all American workers in 1900, were under the age of 16.

“All caused by sheer poverty, by the poverty of parents, by the ambition of parents and by the ignorance of parents as well as by the law of market which demands that a product be turned out a the least possible cost to sell at the highest possible price”

Jane Addams, stated in 1914. She was a social worker, social reformer, pacifist, and the first female winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

The children who had their own store bought toys, were children from the wealthy adults. They were carefully made of wood or ivory. Think of rocking horses, a rolling hoop, marbles, bilboquet (a cup and ball game) and phenakistiscope, (where an animation will be played when you spin it between your palms). During this same period French bisque dolls with swivel heads and movable arms, legs, and eyes, started to occur in newspapers. This made the start of advertisement to trigger psychological urges to bond a child with their make-believe friends and imaginary siblings.

In times of war, a new toy was introduced. This toy wasn’t even meant to be a toy in the beginning. In the docuseries, “The Toys That Built America,” uncovers a surprising history of the Slinky the Slinky. An engineer, called, Richard James, was tasked with creating a device to stabilize sensitive equipment that was being transported through rough seas during World War II. But that didn’t work out. So he changed the meaning of the object into a toy. It wasn’t uncommon in these times change meaning of various objects into toys. Gasmasks got advertised as “The greatest toy sensation in years”. Was it to protect the children of the dark ages the world was in? Or was it just another sell method?

After World War II ended and the economy was booming, mass production went into full swing and the baby boomer generation emerged. In the 1950s, manufacturers quickly realized that wealthier families would purchase an entirely new set of clothing, toys, and gadgets based on the way toys were positioned in the marketplace. Television, for instance, brought in celebrity and character tie-ins to create new toy brands. Postwar kids had exposure to TV and radio commercials, as well as various toy advertisements in magazines and newspapers, while parents were encouraged to consume. This marks the birth of toys as we know them today, when fantasy, joy, and comfort were fully capitalized. As magic, imagination, and fantasy became commodities that had to be purchased, toy advertisements began to showcase new products, such as "Introducing! A new friend for Barbie!" and "A full collection of the adventures of King Kong!" These fantasies became options that could only be unlocked by buying them, creating a sense of obligation for children to experience new fantasies and for parents to purchase them.

Until 1960, the advertising market exclusively featured white children in their advertisements and commercials, but this began to change in the 1970s with the first appearances of black children, which became more frequent in the 1980s. Interestingly, in 1980, the first Afro-American Barbie made its debut, albeit somewhat belatedly. It was designed by Louvenia "Kitty" Black Perkins, who became a legend among Barbie collectors and in the toy industry. Perkins guided the creative production team at Mattel, the world's largest toy manufacturer, for 25 years. She championed diversity and the exploration of new territories and themes. Perkins revealed that she never owned a Barbie during her childhood. Born in 1948 and raised in the heavily segregated southern region of America, it was unlikely for a black girl to ask for a white doll. It is difficult to imagine discovering one's own desires and dreams with a toy that one cannot relate to.

A known contemporary artist, Hank Willis Thomas, made various works about the American advertisement and how it has historically perpetuated and reinforced racial and gender stereotypes. For example, his series "Unbranded: Reflections in Black by Corporate America" features advertisements from the mid-20th century that were targeted at Black consumers, with the brand names and logos removed. By removing the branding and focusing solely on the images, Thomas draws attention to the ways in which these ads relied on racist tropes and caricatures to sell products. With this work he challenges viewers to question the ways in which these images have been used to shape our understanding of race, gender, and identity, and encourages us to think critically about the messages that we are bombarded with on a daily basis.

During the 1980s and 1990s, there was a resurgence of nostalgia for toys, which was prompted by the significant increase in the globalization of the world economy. This period was characterized by the growing interdependence of nations, the rise of multinational corporations, and the liberalization of trade and investment policies.

One of the main drivers of globalization during the 1980s was the growth of international trade, as many countries began to open their markets to foreign competition, resulting in increased flows of goods and services across borders. The rise of container shipping and air transport also made it easier and cheaper to transport goods around the world. Combined with the fact that the baby boomers were becoming adults and wanted to evoke the spirit they had as children with their toys, a lot of toys were purchased. Now, every generation after the baby boomers, including myself as a member of Generation Z, will search for the spirit of their childhood found in the toys they once played with, and will likely have to pay for them. In fact, I recently bought myself a Nintendo DS Lite.

I truly believe that this is the circle of the toy. We play with them, forget about them, begin to feel nostalgic, and then want them back. But what happens as soon as we get them back?

Overall toys have also played a significant role in shaping our understanding of gender norms throughout the years. However, it is important to note that now over time, these norms have become less rigid and more fluid. One example of gender norms in toys between boys and girls in earlier times is the Barbie doll, which was introduced in 1959 and quickly became a popular toy for girls. The Barbie doll was marketed as the idealized feminine beauty, with her slim figure, blonde hair, and fashionable clothes. In contrast, toys for boys often emphasized action and strength, such as toy soldiers, cars, and construction sets. As society continues to evolve, we are seeing a shift towards a more inclusive and accepting approach to gender expression, particularly in the realm of toys. While there is still much work to be done in terms of breaking down gender stereotypes and promoting equality, the progress that has been made thus far is a positive step towards a more open and diverse world.

Chapter 2

The Portal to Faith

Philosophies
on toys

From the History of Magic by Chris Gosden:

“Magic is not a set of outmoded beliefs for the credulous, the ill-educated, the stupid or the mad. Magic is not even something to which people resort but rather is a prominent feature in many lives. Magic encourages a holistic view of human beings, linking them to the planet through practical and moral relationships. At a time when we need positive and holistic planetary thinking, magic has much to offer.”

My father came from a Protestant family, while my mother came from a Catholic family. Although faith was not necessarily the core focus of my upbringing, I was certainly raised in an environment that emphasized it. At my elementary school, we began each day with a prayer, followed by stories from the Bible. We were exposed to beautiful narratives that were often rich in spectacle. Through these stories, we learned about morality and what constitutes right and wrong. However, above all else, I was able to glean a great deal about the art of storytelling and the power of imagination.

Based on my own experiences and observations of broadly documented religions, I have started to make my own connections and equations. These connections are not too unusual, as many cultural philosophers have also made fundamental connections. One such philosopher is Johan Huizinga (1872-1945), who coined the term "Homo ludens" in his seminal work of the same name to describe our species. He saw play, ritual, and performance as fundamentally interrelated throughout our human activities.

Additionally, there exists a lengthy history of scholars who have studied play behaviors in both animals and humans, proposing that play plays a significant role in cognitive development, behavioral innovation, and creativity, which are all crucial to the development of social norms such as moral behavior and concepts of fairness. These aspects sound quite familiar and are all components of religious thought and ritual behaviors.

As you now know, toys were once created to embody spiritualism, superstition, and ritual until the first millennium AC. I believe that spiritualism has never truly left toys, regardless of the era in which they were produced. They serve as portals to worlds where we have control, becoming the gods of our own fantasies. Toys are alive, if only we allow them to be.

The eyes of the doll were wide open as if she could look right in me, to take my spirit and distort my imaginations. I slept on a high bed, the doll got placed by my father on the high closet – facing me in the night. I feared the doll, yet I was too polite to say anything about the omen... It was gift of grandma and I saw how fond she was of giving one of her favorite toys to me. One night, I believe she moved. Or she opened and closed her eyes. As it was not an “it” nor it was really a “she”. The doll wasn’t alive. But the magic, the myth, the spirit was.

All of the magic, beliefs, and ideas that surrounded our toys shaped who we are today. They were our idols, our teachers, and our guardians. From simple blocks, cars, and figures to intricate construction sets and dolls, they helped us navigate the world. But as we grew older, life became more complicated. We faced embarrassment, peer pressure, heartbreak, responsibility, loneliness, and death. Unable to confront our fears, we turned to media for distraction and guidance, filling our minds with bad news, gossip, and trends. We became teenagers, young adults, adults, and eventually, the elderly. Along the way, we lost friends and toys alike, either forgotten or left behind.

This analysis may remind you of the Toy Story trilogy, which evolved alongside its audience, much like the toys in the films. In the first installment, Woody, a pull-string cowboy doll, becomes jealous of the new Buzz Lightyear figure and attempts to dispose of him. The consequences of his actions serve as a lesson for children about the responsibilities and consequences of jealousy.

Throughout the trilogy, the toys confront increasingly complex issues. In Toy Story 2, they grapple with teenage problems such as discovering the true meaning of friendship. Toy Story 3 depicts young adulthood, with characters facing anxiety about their future as they prepare for college. Toy Story 4 explores the challenges of parenthood and midlife crisis. These films touch on a universal truth that I hold dear: the toys we play with are a reflection of ourselves. They embody our spirit and spark, and serve as a reminder of who we are.

Stuart Hall, an influential cultural theorist who impacted sociologists, theorists and artists with his publication ‘Representation: Cultural Representation and Signifying Practices’, believes that, in how we think, what we say, think and feel about them (the objects)– how we represent them– give them a meaning. And with the given framework of interpretation, we give meaning to objects, people and events. We create stories, we tell stories, create images, produce them, associate the emotions with them, classify them, and conceptualize them with the values we place on them. And this meaning, is what gives us a sense of our own identity. Of whom we are, where we belong, which path we must take to find joy, happiness and meaning.

However, the question remains unanswered regarding what happens within us when we are reunited with an old, forgotten toy. Various speculations can be made based on different situations. One might initially question the person and their attitude towards the toy - is it considered an investment, a status symbol, a means to find inner peace as one recalls their childhood memories? Or does the answer lie in something beyond the toy itself - a desire to belong to a larger community or a portal to seek love and acceptance?

Chapter 3

Mythical Belongings

Communities of toys

“Myths are public dreams; dreams are private myths. By finding your own dream and following it through, it will lead you to the myth-world in which you live. But just as in dream, the subject and object, though they seem to be separate, are really the same.”
– Joseph Campbell

It can feel quite bittersweet, knowing that our storytelling could be based on the fabrications It can be a bit disheartening to realize that our stories may be based on the fabrications of advertisements and media. However, isn't everything to some extent? Does this mean we are unoriginal and lacking creativity by following these fictional narratives? Absolutely not!

Toys such as My Little Pony, Barbie, and Marvel Superheroes, just to name a few, have massive franchises that include high-end movies, posters, and merchandise. Each figure has carefully selected personalities and characteristics that are consistently presented. Nevertheless, without the collective adventures of these toys, there would not be such enormous communities of people who speculate, create conspiracy theories, write fan fictions, make drawings, and even help each other through difficult situations. These communities create a space where individuals feel a sense of belonging and understanding.

From the r/my little pony reddit. Discussing which is their favorite character:

“Personally mine is rainbow dash. She always helps encourage me to be strong and confident. I also love the fact that she represents the element of loyalty as it’s something I value most! She was everything I ever wanted to be growing up, you know, being more of a Fluttershy myself.” - u/OddSeaworthiness8952

“Mine is Trixie probably because I feel she's like me in some ways. Trying hard in life only to get pushed back down, but has [..] much pride and determination to stay down. She does her best with what she knows and won't back down from trying. It's her determination that makes me admire her [..] – u/MadCaT_9_in

The My Little Pony fandom, maybe one of the strongest fandoms (and most bullied outside the community), got its fandom-boost from the animated television series that got produced by Hasbro as part of the My Little Pony toy franchise. Tied in with the 2010 relaunch of dolls and play sets, it found a large audience of male adult internet users in late 2010 and early 2011, forming a whole subculture called the “Bronies”, a portmanteau of "bro" and "pony”. We can contemplate how a franchise that was originally aimed at young girls with a stereotypical "girly" image, complete with glitters, rainbows, and pastel colors, has primarily captured the attention and admiration of male adult internet users.

If we look into the reddit post of someone asking the community about how they got into My Little Pony, most of the answers talk about “started watching it as a joke” “I lost a bet and I had to watch 6 episodes of My Little Pony”, “wanted to know why people hated it”, and even user ‘Dolphin_handjobs’ (yes, that is their username) talks about watching it as therapy. To feel accepted to be able to like friendly pastel ponies. These fandoms created space for emotions and love, which was rejected before due to toxic masculine ideology. The “bronies” found a new freedom, while being surrounded with people who found themselves stuck too in the masculine ideology.

With the blessing of the internet, anyone can search to the communities that are connected to the different toy franchises. In all these forms, we find creativity, kindness and discussions about the different figures and its actions.

With all these stories in mind, having a community to find belonging; we can almost say we have found a new religion. The praying might just be daydreams and the fanfictions we tell each other. The rituals are by playing. And the toy… being the relic; holding the myths and magics, safe, frozen in time, probably on a high shelve or in a glass cabinet.

Campbell:

'One thing that comes out in myths is that at the bottom of the abyss comes the voice of salvation. The black moment is the moment when the real message of transformation is going to come. At the darkest moment comes the light.'

[…]

Moyers:

You say dreams come up from the psyche.

Campbell:

I don't know where else they come from. They come from the imagination, don't they? The imagination is grounded in the energy of the organs of the body, and these are the same in all human beings. Since imagination comes out of one biological ground, it is bound to produce certain themes. Dreams are dreams. There are certain characteristics of dreams that can be enumerated, no matter who is dreaming them.'

Campbell:

'.. what it will have to deal with will be exactly what all myths have dealt with -- the maturation of the individual, from dependency through adulthood, through maturity, and then to the exit; and then how to relate to this society and how to relate this society to the world of nature and the cosmos'

Chapter 4

Queen of
my Castle

The art
of collecting

People start to collect toys. Why so?

Neurologists and psychoanalysts all have different theories on why people collect objects. Sigmund Freud even made the bold claim that it is all due to bad potty training. It was such a traumatic experience for a child dealing with something so disgusting, and now they want to gain control of their own gathering. Other theories from Freud tell us more about collecting as protection against death by creating something that will live on after you are gone, a collection to give forward to the next generation, as you would live forever and become immortal.

On the other hand, Carl Jung believes that the collector sees the world as something too large, hostile, and beyond their control. The collector wants to gain control by creating their own smaller world. By acquiring, arranging, and protecting items in their own way, they feel a sense of mastery and satisfaction in the tiny world within a world, to be a ruler, emperor, lord, boss, king - or queen - of their own castle filled with kindness, comfort, pleasure, amusement, and peace of mind.

Psychoanalyst and art historian Werner Muensterberger goes further into this theory. He wrote a whole magnum opus about collecting behavior: “Collecting: An Unruly Passion” (1994). He tells us that it has to do with the infant being separated from its mother and forever searching for security within objects, like a teddy bear or a blanket. From these temporary feelings of comfort, the infant grew up as an adult and tends to keep searching for objects to gain temporary relief from difficult feelings like anxiety, loneliness, and uncertainty. The feeling of comfort fades away, and the collector must continue to add to the collection to avoid these negative feelings.

With all these different theories, they eventually all blame a flaw in the upbringing of a child. Yet it doesn’t really grasp the whole meaning of what a collector is. As one might find value in rubber ducks or My Little Pony figures, another finds value in paintings or NFTs. You could question, was the NFT collector struggling with bad potty training? Did the rubber duck collector grow up without a mom?

It isn’t all so black and white being a collector, as some neurologists and psychoanalysts from the 20th century have claimed. Eventually, it has to do with the specific value that has been set by the environment it’s been presented in. We learn this from the book ‘Interpreting objects and collections’ edited by Susan M. Pearce.



They argue that any cultural object has three types of meaning. If we look into the graphic from ‘Interpreting objects and collections,’ we see these three types of meaning. On top, we see ‘range of possibility.’ This is where the object gets involved in exchanges of matter, energy, and information. With the theme ‘toys’ in mind, we can look at this as the given environment a kid is surrounded in. We can think about religion, wealth, geography. These give our social characteristics, personal feelings, and religious beliefs. This all has influence on the given toys towards the kid. Play and roleplay start from here. Then we go to the second meaning: ‘Langue.’ This is the given meaning in the context of language, code, and signage. For example, if we look at a ball, we know the difference between a basketball, a football, a skippy ball, and a bouncing ball. From the materials, colors, and context the object plays a role, we get the meaning of this ‘ball.’ In the first meaning of the ‘range of possibility,’ we can try to play football with a skippy ball. But within the second meaning, we learn about the ‘original’ usage of the object. Then we move on to 'Parole'. This is where secret castles, small worlds, various bubbles, hidden capsules, and grand museums come to life - the collections of collectors. The history of collecting can be traced back to the 16th and 17th centuries in Europe, when the Cabinets of Curiosities or Kunst- or Wunderkammer emerged. For different people in the elite, merchants, aristocrats, and scholars, it became a trend to collect rare and unusual items in their cabinets, organizing and categorizing them in ways that created new fascinations. However, these collections were initially quite private, mainly serving to demonstrate the owner's status and reflect their beliefs in science, philosophy, theology, and imagination. Toy collectors all have their own Cabinet of Curiosities of some sort, a personal Wunderkammer. Probably, they believe in what they collect and interact with their collections by taking photographs, sharing them online, discussing them, trading them, and assigning value to them. Toy collectors are the keepers of (their) or our dreams and innocence. One may not realize how much they have missed their old forgotten toys, their love for pastel-colored ponies, the ability to brush the hair of various Barbie dolls, or the sense of power that superheroes instill until they see them again. All collectors are the archivists of the human spirit.

Chapter 5

The Everlasting Plastic Horses

Epilogue

Toys have not only helped us to understand the world, but also to discover our own identity. From ancient times to the present day, we all still have a strong spiritual connection with our toys. Though they may be forgotten or lost, whenever we interact with our old plushies, dusty figures, or any other toy, they come back to life. It could be the memories they evoke or something we never had, but we find ourselves wandering back in time to our childhood innocence.

With the rise of mass production and the economic boom of the 1950s, marketing and media started creating different stories, highly produced movies, and numerous franchises to uphold a world of fantasy and dreams with corresponding figurines and characters that one could own and play with. Money had to keep rolling, and new characters were introduced, including new My Little Pony characters, an extra helper for Superman, and a BFF for Barbie. Fantasies became something to unlock, but only if you had the money for it.

Toys have shaped our understanding of gender norms, but they are becoming more inclusive over time. Society is evolving towards a more diverse and accepting approach to gender expression through toys. Progress has been made, but there is still work to do to break down gender stereotypes and promote equality.

In the 1980s, nostalgia hit the baby boomers, and old toys made their way back to the market. With the motivation from globalization during the 1980s, adults wanted their toys back, as they had potentially been lost in new belief systems, work, gossip, trends, responsibilities, and death. Slowly, fandom communities started to form between people with the same fantasy interests.

As the fandoms grew, so did the value of toys. Toys became collectibles, and collectors became curators of their own small worlds, organizing and categorizing them in ways to create new fascinations. Through my research, I have come to see the urgency of the existence of toys. They embody life, myth, spirit, and gateways to connections that are created between people through playing. They represent love, communion, and acceptance of who you are, in all the ways you may not have even discovered about yourself yet! In the neoliberal times, where individualism is emphasized, and people are expected to take responsibility for their own lives without relying on the support of the government. We are often told to prioritize efficiency and other market-driven ideas, and we are very busy. In this context, incorporating play and being playful as a way of operating can be extremely important. Despite the demands of modern life, embracing playfulness can have significant benefits and is worth considering.