Would you purchase a handicapped doll?

May I just add that a lot of Doll Chateau's dolls are scantily clad? Mainly the babies? I'm pretty sure this is just to show the bodies.

 

Honestly, if DC's intent was to portray these dolls as "circus freaks", there's certainly more interesting ways to do it. Going back to look at the dolls pictures again, the ones where they are in their fullsets, in most of the pictures the girls are photographed from the waist up, either hugging, touching, or looking at each other. Which if you ask me is a far more loving act then anything. The only "freaky" picture is the one where one of the girls is on the regular body and the other dolls head is in her lap. Out of the 13 pictures of them together only 3 show the complete body with the nude bottom. 3 pictures, one in which the girls are hugging each other nose to nose (Eskimo kisses FTW). Sorry, I'm just not seeing the circus freak act.

 

Hmmm, I'll admit, the reason I like the DC twins IS the freak show quality. The fascination with the odd and strange. My only problem with them is a lack of extra limbs which I intend to ad on to fill outthat rather large hip area.
I plan on one girl being sexy and the other being shy.
but I wonder sometimes is this always wrong? I would never ever treat any actual human being who is conjoined as an object. I get squicked out by the one documentary that follows two joined at the hip and waist girls. I like the education side of things but think they're too young yet to share their story.
Anyways, I also don't see my fascination or desire for an even odder doll to be wrong. I'm a long stand fan of the Adams Family, I didn't like the music but I loved Marylin Mansons videos etc etc. There Is a weird romance to conjoined twins that I think speaks to human beings loneliness and well, I want to represent that with my dolls. The weird and somewhat horrific to the romantic and mysterious. Twins are already thought to be special and conjoined twins just, pushes that out even more.
Am I making sense? It's not a realistic portrayal but it's a beautiful one in my mind.

 

Well I think that if u want a doll with any kind of difference then do so I mean I have a visual impairment and have a doll that found some really neat purple eyes that look as if she is blind which makes her even more beautiful in my mind because shes like me. I think I would prefer to make things myself if I were talented or have it commissioned by someone. But they are an interesting topic.

 

Hi everyone, I'm a newbie!

This thread has a very deceptively simple question, doesn't it? "Would you buy a handicapped doll?"

Short answer, and coming from a handicapped person is, "Yes, I would."

I know there are some folks who are concerned with the doll company's intentions with the conjoined doll, that she is part of a circus, and thus, automatically designated as an employee, and member of the freak show. The dread of stereotypes, or more admirable, taking the feelings of those living with this particular condition into consideration are legitimate concerns.

However, I have a longstanding practice of ignoring the stories invented by doll companies. For example - Company X has dolls that are fashion models, designers, photographers, fianciers, etc. who run the gamut from BFFs to bitter enemies. Company Y has a doll line set in a fantasy world, and there are many different races, such as elves, dwarves, goblins, gnomes, orcs and what have you, who also run the gamut from BFFs to bitter enemies.

I am a writer who enjoys using dolls as character stand ins, so I pick and choose the dolls I like, and create my own storylines about them. I keep the original names in my files, and mostly, that's where they stay, so if I want to wax nostalgic, I can look up the old information.

If you like a particular doll, for whatever reason, and you can afford it, buy it. If a doll offends or saddens you, don't. Storylines from doll companies can be a lot of fun, but there is no law that says you have to follow that story.

When I saw the link to the conjoined doll, I thought she would make an interesting being - perhaps representing Light and Darkness, which cannot exist without each other. Taking that line of thought a little further, it could also represent the concept of opposites attract. Just because Light and Darkness are opposites, does not mean they could not be attracted or passionately in love.

 

I do this, too. Dollmore has DM Kids and DM Youths, and I believe someone told me that they were supposed to be cousins - but really, the DM Youths were older, SD versions of the DM Kids. I don't really like the stories either of my dolls were supposed to have, and I don't pay attention to the stories of other dolls. If the company has these two dolls as friends, but I want them to be brothers, they will be brothers.

It's nice to see how the dolls fit into the world the company creates, but that usually doesn't fit in with the world I'm creating.

 

You'll find that many, if not a majority, of doll owners disregard the stories the companies make up for their dolls. It's not that unique a concept. I don't think anyone here is debating on the basis that they feel they have to stick with the companies' story ideas.

 

I think I would be noticed and get too big of an unwelcome reaction when people saw if I owned such a doll. I have liked seeing the creativity when owners have created their own conjoined twins mods but isn't really for me.

 

I went for a moment to look up the dolls in question, and I must say I do not like how they decided to do the joining. They look rather awkward, and I would not buy that kind of conjoined twin set up. To answer the question at hand, though - yes, I would buy a doll with a disability to their mold. I have friends in real life with varying handicaps and I would like to think I could have a variety of life with my dolls in honour of those friends of mine who are so strong.

 

I have read all the comments and I myself cannot really decide if it is right or wrong that companies are selling disabled dolls and the owners buy them.
This particular pair of dolls I'm not so fond of, DC seems to be just too "artsy" for my taste. X9 But yes, they did a great job in sustaining their style in designing/making the dolls. That being said, if there are handicapped dolls out there that look more realistic and fit my taste, I'd buy them. That's a personal choice.
However, I must agree with some of the others saying that it seems almost disrespectful in the way these particular dolls are being presented. Well, it is art, so I know it is supposed to be controversial in many ways. But the thought of people romanticizing such disabilities and digging something painful/inconvenient because it's "pretty" and "curious" is a bit disturbing for me.
I hope I'm not being too dramatic...

 

Personally, i woudl like to see more... Not just conjoined.. but well, accurate representations of the actual populace.... I have yet to come across a Doll, that is not perfect thin, but i woudl like to buy one. ( not that i have been searching for all THAT long but still) I think.. it would a be a good thing, not a "freak show" i would buy those two, even though they are awkwardly placed... becuase in real life, conjoined twins don't get to choose how they are connected either.... It shows a bit of realism to me. And i would like to think, if they work in a circus... they are supporting themsleves.... many "circus fraks" had long, rewarding, rich lives, ( i have a book on them i read not to long ago, no not everything was glamor of course.) So there is no shame.. in working.... especially in the older days. I do not think anyone should be ashamed of their bodies, or situation, so i would Absolutely, buy disabled dolls, and be proudly seen with them....Just as i would be seen with my disabled friends......Technically i am a midget... at 4'8...... >.> ( i believe that is the USA requiremnet to be a "midget" my mother is two inches shorter than me.. and nothing has stopped her from living a long, self reliant and strong, life.

 

http://thehumanmarvels.com/ Is this the site you're after, Muisje? (Some of the images are disturbing, don't click if you can't handle it.)

As a person with a twin, the thought of conjoined twins makes me upset. I love my sister, but never being able to be rid of her would be devastating to me and my sense of self. The Doll Chateau Doll in particular I find very sad to look at because the girls are trapped in such an inconvenient form of conjoinment. When I saw the doll all I could think about is how would they walk? How would they stand? How would they do anything at all? Also, I guess it's possible, but the way that they are conjoined is unlike any I've ever seen, and I wonder how accurate they are. It seems to me that if one were joined at the pelvis like that they should have four legs. I don't have anything against conjoined dolls, and I have seen some that are beautifully done, but I could never own one as I find them too distressing.

Also, I agree with others who questioned their lack of clothing on the lower half, I found that very creepy. At the very least they should have a skirt. I personally think that she should come with at least one skirt and one pair of pants so that you can for sure dress your girls.

As for any other disabilities, heck yeah! Have all the disabilities you can think of, but give me the option as to whether I want to buy it that way or not. I want a doll that can pose like crazy, so I'm not interested in a doll with intentionally limited posing, but I love the idea.

 

From what I've seen in terms of twins that are conjoined, a lot of them have half control of everything. In this instance, I would assume that they might each have control of one leg. I've seen conjoined twins where they share a single body, and each twin controls one arm and one leg.

 

I would probably not buy a "handicapped" or "medical oddity" doll unless I really liked the sculpt. It's kind of weird and gross to me, but... different strokes for different folks, as they say.

As for "monster" sculpts, I like having the additional "human" parts. For example, I have a Planetdoll Mermaid Aqua Limited. I love the addition of the human legs, because then I can paint little scales on them, and she can have a "human" form and a "mermaid" form, just like the mermaid in the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale.

 

I would buy them, I actually really liked the DC twins face sculpt but I'm not really sold on the way they are joined - not that I know a lot about conjoined twins but the pose seems a little unnatural ... probably more to do with the fact they had to allow for movement in the hip joint. I would probably be more inclined to buy if they included 2 regular hips/legs so you could have individual dolls as well, or if the hip joint was slightly redesigned (it seems it would be quiet top-heavy as it is). And in regards to buying a handicapped doll, I agree with what a lot of other people have said - if I fall in love with a doll I fall in love with them, regardless of such things - although I can't say I've seen a lot of dolls with handicaps (I'm relatively new to the hobby).

 

I will buy a doll with an unusual body if I like this particular doll - be it fantasy parts or depiction of disabilities. Really, to me the fact that it has fantasy parts or disabilities is usually not the deciding factor. It might give the decision a little bit of additional fuel because of novelty, but no more.

To be honest, I think handicapped bodies can be just as beautiful as non-handicapped ones. And fantasy ones too, expecially for a fantasy-, sci-fi- and RPG-fan like me.

As for this one DC doll, I only like one of the heads, so this doll doesn't cause enough "want!"-feeling.

 

It is disgusting...In my opinion.

 

Yes, why not? It's really rare to see those, though. Mostly I think if I wanted a certain kind of body I could always give it to someone to mod or try my luck on it.

 

As a handicapped person speaking, no, I would most likely not buy a physically disabled doll. It would freak me out a little. Probably because the realism of it would be too much for me.

But then again, it would depend on the sculpt and on how it was done. I really dislike the "freaks/monster/horror " sculpts I've seen, but I won't say it can never be done in a good way.

 

I think it may be a bit strange, but really rather interesting as well. Part of the appeal of the dolls is their variety and how different or similar we can make them to normal people.