1. The "Boy Toy"
2. The Teddy Babe
3. The Blow-up
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Sex Doll question
I was wondering, do you think that the deep relationships that people have with Real Dolls is possible with other types of sex dolls, or is realism a necessary factor in forming these deep connections? What about in relation to these sex dolls? Could a loving relationship be formed with these dolls?
1. The "Boy Toy"
1. The "Boy Toy"
Lars and the Real Girl
Two posts ago, I talked about how
men may like Real Dolls because they want to return to an era where women had
fewer rights, where their masculinity was less challenged. While this may be
the case for some, I'm sure that's not the reason for all doll owners.
For example (and it is a rather
out-there example), look at the story of Lars and the Real Girl. Here's a synopsis from
IMDB. In the movie, Lar's whole town goes in on the delusion that his
Real Doll Bianca is a real person. She ends up getting a life of her own - she
volunteers, hangs out with the girls, and even gets a job. How does Bianca's life compare to the online/photographic lives of the Real Dolls I mentioned in my last post? How does this movie challenge the dominant assumptions about sex doll owners?
iDollator Culture
Many doll owners use their dolls for more than just sex. Their dolls become their companions. They love them, talk to them, and name them. They do regular things with them like watch TV, read, sit them at the dinner table, and sleep in the same bed.
But after a while it can be difficult to maintain a relationship with an unresponsive object. This is why many iDollators create an online and photographic presence for their dolls. Many doll owners get into photography and use their dolls as subjects. They pose them sexually, but also doing things that would make them seem real and normal. One of the subjects in the Guys and Dolls documentary on BBC posed with his dolls in activities such as reading the same book. He explained: “The photos give the dolls a life. They’re almost like family photos. It makes them seem more real to me.”
Many iDollators create personal websites, blogs, Twitter and Facebook accounts for their dolls. They update them in the voice that they imagine their doll to have. By doing this, they give their dolls a life online. They give them a personality, relationships of their own, experiences, and interests. To the right on this page, I have linked to a few doll Twitter groups and also a doll's website.
For these people, it seems less of an issue of controlling their women, and more of an issue of finding their ideal woman. They create not only the looks of their perfect lover, but also the backstory, personality, and interests. Perhaps they have given up looking, or perhaps their own insecurities hold them back. Or maybe, in the case of Davecat, his sexual fetish is for mannequins and dolls.
In her photo series, Still Lovers, Elena Dorfman took pictures of the relationships iDollators have with their Real Dolls. Clearly, the attraction is more than sexual or physical.
These images are the property of Elena Dorfman.
But after a while it can be difficult to maintain a relationship with an unresponsive object. This is why many iDollators create an online and photographic presence for their dolls. Many doll owners get into photography and use their dolls as subjects. They pose them sexually, but also doing things that would make them seem real and normal. One of the subjects in the Guys and Dolls documentary on BBC posed with his dolls in activities such as reading the same book. He explained: “The photos give the dolls a life. They’re almost like family photos. It makes them seem more real to me.”
Many iDollators create personal websites, blogs, Twitter and Facebook accounts for their dolls. They update them in the voice that they imagine their doll to have. By doing this, they give their dolls a life online. They give them a personality, relationships of their own, experiences, and interests. To the right on this page, I have linked to a few doll Twitter groups and also a doll's website.
For these people, it seems less of an issue of controlling their women, and more of an issue of finding their ideal woman. They create not only the looks of their perfect lover, but also the backstory, personality, and interests. Perhaps they have given up looking, or perhaps their own insecurities hold them back. Or maybe, in the case of Davecat, his sexual fetish is for mannequins and dolls.
In her photo series, Still Lovers, Elena Dorfman took pictures of the relationships iDollators have with their Real Dolls. Clearly, the attraction is more than sexual or physical.
Real Dolls and Real Women
So, Real Dolls are basically the ideal woman, right? I mean, that's what they're made to be. At least the ideal woman you want to have sex with. Looking at a Real Doll, what does it tell you about the ideals that men have for women?
First of all, look at that body: an extreme hourglass figure. An hourglass is supposed to mean that the waist is at least 8 inches smaller than the hips and bust. For body A, the waist is 9in smaller than the bust and 11in smaller than the hips! For body B, the waist is 9in smaller than the waist and hips! And STILL you can see men in The Doll Forum complaining about how these new bodies aren't curvy enough. To quote one iDollator,
Under the testimonials section in the website, the owner of this doll says that:
But the sexism starts before the doll is made: it's in the ordering process as well. All women must has long, painted nails. They must have eyeliner. In the wig selections, only 1 choice is above shoulder-length. 10/15 wig choices are long hair. When the doll is shipped, it comes in lingerie and high heels. It also comes with perfume.
Apparently, women are supposed to be ultra-feminine to be sexy. Men like femininity because it is less challenging to their own masculinity. These dolls are the perfect women not only for their looks, but also because they are silent, immobile, compliant, and always down for sex/whatever else the man has in mind. They do not have a mind to think for themselves. They cannot talk back or have opinions. They cannot deny sex or deny the man. They are the man's passive plaything and companion. The dolls never age or get fat, the nightmares of husbands. Everything about them is for the man. He can choose how they dress, how they wear their makeup, and how their hair is done. He can choose what they do, where they go.
Basically, Real Doll owners can be said to want the old patriarchy back. They want to go back to a time when women had no voice, when they were the property and object of their husbands. When they had to have sex whenever the man wanted. Also when they could not leave the man, when divorce was illegal or highly stigmatized. They want complete control, the type of control only dolls can now give.
First of all, look at that body: an extreme hourglass figure. An hourglass is supposed to mean that the waist is at least 8 inches smaller than the hips and bust. For body A, the waist is 9in smaller than the bust and 11in smaller than the hips! For body B, the waist is 9in smaller than the waist and hips! And STILL you can see men in The Doll Forum complaining about how these new bodies aren't curvy enough. To quote one iDollator,
"If they would have been DD cup instead of C cup I would have bought body B already."As Real Doll has moved towards a more realistic look to their dolls, many have been complaining about the "small" breast and butt sizes. Mind you, this is a C cup on an 70lb doll. That's on the large side of realistic. Even the so-called ideal hourglass figure is not curvy enough for some. They preferred something more like this body from the Real Doll 1:
I can see the life-likeness in some of the Real Dolls, but this one? How are those boobs on that frame anywhere near reality? Is this what some men believe reality should be?“…facially she looks more "real" than real people (How did that happen?). From every angle she looks convincingly life-like. I am 100% satisfied with the order and am amazed you were able to create something so realistic”
But the sexism starts before the doll is made: it's in the ordering process as well. All women must has long, painted nails. They must have eyeliner. In the wig selections, only 1 choice is above shoulder-length. 10/15 wig choices are long hair. When the doll is shipped, it comes in lingerie and high heels. It also comes with perfume.
Apparently, women are supposed to be ultra-feminine to be sexy. Men like femininity because it is less challenging to their own masculinity. These dolls are the perfect women not only for their looks, but also because they are silent, immobile, compliant, and always down for sex/whatever else the man has in mind. They do not have a mind to think for themselves. They cannot talk back or have opinions. They cannot deny sex or deny the man. They are the man's passive plaything and companion. The dolls never age or get fat, the nightmares of husbands. Everything about them is for the man. He can choose how they dress, how they wear their makeup, and how their hair is done. He can choose what they do, where they go.
Basically, Real Doll owners can be said to want the old patriarchy back. They want to go back to a time when women had no voice, when they were the property and object of their husbands. When they had to have sex whenever the man wanted. Also when they could not leave the man, when divorce was illegal or highly stigmatized. They want complete control, the type of control only dolls can now give.
Race: what do you think?
Here are two images Elena face I mentioned in the last post as well as the face that "looked good in the Light African skin tone" according to Real Doll. What do you think?
These pictures are the property of Stacy Leigh.
Real Dolls and Race
It's really interesting to see how Real Dolls deal with race. First of all, there are the "Asian" and "Light African" skin tones. I wasn't aware that people of the entire continent of Asian had one skin tone?It's also says something that there's only a "Light" African option. It's like in class when we were talking about Black representations in media. Black women were either junglefied or else mainstreamed - made to look more white. It seems here that they are saying that only more "whitened-up" Black women are sexy.
I saw the newsletter on the Real Doll site that introduced one of the "ethnic" faces for the Real Doll 1. It said that "Any doll can be made in any of the five skin tones available, but some of us look better in the African tone than others (Melissa and Lisa also look very nice with this skin tone.)"
I was scanning The Doll Forum for what users were saying about the Amara face. While some really liked the face, they mourned the fact that there was no Real Doll 2 body built for a Black woman.
Here are a few excerpts from these posts:
"I would LOVE to see a doll DESIGNED FROM THE START as a black woman. Thick lips, wide nose, large breasts and butt."
"A butt like the dancers from Sir Mixalot's "Baby got back" or Bria Myles"
"I wonder if Matt could get away with making an RD-2 body like that (especialy the boobies)? Add an Amara face, paint her a deep Hershey's Chocolate brown...Yummie!"
"I would have loved to have put their new "Amara" face onto it, seeing as they do not have a petite sized/figured RD-2 body to put her face on."These iDollators believe that Black women's bodies, to be Black, must have large breasts and butts. Many more posts cited Amara's big Black lips.
There was also a lot of desire for a "Latina" body, ie. big butt and breasts. The face for Elena was much less type-cast than Amara. Apparently, Amara's face was more distinctly racialized than Elena's.
The other thing is, they don't have a distinctly Asian face even though they have the "Asian" skin tone. It seems as though they think many faces could appear Asian with the right skin tone and hair color, but Latina and especially Black women need to have their own face to show their race.
What is a Real Doll?
I thought it might be helpful to explain what exactly a Real Doll is for those of you who have never heard of them. Real Dolls are life-size silicone sex dolls that appear very realistic. They have a PVC skeleton and have joints. This means that they can be positioned, but they cannot support their own weight.
There are 2 body types for the current (2nd) generation of female Real Doll. (A) is 5'3" tall, weighs 80lbs, measures 33-24-35, and has C-cup breasts. (B) is 5'1" tall, 70lbs, measures 32-23-32, and has C-cup breasts. Overall, the body types are pretty similar. There are 10 faces to choose from, with two specifically ethnic faces (Amara, Black, and Elena, Latina).
There are 5 different skin colors to choose from: Light, Asian, Medium, Tanned, and Light African.
Other options to choose from include eye color, eye shadow, eye liner style and color, lipstick, toes and finger nail color, and hair style and color.
There are also several add-ons that can be chosen to heighten the realism of the doll. They can have real hair eyebrows (instead of painted on), custom freckles, pubic hair (from "trimmed" to full"), more detailed "masterpiece" eyes, and custom wigs.
One can also pay for a size larger breasts (D) on their doll ($850).
The genitalia can also be "shemale" style, which means either being able to interchange a penis with a vagina at will, having a permanently attached penis and vagina (without the balls), or having a permanently attached penis with no vagina.
The girls ship in "stylish seasonal lingerie" and high heels.
For the Male Real Doll 2, there are two body types. (A) is more muscular while (B) has a slender build. Both are 5'9". There are 3 faces to choose from.
The same skin and eye colors as well as pubic hair options apply to the men.
The men can be clean shaven or have stubble.
Their penises can be limp/flaccid (3 1/2 in), small (5 1/2 in and skinny), medium (5 1/4 in and thicker), large (7 1/2 in), and x-large (9 in). These can be interchanged.
The men come bald/shaven, but a wig can be bought separately.
They arrive in boxer shorts and a tank top.
Both dolls cost $5,999 each.
There are 5 different skin colors to choose from: Light, Asian, Medium, Tanned, and Light African.
Other options to choose from include eye color, eye shadow, eye liner style and color, lipstick, toes and finger nail color, and hair style and color.
There are also several add-ons that can be chosen to heighten the realism of the doll. They can have real hair eyebrows (instead of painted on), custom freckles, pubic hair (from "trimmed" to full"), more detailed "masterpiece" eyes, and custom wigs.
One can also pay for a size larger breasts (D) on their doll ($850).
The genitalia can also be "shemale" style, which means either being able to interchange a penis with a vagina at will, having a permanently attached penis and vagina (without the balls), or having a permanently attached penis with no vagina.
The girls ship in "stylish seasonal lingerie" and high heels.
For the Male Real Doll 2, there are two body types. (A) is more muscular while (B) has a slender build. Both are 5'9". There are 3 faces to choose from.
The men can be clean shaven or have stubble.
Their penises can be limp/flaccid (3 1/2 in), small (5 1/2 in and skinny), medium (5 1/4 in and thicker), large (7 1/2 in), and x-large (9 in). These can be interchanged.
The men come bald/shaven, but a wig can be bought separately.
They arrive in boxer shorts and a tank top.
Both dolls cost $5,999 each.
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