What are dolls? Types of dolls: description

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

They come in a variety of sizes, are made from a variety of materials, some look like babies, others look like adults, are played with by little girls, become part of expensive collections, and are even worshiped in some cultures. Guess what we're talking about? The heroes of this article are puppets. It is quite difficult, if not impossible, to describe the types of dolls, as well as the history of their appearance.

The first dolls and their purpose

The main feature that distinguishes the doll from other toys is that it looks like a person, and the degree of similarity can be different. Rag dolls-amulets are similar to people only in silhouette, but dolls in the form of children are barely distinguishable from real babies.

Even primitive people made humanoid figures, but the purpose of such products was sacred. Worshiped sculptures of people in ancient Egypt, as evidenced by the findings of archaeologists. They were made from wood, fabric, clay, as well as precious stones and metals. At the sametime, dolls made from improvised materials were also used for children's games.

Dolls that were played in ancient Greece and Rome in antiquity are really admirable, because the arms and legs of such toys moved with the help of hinges.

In the Middle Ages in Europe, dolls were widely used in Christianity, because with their help it was easy and interesting to tell biblical stories. And in our time, the tradition has been preserved on Christmas Eve to exhibit a prototype of the Bethlehem nursery near the temples, where large dolls act as the baby Christ, the Virgin Mary, Joseph and other participants in that scene.

Slavic dolls

Since pagan times, amulet dolls have become part of the culture of our ancestors. For the manufacture of such pupae, various materials were used, such as flax, straw, ash, clay, fabric, wood and others. The very process of creation was shrouded in a large number of rules and prohibitions. For example, the face has always remained unpainted, as they believed that evil spirits could move in through the eyes. It was also forbidden to use a needle and scissors. The fabric was not cut, so as not to cut off luck, but cut off, wrapped in a certain way and secured with knots, giving the shape of a doll. Types of amulet dolls depended on their purpose. So, the doll "Ten hands" was designed to help the young housewife with new chores around the house, and "Bereginya" protected the household from evil people.

Besides amulet dolls, the Slavs had play and ceremonial dolls. Playrooms were made especially for children, because they play with protective dollswas forbidden. And ritual dolls were created on the occasion of some holiday.

Luxury and expensive

From the middle of the 14th century, French craftsmen began to make dolls, which undoubtedly contributed to securing the status of a fashionable power for France. In those distant times, when there were no glamorous publications and visual media, exquisite Pandora dolls showed the world the latest fashion trends with their appearance. The growth of such ladies was 35 cm, and each of them was accompanied by a chest with outfits and accessories. The cost of such porcelain beauties made them accessible only to the upper strata of society. While Pandora took their place of honor on shelves inaccessible to children, simpler and cheaper dolls were used for games.

Germany in the 15th century became the heyday of the wooden doll, and with the advent of a new material in the 19th century - papier-mâché - the face and hands of toy beauties became more expressive and graceful. More expensive porcelain was also used for the same purposes, but the body itself was sewn from fabric.

In the 18th century, paper dolls saw the light, but, as in the story of Pandora and porcelain beauties, they were not intended for games. With the help of such paper models, designers developed and demonstrated their creations.

Revolution in the doll world

The advent of such a material as plastic, of course, made a real revolution in the production of toys. In the 70s of the 19th century in America, celluloid began to be used to make doll heads - a special plastic based oncellulose. The new material was not afraid of water, was much stronger than porcelain, and most importantly - cheaper. But there was also a minus: celluloid plastic is very flammable and burns well, so in the 20th century puppeteers refused to use it.

The emergence of numerous factories, where dolls were produced in large quantities and according to the laws of the market, can also be considered a turning point. The types of dolls determined the demand and needs of children of different age groups. Dolls have finally begun to be created specifically for children.

The importance of dolls for the formation of a girl's personality and her socialization in society cannot be underestimated. With the help of a doll, a child can play various situations from real life from the position of an adult, learn to communicate with others. The daughter-mother game, beloved by little girls, develops the maternal instinct, contributes to the formation of personality.

Every girl needs well-known and beloved baby dolls, because, caring for such a plastic child, the baby learns to be a mother. It is very interesting to observe yes by children of 10-12 months, it is at this time that they begin to imitate adults. Already at this time, the baby doll will be most welcome.

Over time, more and more suitable materials began to be used for the production of dolls - vinyl, rubber, silicone. Synthetic materials have replaced natural materials, thus allowing the industry to develop, and children to receive a variety of doll models that are safe to play with.

Dolls in the Soviet Union

While European masters made exquisite porcelain dolls, the puppeteers of Tsarist Russia did notremained aloof. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Russian factories of Zhuravlev and Koshechkov, Gudkov and Fedoseev, Shraer and Fingergut became famous. Dolls of that era depicted smart young ladies, hussars, fashionable townswomen. And it is not surprising that for their indiscretion in the 20s of the 20th century, these elegant Russian dolls were destroyed by order of the Soviet government.

In a new country, toys were supposed to be for ordinary people. Dolls were made of plastic, sometimes the body was made of rag. Details were not given much importance, the hair was badly combed, from the outfits such a doll had only a colorful chintz dress. Rubber doll Zina became the heroine of Agnia Barto's poem of the same name. Why Zina? At that time, each Soviet doll had its own name - it was indicated on a tag attached to the toy.

Paper dolls have become another symbol of that era. They could be found in the arsenal of every Soviet girl. The wardrobe of such a doll could be infinitely large, because you could invent and draw new outfits yourself.

In the late 1980s, foreign Babri dolls appeared on the shelves of Soviet stores, which remain megapopular today.

Modern brands

The Barbie doll, still popular today, was invented by the American Ruth Hendler in the 1950s, based on the Lilly doll, the heroine of German newspaper comics. The cardinal difference between the Barbie doll and other dolls of that time was that Barbie is not a child. With the help of such a doll, girls got the opportunity to put themselves in their place in the game.adult. By the way, it is not difficult to guess the name of the daughter of the inventor of the world-famous doll. Her name was Barbara.

From the time of its appearance to the present day, Barbie has undergone many transformations, as, in principle, her wardrobe. But then and now, she is the most popular doll in the world.

About 15 years ago, another doll appeared that everyone was talking about - this is the Bratz doll. They were created in the image of Barbie, but if Barbie is an adult woman with a thin waist, long legs and large breasts, then the Bratz doll is more like a teenager, with less pronounced forms, but not without them. She has a noticeably disproportionate head, but girls around the world liked this idea of the developers.

Big dolls, almost as tall as children, are also in trend. For example, a Baby Born doll is 43 cm tall, which is 7 cm less than the average height of a newborn baby. The doll can cry, eats porridge, drinks water, and also goes to the toilet. Dolls 70-80 cm tall represent older children.

While all adults are obsessed with books and TV shows about vampires, zombies and other evil spirits, this topic has also penetrated into the world of children. Monster High dolls, at the sight of which every grandmother crosses herself, have become the most popular toys of our time. The background for their creation was a cartoon whose characters study at the school of monsters. All of them have magical abilities and a very extraordinary appearance. Entire series of dolls are dedicated to the heroines of other equally popular cartoons: "Winx", "My Little Pony", "Novi Star Dol".

Tilda's funny textile dolls, invented by Norwegian Toni Finnanger, are still in fashion. These primitive toys appeared in 1999, and stories of their adventures can be read in the book series of the same name.

Not for children, but instead of

About 20 years ago in America, unusual silicone dolls in the form of children were invented, which even received a separate name - reborn. These toys are quite expensive, because only a real master can convey all the smallest features and only by hand. And they play with such dolls… adults.

Opinions about reborns are divided. The fact is that such silicone dolls, as some say, “eerily similar to real children,” so they are either collected for fun or treated as if they were alive, but this is already similar to mental illness.

Author's dolls

A new direction in contemporary fine art is the creation of an author's doll. Types of dolls in this area can be determined based on the technique of making art objects, genre of performance, purpose.

Such dolls are always unique, they are created by the author in a single copy, filled with feelings and emotions. Unfortunately, like many other types of dolls, author's dolls are designed for contemplation, not for games.

Dolls of the peoples of the world

Every nation has its famous dishes, songs, costumes and other phenomena of material and spiritual culture, among which national toys take their place.

Russian matryoshka dolls are one of the mostrecognizable and favorite souvenirs from Russia. Japan is famous for its hand-painted wooden kokeshi dolls.

African dolls depict black women, made of wood, leaves, herbs, decorated with beads.

The rubber doll of our childhood, the newfangled Baby Bon or the simple rag doll that was played several centuries ago - all these girls' toys have one important purpose. With their help, little girls learn to be mothers, in a playful way they learn behavior patterns accepted in society. The relevance of these toys is preserved at all times.