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Books for Kids Full of Gender Biases, Report Shows
Filed under: In The News, Books for Parents, Research Reveals: Big Kids
Books for kids show gender bias. Credit: Getty
A new study shows a sizable gender bias when it comes to the last century of children's literature, The New York Times reports, with male heroes (think Curious George, Winnie the Poo and Babar) far outnumbering female characters.
Published in April's Gender and Society journal, the study that looked at almost 6,000 children's books published between 1900 and 2000, found 57 percent featured a main male character, while just 31 percent focused on a female. The other 12 percent are assumed gender-neutral, according to the newspaper.
When it came to central animal characters, 23 percent were male, compared to 7.5 percent female, and, The Times notes, Mother Duck in "Make Way for Ducklings" was the only female animal character to star in a Caldecott-winning book.
If that doesn't have feminists shouting "The sky is falling!", the study also finds that while one-third of each year's kid's books include a main female adult woman or animal character, 100 percent of books feature a male adult or animal.
Madeline, Beezus and the old woman in the shoe might want to caucus.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 2)
5-05-2011 @ 1:19PM
Sarko said...Are these the same library arbiters who cleared the shelves of the OZ books, with Princess Ozma, Dorothy Gale, Betsy Bobbin, Trot, and Scraps, the Patchwork Girl? Some of ths bias may be self-inflicted.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 1:15PM
Stuart said...you've got to be kidding me. this country has gone to hell if thats what we are concerned about. how about the 75 million illegal aliens here breeding like pigs while 25 million Americans are out of work because illegal aliens from mexico stole their jobs.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 1:43PM
mom said...I don't have a problem finding suitable books for my 5 yr old daughter. The number of total books out there is vast, so 1/3 of vast isn't bad. Videos, especially good animated movies are another story (toy story even). Think of all the good ones starring boys, now try to think of the good ones where the main character is a girl. To me, showing her movies where the great majority of important characters are boys, would be sending her a very discouraging and unnecessary message. So, I pick and choose carefully.
5-05-2011 @ 3:38PM
diplomatic said..."you've got to be kidding me. this country has gone to hell if thats what we are concerned about. how about the 75 million illegal aliens here breeding like pigs while 25 million Americans are out of work because illegal aliens from mexico stole their jobs."
Stuart,
This is the second post I see from you today talking about illegal aliens. You are obsessed with this issue, I understand. And you can't talk about anything else or stay on topic. But before you press reply on every article on AOL news, get at least part of your facts straight.
Yes, it is very difficult to find jobs these days (worldwide, by the way) but unless you are willing to be a yard boy or a house cleaner, the hard working illegals aren't stealing anyone's jobs. They get the bottom of the picking, under the table paying jobs that our society rejects. And if you're so hard pressed about all of these evil illegals breeding in our perfect country, report them. There's a hot-line you can call to turn them in.
Do you know what our society really needs? More tolerance, more love, and more understanding. Please do yourself a favor and release some of your negative energy in a more constructive way. Go for a walk in the park while the illegals clean your house and cut your grass, then say Gracias because you didn't have to do it yourself.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 1:32PM
signsell said...OH COME ON! This PC crap is WAY out of control!
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 3:58PM
devries22 said...Be thankful that there still are some of our kids books whereby they can learn to appreciate out God-given roles in life, in marriage, and in other areas.
5-05-2011 @ 1:44PM
Jamez said...DID YOU SEE THAT GIRL? She was standing on books to reach higher. That's totally UNSAFE!!!! And this fearsome statement is just as ridiculous as the article. GET A LIFE PEOPLE, it's childrens books.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 1:49PM
mom said...I don't have a problem finding suitable books for my 5 yr old daughter. The number of total books out there is vast, so 1/3 of vast isn't bad. Videos, especially good animated movies are another story (toy story even). Think of all the good ones starring boys, now try to think of the good ones where the main character is a girl. To me, showing her movies where the great majority of important characters are boys, would be sending her a very discouraging and unnecessary message. So, I pick and choose carefully.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 9:14PM
ereedtx said...There's a very simple reason why there are more male protagonists than female. Girls will read books with little problem with either male or female main characters whereas boys will stick to boys. So, if you want to reach a wider audience an author is better off sticking with a main character who is male.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 2:12PM
frank said...Perhaps there is a bias, but I recall growing up and reading books like Harriet the Spy, Charlotte's Web, and a few others with female characters playing main roles.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 8:32PM
LR said...I agree that this is not a real issue. I'm 65, and grew up with The Bobsey Twins (even genders), Trixie Beldon and Nancy Drew. There are plenty of female leads in children's books.
5-05-2011 @ 2:11PM
cher2686 said...Wow really? I have a 5 yr old boy and I go into ANY store and its more girl toy, girl clothes, and girl decoration. I cant every find clothes for him cuz the store is all girls... they have about 5-6 asles of toys while my boy has 2. I scrapbook and I can NEVER find boy stickers! Give me a break! Give the boys SOMETHING! I mean when I was growing up I loved Batman and Scooby Doo. I still love watching them with my boy and husband. We pamper these kids too much. I didnt get treated any differently then the boys when I was growing up and I came out just fine! I also came from a time where spanking were ok and I didnt get taken to the dr everytime I coughed or scratched my knee.
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5-05-2011 @ 2:20PM
DecaturDog said...Shoot, I grew up reading Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys and Bobbsey Twins - all were fun to read and no one screamed about gender bias - good grief, I'm a guy and I loved Nancy Drew so what does that say about all this claptrap?
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 2:20PM
equus2056 said...I think we have far more important issues facing our country/world/planet than this stupid garbage. The fact that someone would sit around and compile this crap demonstrates how petty and stupid our society really is. Why doesn't this time-waster focus on how more children's books/television are indoctrinating rather than just entertaining our children?
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5-05-2011 @ 3:06PM
Barry S said...I don't know if it was a misprint but the analysis said it was from 1900 to 2000. I think the mores of the country have somewhat changed between 1900 & 2000. I think everyone knows this is rather silly. More girls are graduating from college than men. Girls are doing everything boys do except play football. What are they talking about? It's stuff like this that continues to separate us rather than bring us together.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 2:56PM
Terry said...I know that this is picky, but they really mean sex instead of gender.
Gender refers to a classification of a word not the sex of a person.
Is there sex discrimination? Probably. Does it harm children of either sex? Maybe if the parent makes an issue of it. Otherwise, probably not. But who knows?
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 3:37PM
Billie Kelpin said...When writing, "Lucky, the Left-Pawed Puppy" as a narrated ebook and a Kindle and Nook non-narrated ebook, one of the heroines of the story is the Lovely Leslie, famous Hollywood dog trainer. She's the one who discovers that Lucky is left-pawed. And Lucky, being of a minority I myself belongs to (left-handed person on the planet) saves the day precisely because he thinks outside of the right-handed world. It's meant to be a little story that empowers all children who at times feel, "left out."
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 3:41PM
Kelsie said...I understand where they're coming from, but you're supposed to teach children to accept everyone; every race, every color, every age, and also every gender. Therefore, it shouldn't matter that a girl is reading a book about a male protagonist, but should make them aware that boys aren't "icky".
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5-05-2011 @ 4:11PM
MusicforMovies said...Charlotte's Web? Female Spider if I recall correctly.
Nancy Drew? (I used to read those as a child as well - female character)
Wizard of Oz - Female, Mary Poppins - Female,
Narnia featured both female and male protaganists.
Finally, if you want to see more female leads in children's books, stop whining, and go ahead and write one.
Reply
5-05-2011 @ 4:20PM
Lori said...So much ado about nothing. A good book, well-written with interesting illustrations, is appropriate and can be appreciated by either gender. The key is to get their interest and be able to hold it, so they'll want to keep reading - shouldn't that be where the emphasis is placed?
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