<description>&lt;html&gt;&lt;p&gt;Welcome back to Seemingly Unrelated the podcast that makes you wonder if World War II is responsible for you having a food processor (&lt;a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&amp;amp;lr=&amp;amp;id=lk7ZDQAAQBAJ&amp;amp;oi=fnd&amp;amp;pg=PP1&amp;amp;dq=Electrostar,+nazi&amp;amp;ots=1IIMg6rJjf&amp;amp;sig=dPmEsbgcsuC0ApzTUn9kVCqo_Go#v=onepage&amp;amp;q&amp;amp;f=false" target="_blank"&gt;kind of, yeah&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;This season we are tackling the topic of 'social constructs' because it seems like a lot of people have heard the phrase but maybe aren't too familiar with why it matters at all. To find out we will plumb the depths of gender traits, stereotypes, and common conceptions to get to the heart of why all our conversations about gender are the way they are. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;To help breath life into this season we are joined by co-host and puppeteer extraordinaire &lt;a href="https://www.aliciabrittpuppetry.co.uk/" target="_blank"&gt;Alicia Britt&lt;/a&gt; for the whole season starting with today's most pervasive and unassuming gender trope of them all: the pink/blue gender divide. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Is it true that women and girls love the colour pink because of the shapes and sizes of their cornea? Were boys dressed in pink hats and culottes once the height of masculine dress? Is &lt;em&gt;Barbie &lt;/em&gt;associated with pink because girls like pink OR do girls like pink because &lt;em&gt;Barbie &lt;/em&gt;does? Maybe our special interview guest &lt;a href="https://blog.umd.edu/jopaoletti/" target="_blank"&gt;Dr. Jo Paoletti&lt;/a&gt; will help us find out. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We'll be checking our swatches very closely to answer these questions plus examining the early modern colour-coded burial practices for Russian children on the season 3 premier of Seemingly Unrelated. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;#blueisforboys #pinkisforgirls #Barbie #Barbenheimer #gender #history #podcast&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Bibliography: &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;“1000 Things a Mother Should Know with Reference to Tiny Babies and Growiing Children | Jpaoletti’s Library | Zotero.” Accessed June 12, 2026. &lt;a href="https://www.zotero.org/jpaoletti/collections/AN5GRUJ8/items/9TUJE6TT/item-list" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.zotero.org/jpaoletti/collections/AN5GRUJ8/items/9TUJE6TT/item-list&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Aleteia — Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture. “Why Is the Virgin Mary Always Wearing Blue?” Accessed June 12, 2026. &lt;a href="https://aleteia.org/2017/06/24/why-is-the-blessed-virgin-mary-always-wearing-blue/" target="_blank"&gt;https://aleteia.org/2017/06/24/why-is-the-blessed-virgin-mary-always-wearing-blue/&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;AP News. “Exhibit Spotlights 50 Years of Fab Fashion from FIT Archives.” February 7, 2019. &lt;a href="https://apnews.com/arts-and-entertainment-travel-general-news-fashion-c4d4a6a62670406bba319aa3724ce21b" target="_blank"&gt;https://apnews.com/arts-and-entertainment-travel-general-news-fashion-c4d4a6a62670406bba319aa3724ce21b&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Brown, Evan. “The Transformation of the Barbie Logo: 1959 to 2024.” &lt;em&gt;DesignMantic&lt;/em&gt;, July 4, 2024. &lt;a href="https://www.designmantic.com/blog/barbie-logo-transformation/" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.designmantic.com/blog/barbie-logo-transformation/&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;“Clothing and Gender in America: Children’s Fashions, 1890-1920 on JSTOR.” Accessed June 12, 2026. &lt;a href="https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy1.lib.gla.ac.uk/stable/3174031?seq=1" target="_blank"&gt;https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy1.lib.gla.ac.uk/stable/3174031?seq=1&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Del Giudice, Marco. “The Twentieth Century Reversal of Pink-Blue Gender Coding: A Scientific Urban Legend?” &lt;em&gt;Archives of Sexual Behavior&lt;/em&gt; 41, no. 6 (2012): 1321–23. &lt;a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-0002-z" target="_blank"&gt;https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-0002-z&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Eschner, Kat. “Why Coco Chanel Created the Little Black Dress.” Smithsonian Magazine. Accessed June 12, 2026. &lt;a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-coco-chanel-created-lbd-180965024/" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-coco-chanel-created-lbd-180965024/&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Groyecka, Agata, Christoph Witzel, Marina Butovskaya, and Piotr Sorokowski. “Similarities in Color Preferences Between Women and Men: The Case of Hadza, the Hunter-Gatherers From Tanzania.” &lt;em&gt;Perception&lt;/em&gt; 48, no. 5 (2019): 428–36. &lt;a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0301006619840937" target="_blank"&gt;https://doi.org/10.1177/0301006619840937&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Kershaw, Sarah. “Ruth Handler, Whose Barbie Gave Dolls Curves, Dies at 85.” Arts. &lt;em&gt;The New York Times&lt;/em&gt;, April 29, 2002. &lt;a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/29/arts/ruth-handler-whose-barbie-gave-dolls-curves-dies-at-85.html" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/29/arts/ruth-handler-whose-barbie-gave-dolls-curves-dies-at-85.html&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Kohl, Johann Georg. &lt;em&gt;Russia: St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kharkoff, Riga, Odessa, the German Provinces on the Baltic, the Steppes, the Crimea, and the Interior of the Empire&lt;/em&gt;. Chapman and Hall, 1842.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Mattel #1 - 8 Barbie Vintage Dolls 1959+ Ponytail, Bubble Cut Dolls Identified USA&lt;/em&gt;. August 25, 2022. &lt;a href="https://www.dollreference.com/barbie-vintage-dolls-identified-1959-62/" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.dollreference.com/barbie-vintage-dolls-identified-1959-62/&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Paoletti, Jo B. &lt;em&gt;Pink and Blue: Telling the Boys from the Girls in America&lt;/em&gt;. Indiana University Press, 2012. &lt;a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt16gh7c4" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt16gh7c4&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Phan, Karena, and The Associated Press. “Beyond the Summer of ‘Barbie Pink’: How the Color Went from an 18th Century Fashion Breakthrough to ‘the Most Controversial Color in Fashion.’” Fortune. Accessed June 12, 2026. &lt;a href="https://fortune.com/2023/07/21/what-is-barbie-pink-history-of-color-fashion-mattel-trademark/" target="_blank"&gt;https://fortune.com/2023/07/21/what-is-barbie-pink-history-of-color-fashion-mattel-trademark/&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;The New York Times&lt;/em&gt;. “Opinion | Goodbye to Barbie’s Maker.” Opinion. April 30, 2002. &lt;a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/30/opinion/goodbye-to-barbie-s-maker.html" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/30/opinion/goodbye-to-barbie-s-maker.html&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;TIME. “Fashions: Baby’s Clothes.” TIME, November 14, 1927. &lt;a href="https://time.com/archive/6742587/fashions-babys-clothes/." target="_blank"&gt;https://time.com/archive/6742587/fashions-babys-clothes/.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/html&gt;</description>

Seemingly Unrelated Podcast

Seemingly Unrelated Podcast

Do Boys Like Blue and Girls Like Pink All the Time? S3E1

JUN 23, 202650 MIN
Seemingly Unrelated Podcast

Do Boys Like Blue and Girls Like Pink All the Time? S3E1

JUN 23, 202650 MIN

Description

<html><p>Welcome back to Seemingly Unrelated the podcast that makes you wonder if World War II is responsible for you having a food processor (<a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;id=lk7ZDQAAQBAJ&amp;oi=fnd&amp;pg=PP1&amp;dq=Electrostar,+nazi&amp;ots=1IIMg6rJjf&amp;sig=dPmEsbgcsuC0ApzTUn9kVCqo_Go#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false" target="_blank">kind of, yeah</a>)</p><p>This season we are tackling the topic of 'social constructs' because it seems like a lot of people have heard the phrase but maybe aren't too familiar with why it matters at all. To find out we will plumb the depths of gender traits, stereotypes, and common conceptions to get to the heart of why all our conversations about gender are the way they are. </p><p>To help breath life into this season we are joined by co-host and puppeteer extraordinaire <a href="https://www.aliciabrittpuppetry.co.uk/" target="_blank">Alicia Britt</a> for the whole season starting with today's most pervasive and unassuming gender trope of them all: the pink/blue gender divide. </p><p>Is it true that women and girls love the colour pink because of the shapes and sizes of their cornea? Were boys dressed in pink hats and culottes once the height of masculine dress? Is <em>Barbie </em>associated with pink because girls like pink OR do girls like pink because <em>Barbie </em>does? Maybe our special interview guest <a href="https://blog.umd.edu/jopaoletti/" target="_blank">Dr. Jo Paoletti</a> will help us find out. </p><p>We'll be checking our swatches very closely to answer these questions plus examining the early modern colour-coded burial practices for Russian children on the season 3 premier of Seemingly Unrelated. </p><p>#blueisforboys #pinkisforgirls #Barbie #Barbenheimer #gender #history #podcast</p><p>Bibliography: </p><p>“1000 Things a Mother Should Know with Reference to Tiny Babies and Growiing Children | Jpaoletti’s Library | Zotero.” Accessed June 12, 2026. <a href="https://www.zotero.org/jpaoletti/collections/AN5GRUJ8/items/9TUJE6TT/item-list" target="_blank">https://www.zotero.org/jpaoletti/collections/AN5GRUJ8/items/9TUJE6TT/item-list</a>.</p><p>Aleteia — Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture. “Why Is the Virgin Mary Always Wearing Blue?” Accessed June 12, 2026. <a href="https://aleteia.org/2017/06/24/why-is-the-blessed-virgin-mary-always-wearing-blue/" target="_blank">https://aleteia.org/2017/06/24/why-is-the-blessed-virgin-mary-always-wearing-blue/</a>.</p><p>AP News. “Exhibit Spotlights 50 Years of Fab Fashion from FIT Archives.” February 7, 2019. <a href="https://apnews.com/arts-and-entertainment-travel-general-news-fashion-c4d4a6a62670406bba319aa3724ce21b" target="_blank">https://apnews.com/arts-and-entertainment-travel-general-news-fashion-c4d4a6a62670406bba319aa3724ce21b</a>.</p><p>Brown, Evan. “The Transformation of the Barbie Logo: 1959 to 2024.” <em>DesignMantic</em>, July 4, 2024. <a href="https://www.designmantic.com/blog/barbie-logo-transformation/" target="_blank">https://www.designmantic.com/blog/barbie-logo-transformation/</a>.</p><p>“Clothing and Gender in America: Children’s Fashions, 1890-1920 on JSTOR.” Accessed June 12, 2026. <a href="https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy1.lib.gla.ac.uk/stable/3174031?seq=1" target="_blank">https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy1.lib.gla.ac.uk/stable/3174031?seq=1</a>.</p><p>Del Giudice, Marco. “The Twentieth Century Reversal of Pink-Blue Gender Coding: A Scientific Urban Legend?” <em>Archives of Sexual Behavior</em> 41, no. 6 (2012): 1321–23. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-0002-z" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-0002-z</a>.</p><p>Eschner, Kat. “Why Coco Chanel Created the Little Black Dress.” Smithsonian Magazine. Accessed June 12, 2026. <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-coco-chanel-created-lbd-180965024/" target="_blank">https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-coco-chanel-created-lbd-180965024/</a>.</p><p>Groyecka, Agata, Christoph Witzel, Marina Butovskaya, and Piotr Sorokowski. “Similarities in Color Preferences Between Women and Men: The Case of Hadza, the Hunter-Gatherers From Tanzania.” <em>Perception</em> 48, no. 5 (2019): 428–36. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0301006619840937" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.1177/0301006619840937</a>.</p><p>Kershaw, Sarah. “Ruth Handler, Whose Barbie Gave Dolls Curves, Dies at 85.” Arts. <em>The New York Times</em>, April 29, 2002. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/29/arts/ruth-handler-whose-barbie-gave-dolls-curves-dies-at-85.html" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/29/arts/ruth-handler-whose-barbie-gave-dolls-curves-dies-at-85.html</a>.</p><p>Kohl, Johann Georg. <em>Russia: St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kharkoff, Riga, Odessa, the German Provinces on the Baltic, the Steppes, the Crimea, and the Interior of the Empire</em>. Chapman and Hall, 1842.</p><p><em>Mattel #1 - 8 Barbie Vintage Dolls 1959+ Ponytail, Bubble Cut Dolls Identified USA</em>. August 25, 2022. <a href="https://www.dollreference.com/barbie-vintage-dolls-identified-1959-62/" target="_blank">https://www.dollreference.com/barbie-vintage-dolls-identified-1959-62/</a>.</p><p>Paoletti, Jo B. <em>Pink and Blue: Telling the Boys from the Girls in America</em>. Indiana University Press, 2012. <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt16gh7c4" target="_blank">https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt16gh7c4</a>.</p><p>Phan, Karena, and The Associated Press. “Beyond the Summer of ‘Barbie Pink’: How the Color Went from an 18th Century Fashion Breakthrough to ‘the Most Controversial Color in Fashion.’” Fortune. Accessed June 12, 2026. <a href="https://fortune.com/2023/07/21/what-is-barbie-pink-history-of-color-fashion-mattel-trademark/" target="_blank">https://fortune.com/2023/07/21/what-is-barbie-pink-history-of-color-fashion-mattel-trademark/</a>.</p><p><em>The New York Times</em>. “Opinion | Goodbye to Barbie’s Maker.” Opinion. April 30, 2002. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/30/opinion/goodbye-to-barbie-s-maker.html" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/30/opinion/goodbye-to-barbie-s-maker.html</a>.</p><p>TIME. “Fashions: Baby’s Clothes.” TIME, November 14, 1927. <a href="https://time.com/archive/6742587/fashions-babys-clothes/." target="_blank">https://time.com/archive/6742587/fashions-babys-clothes/.</a></p></html>