Dolls are often thought of as just baby training tools usually meant for young girls. However, they really are much more than that.
Barbie dolls, for example, are thought to teach young girls about what it means to be a woman. They represent a hyper feminized version of a human woman that many feminists find disturbing. However, if you are a modern woman and your young girl is collecting Barbie dolls, Barbie doll clothes, Barbie doll furniture and Barbie doll houses, don’t be dismayed. She is just going through a phase where the subtleties of womanhood escape her and will eventually grow up into someone who gets it on a deeper level. So go ahead and indulge her love of these small foot high plastic dolls and let her collect as many dolls as she wants and as you can afford or can stand enforcing room cleanliness with.
Another type of doll are Art Dolls. These dolls are not meant for children but instead are meant for adults for display. They are made by artists and must communicate some kind of emotion or meaning just as any other piece of art work does.
A third type of doll is the Baby Think It Over Doll. This doll was designed by people who wanted at risk teens to get a taste of what a huge responsibility it is to have an early pregnancy. The doll is life like and demanding and can make young teens give a second thought about how great it would be to get pregnant like their friends.
A fourth type of doll is antique and collectible dolls. Like other collectibles, these dolls are graded on condition, rarity and popularity. Many people collect old Barbie dolls, since they remind them of their childhood, but antique dolls come in all sizes and shapes and can be extremely valuable.