Superheroes seem to fall fully into the realms of boys activities. The 6 and 7 year old boys I know are super hero crazy and this obsession seems to run across the different demographic groups of kids we meet (school, football and super camp). In some ways I’m quite pleased because it means my son has something in common with the other children he meets. The girls play too but mainly with the boys rather than on their own.
I get annoyed that the female super heroes have such sexy costumes – I’m not sure that crop tops and high heels are perfect for fighting the forces of evil…
My son has recently got hold of a copy of an X-men comic. It’s completely incomprehensible as it starts part way through 2 different stories and doesn’t complete either. It also seems to assume a knowledge of previous characters and stories that we don’t have. He keeps wanting us to read it to him.
In the comic there is a picture of Storm which has impressed my son greatly. He has created his own super hero (Tempest) and is making a Tempest costume as we speak…amusingly he’s gone for the same hot pants and crop top as the hero in the picture with a velvet cape. If it was a daughter I would certainly worry about the sexualisation of young girls as it is I’m mainly worried that he’s going to get ripped to shreds by other children who have a better understanding of the girls wear X and boys wear Y rules. And yet I certainly don’t want to be the one to tell him about these ‘rules’ or become the arbitrator of them.
Tags: feminist parenting
