Do you believe that some owners mistreat their dolls?

Even material objects are made with the intention of being handled in a certain way. So in that respect, I do think you can mistreat the dolls. If you are handling them roughly in a manner they were not designed for, you are mistreating them. Just as throwing a console system would be a no-no. Is this up to the owner? Yes, it is. Just as some people keep their things pristine like new, while others love to wear their things out (I think of that journal that's all about wrecking it haha). I don't think mis-use and mis-treatment should be linked with emotion in this case, I'm taking a more practical stance I guess.

 

sometimes, i feel (>.>)...but then again, i think it's their own money, their own doll...but once they mess up with my doll, don't even try! (>3<)

 

I just want to go back to the word 'abuse', because I think it's been interpreted through a social definition here and not a literal definition. At least so far.

First definition in the dictionary (dictionary.com):
–verb (used with object) 1.to use wrongly or improperly; misuse: to abuse one's authority.

So, in respect to this topic, it is not incorrect, or over-imaginative to say one abuses his/her doll. The real question is what qualifies as 'improper' or 'wrong' usage.

When it comes down to it, I do believe that it's personal opinion. But in my own mind, I feel that 'misuse' in dollie land includes careless handlement of a doll or just general lack of consideration and responsibility to the object. To me, if one is going to buy a doll, he should care for it. Not nessisarily partaking in the 'imaginary' land that lots of us love with these dolls, but just care for the fact that it is something that someone else put effort into making and producing. They are art. Would a person who bought a $15,000 painting and left it outside over night in the rain be someone who abuses art? In my mind, yes.

To me, it's selfish to do that to something someone else worked months or any period of dedicated time to create. Why get something that takes a rather decent bite from your wallet if you yourself are going to spit it out?

So, basically it is personal opinion. Your definition of 'wrong and right' or 'proper/improper' handling and care is your own. But I mean, when you think about life as a whole, it seems quite stupid and immature to not appreciate what you have, regardless of what it is. If you think about lots of problems in the world or in personal relationships, there tends to be alot of lacking in respect, and appreciation. Not everyone can have or get a doll. Some save up for a year or even longer! And guess what? Some never even get the freedom of mind to think about ever getting something like a doll. Some are busy struggling to get money just to get food, let alone a decent place to sleep. Some are more concerned about their brother, who's sick, but can't go to the doctor because of the cost. So the whole family (if they even have a 'whole' family) is riding it out with him. There are so many people in this world who never get the pleasure of desiring something as awesome as a BJD. Some people's #1 thing on their wish-list is for their mom or dad to come back from war, or that by some miricle of a chance, dad finds a job. So to not appreciate the privlilege of being able to have something like a special doll or anything, makes a person look rather...immature, and underdeveloped in terms of being a well-rounded individual.

I really think the question should have been along the lines of: "What do you think about people who don't appreciate their dolls?" Or something. Abuse is not technically incorrect, but it may have registered more with people in a general sense.

Now, accidentally dropping a doll, or placing them somewhere where they fell, or even the times when the dolls settle in their pose, thus causing a plummet to the ground below is not what I'm talking about. Leaving them in a sunny room because you don't mind yellowing, is not what I'm talking about. Mods are also not what I'm talking about. But, doing something that you know is going to damage them (as in break stain or deface), and doing it anyway, well, that's almost anti-social-disorder in the form of object-human social reactions and behavior. That's more along the lines of 'abuse' or 'improper' procedure for dollie doings.

 

Ignoring the word "abuse" and sticking to the original question: "Do you believe that some owners mistreat their dolls?" - sure, I believe some might. You "mistreat" a $300+ item by exposing it to conditions which could damage its value; taking normal depreciation into account, if you have a $300 doll, and you treat it in such a way as to depreciate its marketable value so badly that you can't even sell it as parts, then yeah, I'd say we have a serious case of "mistreatment" of posessions on our hands.

If you do take the word "abuse" into consideration, then you really have to rephrase the question: it's less "Do some owners abuse their dolls?", and more "Can dolls be abused?" Yes, I think dolls can be abused. If anything - a living thing (a tree, a child, a cat) or an inanimate thing (a doll, a diary, an heirloom) - suffers damage on a repeated basis that detracts from the well being of the object in question, and causes anyone who cares about the significance and/or welfare of the object in question to be disturbed at the damage caused, then it is abuse.

 

It's your doll, you can do whatever you want with it. I wouldn't get offended if someone ELSE was careless with THEIR doll, if they were careless with mine though, that's a different story.

I believe in the Japanese concept that objects that are worn or damaged over time are more beautiful than things that are brand new. If you love a doll, you will play with it, display it, take it into the sun, and when those things change its appearance it's just showing how much you've loved it. I think some damage almost makes them more realistic, and not like perfect celestial beings. My EID took a spill from a high place and ended up with a small scratch on his abs (I think he landed on his hand). But now I just think of it as a scar, real people have scars, and I feel like the scar makes him even more masculine. It's those small imperfections that really make something beautiful.

 

hehehe i love the comparison, but i think i abused my toaster, put a poptart in it and tried getting it out wit a knife, killed my toaster

As for 'abusing' dolls, they paid for it, it's their doll, they can do whatever...
but it does BUG me to see people who use sharpie for face ups...i think maybe i'll let that be abuse.

 

Hm... I do not see much of an issue with negligence. I have shed my fair share of tears over a forgotten or misplaced something being broken. I take very good care to remember to put con in a place he'll be safe, but that's because I value him more than other things. It's just a question of value.

Now if they buy the doll and INTENTIONALLY break it (Not for a character mod like chopping off a finger cuz the character lost his finger in a battle) then I would worry. I would worry because violence towards objects can escalate into violence towards people. I have never heard of someone doing this to a doll, but I imagine they are out there.

Is it our place to tell others what to do with their property? No, unless they are minors and we are their parents.

 

The only comparison I can come up with to express my revulsion and disdain for the way some people knowingly damage their dolls is imagine if the Mona Lisa got sold to a private collection and this collector let their 4 year old draw all over it with sharpies.... yes it is their money yes they own it but i don't think i would be the only one deeply disturbed or upset by this.. I feel the same way with limited BJDs i see them do god awful things to them and it makes me cringe and my blood boil

 

If someone puts a lot of money into an object, it would be reasonable to assume that care would be given. But that isn't always the case. Some people don't take care of anything. Some take care of everything. I suppose since a doll is an object, a person can do what they will with it. I would prefer a caring attitude, but that isn't any of my business.

 

Abuse is a perfectly legitimate term for the mistreatment of objects. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/abuse I'm shocked people don't seem to understand the meaning of the word, to be honest.
And yes, I think you can abuse an object in the sense you dont take care of it and use it in ways that may damage it. It's not a moral issue though.

But does it matter if someone mistreats their doll? No, more power to them if they can throw that kind of money around and waste it on dolls they'll make ugly or break. It's their money and their choice.

I just feel bad for people who would have taken good care of a doll and would love to own it but have to see some one else giving it a sharpie faceup and modding it really badly. Or someone who buys it and then leaves it in the box and doesnt enjoy it when they could put it back on the market and let someone who would make use of the doll have it.

ETA: Just spotted your post Noname! I know I'm re-iterating but I think it's a point worth making twice!

 

I understand the point you're making that it seems unfair to someone else who would have wanted the doll, but I take issue with the idea that leaving a doll in the box constitutes "mistreatment" or "abuse" of the doll. For one thing, leaving it in the box tends to keep it safer from harm or damage than if they had the doll out playing with it. I'm not saying that playing with a doll in the normal manner, with the understanding that it might get a little wear, is "mistreatment" or "abuse", but simply that leaving a doll safely put away is not "mistreatment" of it either. Second, as far as "enjoying" the doll, it's perfectly possible to enjoy a doll, or just enjoy the idea of owning it, without needing to have it out engaging in play activities. There are plenty of doll collectors who buy mint-in-box dolls just to have them, and maybe take them out and look at them once in a blue moon. I realize this doesn't necessarily fit with the community's best ideals of how one is supposed to play and interact and customize, etc., their BJD, but it's not mistreatment, it's just a different way of having dolls.

 

I see what you mean. A lot of people who are into BJD's respect them as a sort of artisan craft, since each one is individually cast-to-order, and the faceups are done by hand, etc. I see a lot of talk here about bonding w/the doll and making a sort of emotional commitment to the doll.

To a lot of people, though (especially in Western Culture, from what I can tell), anything you can buy with money is just a commodity, can be replaced, & only needs to be treated as respectfully as the 'owner' deems fit.

This was a problem for me working in a pet shop, since there were several times that I told people I wouldn't sell them an animal because something they said led me to believe the animal would be in physical danger with that person. One guy was going to flick his parakeet's beak if it bit him (pretty beefy guy, too. The bird's neck would have almost certainly been broken), some people just didn't want to buy the appropriately sized enclosure for their pet, and one lady told me it didn't sound "very American" that I wouldn't sell her Koi after she told me about her pond & it was way too small for them.

I've definitely seen people treating inanimate objects with, perhaps, less consideration than I'd afford them, but remember that to some people it's just a doll, & letting it sit in a cabinet, or get lost under a pile of clutter or whatever is all part & parcel of how dolls get treated.

 

BJDs are objects, I treat mine with extreme care as I do not want to damage them.
However as with any other object some much more expensive than BJDs with a great deal of care put into the making.
It is entirely up to the individual if they want to smash it to pieces. I personally couldn't understand why you wouldn't care for any possession properly but its yours to do with as you wish once purchased.
Therefore as you are not harming a living creature its up to you.

 

Well, there is a difference between abusing something that can take it, and being careless with possessions in a harmful way. I leave my clothes on the floor and I beat up a lot of my possessions (pots and pans, my computer desk, etc) because I know they will survive it and won't wear out any faster for it. A pot doesn't stop working if it has a couple dents. So I guess, in regard to dolls, it depends on how people see their dolls. Is it art, or is it a toy? If it's a toy, then it doesn't seem so unreasonable to abuse it to a certain extent.

Obviously it still can't take as much abuse as other objects, but it can take a reasonable amount, and you shouldn't have to worry about REALLY breaking it as long as you are used to applying a certain amount of carefulness with all of your belongings. I guess some people don't do this... like, I've had friends who never look at the floor and just step on anything in their house OR mine... but it's a good thing to learn, just having a level of awareness that you don't slip below.

PS I like how these "debates" always escalate immediately to conversations about the most horrible things ever. Come on, I think we all know by now that animal abuse is bad, but this is a DOLL forum. That kind of puts an automatic cap on how horrible any related situation can reasonably get, lol.

 

Sorry if I wasn't clear, I spcifically meant people who don't enjoy the doll, who don't get any pleasure out of it, whether thats through playing with it or keeping it in the box out of harms way. I understand that people can get pleasure from the ownership of a doll alone. I wasn't saying that leaving it in the box=not enjoying it. I was just saying it's a shame in the instances where people have a doll that for whatever reason they don't want, because there's bound to be people out there who do want it. For the record I don't 'play' with my doll and I never said it's mistreatement when people keep their dolls as pristine collectors items if that's how they enjoy dolls.

 

I have a friend who adopted an "abused" doll. I think abuse is when you do not care about or for the doll. A doll is really expnsive and precious, and you should treat it as such. It is important not to hold it wrong, over stretch the elastic, or let your dog or younger sibling get a hold of it. I know that I pay a lot of attention to keeping my doll in the best condition, sometimes he get's dirty from outdoor photoshoots, so I take the time to clean him. It's the little things that signify good vs. bad dollie ownership.

 

How exactly do you hold a doll wrong? It's not like a dog where picking it up wrong could hurt it And to be honest I think I have "overstretched" the elastic on my doll a few times when I was hot glue sueding them without restringing

To me there isn't really such a thing as doll abuse. If I spent my own hard earned money on a doll I would treat it however I wanted to. Sure when I see a doll that is in bad shape I may think ' I would never let my dolls end up like that' but I wouldn't feel bad for the doll nor would I be offended. As long as they don't try and take my doll and damage it I could care less how they treat their own

 

I personally can really see and feel when a doll is happy and well loved and when they're not. And by well loved I don't always necessarily mean well taken care of. Sometimes in just loving and enjoying the company of your doll can result in accidents but there's a difference between putting a doll down with care or leaving them in a safe place for long periods of time and tossing them on the bed and forgetting them for a while. I personally find being obsessive about them being in sunlight and hiding them away from people touching them is more "abusive" than playing with them and letting people touch them. But that is just my opinion. I of course would treat my doll with as much respect I would anyone else. But I just would hope no one would think it disrespectful of me if I were to let my cats around it or let my kid cousins play with them.

 

I personally believe if someone is willing to go through the bleeding of their wallet, the hassle of ordering, the long wait for shipping, etc..then they will treat their doll with love and care. I can't think of a reason why someone would go through all that just to neglect or mistreat it...?