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I Hate That My Kids Hate 'Dora the Explorer'
Filed under: Toddlers Preschoolers, Preschoolers, Big Kids, Tweens, Media, Opinions
In Dora's 10 years, my daughter has loved her. Then hated her. And now? Credit: Nick Jr.
As the iconic Dora the Explorer celebrates its 10th year on the air this week, I began to reflect on my own children's relationship with the spunky Latina adventurer -- and how it morphed from utter adoration into hyperbolic hatred.
From the moment my daughter was old enough to recognize television characters -- about 18 months or so -- Dora was her hero. Dora posters lined her walls, Dora sheets adorned her bed and Dora dolls filled in the space around her. It felt like a Dora song was always being sung somewhere around our house and our DVR's "Now Playing" list quickly became one long litany of Dora episodes. This obsession lasted all through her preschool years and on past kindergarten.
Then, somewhere around age 7, she decided Dora was too babyish for her. And now as she prepares to enter third grade, she despises the mere mention of the spunky Latina adventurer, reacting with tween-ish eye rolls and fake retching. This makes me incredibly sad.
Back when she first became a Dora fan, I was just happy that the show she chose to glom onto was neither too sweet nor too coarse. There was nothing to offend her small ears, as there would be on, say, "SpongeBob"; and there was nothing to offend my adult ears, as there would be on, say, "Barney." But when she was old enough to articulate why she liked Dora, I was blown away.
She complained that there were too many shows in which girls were relegated to sidekick status; she praised Dora the Explorer because a smart, brave, fun-loving girl was its hero. I'd never realized that something like gender inequity on television shows would register with a 3-year-old, but once I knew that it could, I was not only proud of my daughter, but also grateful that a show like Dora existed for her. Here was a television program that was not only centered on a girl, but focused on none of her stereotypically "girlish" qualities. It was never important that Dora be cute or fashionable (even when she was); her boundless curiosity, intrepid sense of adventure and enthusiasm for life were the traits that mattered. Dora was a near-ideal role model.
That my daughter has outgrown "Dora the Explorer" doesn't surprise me -- it is a show geared toward very young kids. And when I'd hear cries of "Ugh! Change the channel!" if a Dora ad happened to come on, I'd chalk it up to an 8-year-old girl trying to appear older by shunning anything she associated with her own babyhood. Kids are hyperbolic -- no shock there. It started to bother my wife and me, though, when our daughter would see some other little Dora fan and start offering jeering asides like, "Ewww, yuck! Look at that girl with the Dora backpack!" And when our 3-year-old son, who is right in Dora's prime demographic, started mimicking his sister's anti-Dora stance, we felt we needed to address it.
When asked, our daughter couldn't really offer a real reason as to why she seemed to revile Dora so much. It was just a silly show for babies. Dora was, like, always singing dumb baby songs and stuff. I mean, come on, the show has a purple squirrel. And look at the way she dresses. BAM! That's when our hearts break.
So we reminded our daughter why she'd come to love Dora in the first place. She seemed surprised, as if in her haste to grow up, she had genuinely forgotten. And she had a very quick turnaround on the matter. She suddenly understood that, while she may have outgrown Dora, the character was an important one for younger girls to be exposed to. And younger boys, too. Like her little brother.
Related: Dora the Explorer Grows Up and Gets a Makeover
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 6)
8-13-2010 @ 12:30PM
bechodines1008 said...Well, in my opinion it's a question of predilection, (cf. the adage :'one man's meat is another man's poison' ) ; as the child grows up this varies.....As far as I am concerned, I enjoy watching cartoons even today ! From entertaining to instructive !
Reply
8-14-2010 @ 11:07PM
malibudude said...This is a pretty lame commentary. Do you get paid for this?
8-13-2010 @ 12:38PM
Alicia said...All kids do that. My mother likes to point out that as much as the Jonas Brothers make me grit my teeth, I took a year off of listening to the Zeppelin I'd been raised with to throw myself at Backstreet Boys in an attempt to fit in. Now Zeppelin's back and I try to ignore the existence of pop music again. I remember being seven and doing the same with Barbie, nine and doing it with Disney, 11 and doing it with the color pink. It happens. Good that you got her to stop acting that way in front of her brother, but otherwise, I don't see the big deal.
Reply
8-14-2010 @ 11:09PM
loufalce said...I`m glad your kid despised Dora. She is a very lame character.
Reply
8-14-2010 @ 9:34PM
adam513ohio said...I always stress to my child to enjoy being a child while she can.All the so call cool kids that want to act like they're grown up just end up with grown up problems before they can handle them.T.V. likes to either place adults in kids roles or cast kids that are not the best role models when out in public or in there daily lives.Yes your child might of just out grown Dora,just make sure she doesn't try to out grow her self.
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8-14-2010 @ 8:17PM
kerry wwenrich said...outgrow dora that's crazy
Reply
8-14-2010 @ 8:32PM
Brooks said...Sorry, but after watching numerous Dora the Explorer episodes with my two children (daughter, now 12; son, now 7), I have come to despise the show in general, for very specific reasons. Dora teaches irresponsibility, victimization and helplessness. She is always asking the viewer for help, always going on to solve the episodic problem for herself, and then always thanking the viewer for helping her (exactly how is never spelled out). Dora must suffer from a perpetual crick in the neck, as incidents occur all around her at which she won't look for herself. The show is not interactive, but Dora's questions always make assumptions about the child's responses. I have delighted my (maturing) children with humorous responses to the show. When Dora says she needs "YOUR HELP", I always say, "Not from me you don't," and she always says, "Thanks!" When she asks what are we going to do next, I always say we should do whatever she just did all over again, and she always goes on to the next thing. (Dora is very oppositional.) She has yet to deal constructively with Swiper the Fox. At the end of the show, when she asks what I liked best, I say, "I liked that part where I beat your face black and blue," and she pauses, considering my statement carefully, and says, "I liked that too!" The kids laugh and laugh. Dora doesn't take responsibility for any mistakes she has made but asks the viewer to solve them. She does the same thing on behalf of other characters. I don't want my kids to watch this show without thinking about what it teaches, and I prefer the shows that portray strong female characters with the ability to get themselves out of their own messes without having to ask the imaginary viewer to do anything.
Reply
8-14-2010 @ 10:03PM
Bobbi said...Dora has taught my daughters to count to 10 in Spanish and 6 different colors in Spanish and about 6-8 different words. All of these are good things. But if you don't like your kids to learn problem solving and a second language while getting a little physical activity. You probably like Sponge Bob, and Phineas &Ferb. Which are NOT great teaching shows and show bad behavior. I just prefer my kids to have fun and They like to think that they are helping Dora. My girls are 3 and 5 1/2 they have watched it since the eldest was 18 months. They also like to help Mickey Mouse and friends solve problems and Pooh Bear and Friends solve problems do you think these show are bad to?
8-14-2010 @ 10:12PM
loud said...Brooks: I was so relieved to see that I wasn't a total monster for not liking Dora. My main complaint is that she never uses a regular voice. She is so loud. And then she encourages her TV audience to do the same. Sometimes she even instructs them to yell louder!!!
8-14-2010 @ 11:02PM
sam said...That's not right. The way you're joking is teaching your kids to be mean. You're suggesting that it might be okay to "beat your face black and blue". Your kids are 12 and 7, right? They are very impressional. I think that is not the right thing to be saying around your kids "maturing" or not. Even if you didn't mean it in a violent way they will still interpret it that way. I don't like her either, but if I had kids, (I'm 14 years old by the way), I would definatly NOT talk like that in front of them. And before you go into that they are old enough to understand, they may look older and mature, but they are still really immature. Kids are growing up (physically) way too fast nowadays. The average age for going into puberty has gone down from 14 to 7. Just because they're bodies are growing up fast doesn't mean their mind has caught up yet.
I also can see the good things about her, like Bobbi said. She really does teach spanish and she says phrases that even I (after taking 3 years of spanish) have yet to learn. The kids who learn from her and keep the knowledge as they grow up will be, sweet, intellectual kids. Dora knows how to ask for help (which too many people do not know how to do) and she also tries to help others. I mean, every episode is about her helping someone do something. Plus, the show is intended for really young kids. I've seen a lot of kids who LOVE thinking they can help Dora (or Joe or Mickey) by telling them where something is or "warning" them when a bad guy comes near. It makes the kids more observant as they grow up. The show itself is mainly about helping the kids LEARN to do all this stuff in the real world, with real people and real situations. Most of the kid shows are about that.
Not that it all really matters anyway, your kids (mainly your 12 year old) are getting a bit too old for her anyway.
8-14-2010 @ 11:06PM
MormonGrrrl said...On the flipside of this argument, however, you could say that Dora (like Blues Clues, Go Diego Go, Imagination Movers, Doodlebops, and every other Disney/Nick Jr. show for little kids) tries to teach children to respond/interact with others, rather like they do at school (a la "good morning, class!" "Good morning, Teacher.").
And I'm sorry, but I can't really take your opinions seriously, since you advocate child abuse to your children (Dora is a child, so beating her face black and blue would constitute child abuse). Not to mention, you encourage aggression, bullying behavior, mocking language, and general unkindness to others. You may not like what Dora teaches your kids, but what are YOU teaching them?
8-14-2010 @ 11:18PM
jaguignon said...Brooks- "Yer full O" Crap!"
8-14-2010 @ 11:24PM
denise said...Sorry you do not like Dora but my 3 grandchildren have learned a lot from her. I am an teacher and I approve of the shows. Far above the Powder Puffs and the much mor rough shows they have to choose from.
8-14-2010 @ 11:38PM
Tracey said...gee!! teaching or telling your kids you wanna bash someone's face in is sooooo much better i'm sure!!!!!(not) The show teaches problem solving and apparently your only interested in teaching your children violence!!!!
8-14-2010 @ 11:57PM
matt715 said...Wow, you sound like a hard, hard person. Lighten up before you turn your daughters into mean, crazy women.
8-15-2010 @ 12:48AM
Grandma said...Yuk! Even my two year old granddaughters know it isn't nice or decent to say you are going to "beat" someone. I hope you are kidding and not really saying things like that to small children.
8-15-2010 @ 2:14AM
Sean said...Really, Brooks? Are you attempting to psychoanalyze a cartoon with half a semester of community college tucked under your belt or something? That's tragically sad. Even in a joking manner it's really pathetic.
Then again the very simple concepts Dora teaches are, in all likelihood, incredibly difficult for a person of your obvious intellectual deficiency to understand.
8-15-2010 @ 4:30AM
Nene said...Brook you're way of thinking of a childrens educational program is very morbid and very underminding. The fact that you said all of these things about a little childrens television program is very disturbing, Dora is not irresponsible and if you opened your eyes instead of filling them with such hatred because your getting annoyed by it shows that you have no patience nor the tolerance for children let alone your own. Children are naturally going to help out and yell when Dora finds a clue or solves a problem, they are going to sing the songs, they are going to repeat their favorite quotes that they like by her. This is the age where children mimic things to learn and understand more wether it be from their parents or a television show, she does not teach helplessness or victimization. Who is she possibly victimizing on her show?! What's more disturbing is that when you said that little sickening tidbit about "beating her face black and blue" shows that you teaching your kids violence and a demented kind of violence a that and you need to get some help, because getting that kind of feeling to do that to a little girl is need for some serious help.
8-14-2010 @ 9:09PM
LPStarChaser said...It is necessary to remind children that the show or influence of their youth yesterday is just as important an influence for those children who come after. Disparaging their former influences in front of younger children may be a fact of life, but reminding these middlings that the younger children are where they were only a couple of years before.
When a child learns that the positive influence to them of a couple of years ago can be the positive influences of the children who come after them, they might even be willing to lead their siblings and the siblings of their friends in some of the activities they once enjoyed.
How many bus drivers and camp councilors taught us songs we brought to our own children, and our children will influence other children with in the next generation. Dora (and Boots) deal with small problems with joy, kindness and concern, values we have to carry with us as adults. Children are big on peer pressure and role models of their own age. If they came from a "Dora", "Diego", "Sesame Street" household, they may learn things that we had to learn the hard way.
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8-15-2010 @ 12:47AM
Delaney said...I think Dora is a very sweet, cute character that many little girls look up to. Brooks, honey, Dora asks for help because this is what they call a "Educational" program. She makes children think about the best way for things to be done. And the rest of you, you need to lighten up too. This is a cartoon, if the rest of America thought it was harmful to you're children, it would be canceled.