Doll Owner Stereotypes?

I got the wrong post page >.< Firefox browser acting up.

 

I probably fit into SOMEBODY'S idea of a stereotypical BJD owner. But to be honest, I give fewer hoots than a mute owl (Lol- see what I did thar? XD). It's human nature to stick a label on everything, whether or not that label is accurate. And usually, once someone's labeled you as a weaboo (or whatever), there's very little you can do to change their minds, so who cares? They're the ones being ignorant. People spend so much energy trying to be nonconformist that they end up denying themselves a lot of what makes them happy. To hell with stereotypes. I'm 18 and I play with dolls. If you have a problem with that, go ahead and have it, because labeling me as an otaku won't change the fact that I love BJDs.

So says me and my soapbox.

 

1) Do you think BJD owners are put into a stereotype? If so, describe it.

The main stereotype I encounter is that doll owners are complete nutcases who -- for a multitude of reasons, it depends on who you ask -- have divorced themselves entirely from reality and are so sunk into their private delusions that they can no longer distinguish their dolls from living, breathing, sentient creatures. I got a few worried looks from friends when I got my first one, and one commented "okay, but if you get a stroller, I'll disown you." I haven't run into much of the previous stereotypes mentioned, the yaoi one for example (I didn't know people staged erotic photos until I really got into the hobby).

2) Be honest - do you think you fit the stereotype at all? Not at all? Why?

Not at all. Well, mostly not at all. I did catch myself asking Benny if he would rather have Larten or Darren as a companion first (or rather, somebody behind me caught me and asked me if I really just did that). And I'm sewing the Vancha March costume I'm working on by hand because I have this funny conviction that the character would be upset if I used a machine to make his clothes while he hand-stitches all his stuff in the books. But honestly, I've been collecting various figurines since I was 3 years old, and when you begin collecting something that looks like something that can think, you almost can't help talking to them once in a while. Part of the enjoyment of collecting dolls and figures is the construction of that fantasy world, and it's perfectly possible to visit that world without packing up your things and moving in permanently. I see no reason I shouldn't imagine my dolls appreciating new companions who are castmates, or insisting on authentic portrayals of themselves. It's little different from fanfiction writers and text-based rpers fourthwalling when they aren't writing stories or tags (and I've been one of those from time immemorial). Basically, if you're on dear_mun, you understand the psychology of doll collectors whether you realize it or not.

3) How do you think there came to be stereotypes in the BJD hobby?

I think it's half "you can't judge a book by its cover" and half "you never know til you try." I think the reason people don't make the connection between fourthwalling in an rp and bonding with a doll is that they see doll owners interacting with a physical object while their own imaginary companions exist only in their heads. The other part is that the dolls look so human. I collect watches, so when I say my watches are my babies people know I'm obviously speaking metaphorically. With dolls people don't feel like they can be so sure whether you mean it literally or not.

And in this hobby, you really don't know what it's like to be part of it until you try. The business side of the world of BJDs is what got me started, I wanted to start a clothing line because I like sewing and the money would be good. I bought my first two dolls because they were the right size and the most inexpensive I could find. I didn't know you could bond with your dolls until Larten grabbed my attention at a con. Now I feel kind of bad that I never had much of a connection to my first two, and I find myself actually working at it as I start sewing my first collection. And after lugging Larten and Benny around a con perched in the crook of my elbow, I'm beginning to understand the strollers from a practical perspective!

 

1) Do you think BJD owners are put into a stereotype? If so, describe it.
I'm quite sure they are, though I don't know enough of them to describe it. Enough has been stated on that topic anyway.

2) Be honest - do you think you fit the stereotype at all? Not at all? Why?
Good question. As far as anime' goes, it's usually not the fangirl type. I go for Code Geass, Trigun, Avatar (though that one's a bit young for my tastes), or Outlaw Star. The action genre.

Outgoing I am, yet I call myself a "social hermit". I work in customer service, my best friends live 650 - 1300 miles away, and I tired of attempting to make true friends where I currently live due to the excessively high population of alcoholics and drug addicts in the area. So I'm a bit of a recluse in that sense.

On the other hand, the treasures I have met and remain in contact with are just that, and while we get together very infrequently, it is time kept close to my heart. I have a dog, 2 kids who are slowly spreading their wings as young adults, a husband, and my daughter's rabbit.

I have, to my surprise, met those into Dungeons and Dragons who are also into dollies! That's my nerd factor. So far, within my family, nobody understands my sudden dive into this doll hobby, even my daughter, who started it all.

3) How do you think there came to be stereotypes in the BJD hobby?
Same way stereotypes begin with anything. Enough like-minded people get together and outsiders will look for similarities to make grouping easier. It's the human curse, if you will.

 

The sterotype seems to be that doll collectors treat their dolls like actual people and do not have their priorities in order. For instance the sterotypical doll collector would spend their college savings on expensive dolls. Doll collectors are also said to have bad social skills and use their dolls to replace people.

I do not fit the sterotype at all. I am VERY frugal. I am a bit antisocial however, I do not talk to my dolls or anything of that nature. I just leave them on my shelf. ^^ For that reason, I do not fit the sterotype.

I feel like a lot of people in the hobby do fit the sterotype, however the majority do not. A lot of people think calling the dolls "my boy, my girl, etc" is creepy. Personally, I find that it bothers me a bit. My boyfriend believes that this sterotype is true. When I got my doll and several of my figures he seemed uncomfortable. This tends to be some people's reactions.

 

I take issue with that-- the "burden" thing-- like expecting the only girl in the AP Calculus class to represent her entire gender, so she had better not get one single answer wrong, lest people say "See? Told you girls couldn't do math". Back in college, my second-year roommate, a black woman on an engineering scholarship, had THREE of that same burden to carry, and she didn't appreciate it one bit either.

Unless I am operating in some professional capacity, i.e. as a staff-member at a doll convention, I don't represent anybody but myself. If some random yahoo talks to me, Crazy Doll Lady Type A, and draws a conclusion that lumps me together with Crazy Doll Lady Type B, it's not my problem. I'm not put here to educate them.

Wait, since when do romances & sci-fi not fit a doll-owner stereotype? Sorry to say.... that's one of 'em too...

 

Heheh... in that sense, yup, I DEFINITELY fit the stereotype. I'm not a HUGE romance reader (although I do like it), but I do love me some star trek. Yep, I'm a dork, and I'm damn proud of it.

 

star trek ftw!

 

The day somebody makes a Borg mod will be the day I die and go to heaven.
Sadly, I don't even want to BEGIN to think how difficult that would be. D:

 

It's just that there are as many stereotypes are there are observers. So, while many of us with heavy Dork Pride streaks may struggle to distance ourselves from the whole notion of fitting anybody's expectations, it's a futile undertaking. I absolutely do NOT fit a long list of the stereotype-traits that've been discussed in the past 13 pages... but I absolutely DO fit a long list of others. In spades. That's why I don't care whether somebody mistakes me for Crazy Geeky Doll Lady Type B, instead of Crazy Geeky Doll Lady Type A. To a different observer, I may very well come off as Type C.

And don't get me wrong-- a little 'evangelism' is good fun when you're really gung-ho about something. If you have the youth & enthusiasm for it. ^^ But if you subscribe to the notion that you (i.e. one person) represent your whole hobby, that means you're trying to give observers the impression that all doll collectors are just like you. I would never presume to try making people's mental pigeon-holes even smaller than they already are!

 

I kind of agreed with you. When I told my colleagues I am into this hobby, first they give me a strange look and only later I found that there was a temp staff whom brought her doll to workplace and found talking to it in toilet. Strangers to the hobby have nothing to base on except relying on the doll collectors they come in contact with. This perception, of course, doesn't represent everybody but it does happen and it varies from country to country.

 

I really want a Spock doll. XD I had a dream that my cat joined the Borg Collective once. That is a really interesting mod idea. Someone should do that.

 

1) Do you think BJD owners are put into a stereotype? If so, describe it.
I don't need to, it seems someone has already answered this over at Encyclopedia Dramatica. Always best to look to outside sorces because it can be difficult to stereotype yourself

All in all I think the major point or observation is that doll owners can't make friends so 'they buy little plastic ones they can dress up to fill the gaping hole in their pathetic lives'. At least that's what my sister thinks lol

2) Be honest - do you think you fit the stereotype at all? Not at all? Why?
Um I don't know, quite possibly. After all I do find it terribly difficult to talk to people and form relationships, that's why I did drama, because you don't need to be charismatic or personable for that at all. Is there a stereotype that all doll owners are extremely sarcastic, because you can probably chalk me up for that too.

3) How do you think there came to be stereotypes in the BJD hobby?
because not everyone 'plays dolls', in fact a very small number of the worlds population does. As a result you have a group of hobbyists who are different, therefore it's easier to stereotype them then actually consider them to be normal people like you and me. It works on the same principle of xenophobia except it's much easier for doll owners to pass among the norms. In fact you could be sitting next to one on the bus and never know it. We call these type 'day-walkers' as they easily pass among the living. Those who do not are the serious doll owners who, I have heard from an extremely reliable source, have head caps that pop right off. They use the empty space behind the eyes to trap the spirits of the humans and insert them into their dolls. The only way you will be safe from them is to hold up a resin-y shield. That's why you should never leave home without a doll. After all it's much better to be considered a pathetic weirdo then to have your soul stuck in an inanimate object. How will you dress your dolls or re string them when you don't have muscles and finger joints?

P.S.

I love your mind!

 

lol I'm so glad someone mentioned this as I was thinking the same thing.

I kind of wonder what the counterbacklash will look like.

 

Things must just be different if you're still in school. Schools are a hothouse environment-- practically a caste-system-- where everyone is stamped with big glaring social labels, so that the very concept of coexisting with different types of people will make more sense to small minds. You're all forced into the same space together. Which can suck.

When you get out in the big wide world, it is more possible to operate free of such cliquery. Some workplaces & social groups do continue with the labels/cliques, even if you're a grownup-- but you're no longer trapped in it the way you are at a school. This reduces the pressure to fit in, & removes the urge to represent yourself as "not crazy, according to somebody else's criteria". Very liberating.

We didn't have BJDs or anime when I was in school (Early Pleistocene Era), but if we had, I still would have gone about my own business with the attitude of "If you think I'm crazy, it's your own damn problem, so get lost".... As an 80s schoolgirl, I think I might've been the first person in my county to wear black lipstick when it wasn't Halloween, and that was my attitude back then too. ^^

A resurgence in O.G. dollery, that's my guess! Everything that's being bashed or out-of-fashion now, will suddenly be back. More queenly j-rock boys in platform boots & hotpants, more CP Els, more elves in kimonos, more angels, even more anime-character dolls, more harem jewelry, more bondage, more cartoony faces... Who knows? In a few years, I guess we'll see.

 

I'm tempted to do it now, just so I can say I did. Maybe not like a full-on borg mod (I swear to god, some of them look like they're decked out to go scuba diving with all that junk on. O.o), but something of that type would be interesting. I know the body blushing would be fun to do. :3

And LOL at your cat joining the borg. XD Cats already have the "take over the universe" attitude; they just need the cybernetic implants.

 

This topic really caught my eye and I really enjoyed reading some of the responses.

I think to a point BJD owners are put into a stereotype, but then again almost everything has a stereotype now a days. We are mostly associated with anime and manga as well as other Asian trends. Most doll owners are I guess expected to be quiet, nerdy, freakish, or a loner that doesn't have many friends and uses their dolls to escape real life. But that is oh so NOT true! We come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and ethnic backgrounds

Do I fit in? I suppose I do to a point since I have loved anime since I was about 7 and started reading manga as a teenager, but to look at me off the street no one would know. However, I may not look the "typical" part but I will talk to anyone about my doll and I can usually get an outsider interested I've been collecting dolls of all sorts since the age of 5

Stereotypes come from the same place ... people who aren't knowledgeable about the hobby. Those who don't understand why we enjoy our dolls make assumptions that we must be outcasts who only have our dolls and anime/manga.