For a while now, I’ve been thinking about how gender is performed/regulated in the recent “My Tide” campaign. But, I was never inspired to create an “Oh bother?!” about them until this morning, when I saw this commercial:
This commercial doesn’t make me angry, as in “Oh Bother!,” but it makes me curious, as in “Oh Bother?” How does masculinity shapes the language that the Dad uses to describe the mundane care-giving activities that he is required to do as a self-proclaimed “stay-at-home Dad”. Doing laundry isn’t a household chore, but “classic problem-solving” and fixing his daughter’s hair isn’t simply described as french-braiding, but in terms of “herringbone or fish-tail.” I wonder, does this re-framing of care-giving as work only apply to men/stay-at-home dads, or will also transform how we understand what stay-at-home moms do?
And, here’s another one that makes me curious:
What do we make of the girl’s interest in hoodies instead of pink, frilly dresses? Is this suggesting that norms for girls have changed? How does this change get undercut by the Mom’s desire for her daughter to continue wearing dresses?