The Simulated Woman

By Molly Ratcliffe 

When you think about the phrase “Designing Women” what do you think about? For some reason, I think about the computer game The Sims. In that game you basically play God. You can choose to make a man, a woman, a teenager, a baby and make them look however you want. The Sims give you the option to change their skin tone- anything from a natural skin colour to bright green or blue. You can make them fat, skinny, big breasted or flat chested. Basically you can design a woman however you like. 

Now, although this is all fun and games, and I can’t help but think that it could be used as a pretty legit psychology experiment. If the game was given to a group of teenage girls of different nationalities, how many would make their Sim fat? How many would make her flat chested? Would a black girl make her Sim lighter while a white girl would make her Sim darker? What kind of clothing would they put her in? A modest t-shirt and jean set? Or something that attracts sexual attention? How many would make their female Sim marry a hot, male Sim and have two kids and a dog? While how many would possibly make their Sim a lesbian with an awesome graphic design career and an adopted kid? Some may claim that in this "designing process" they are making their Sim look the way they want, when really, the majority of the time they are probably making them look the way society wants. 

My sister showed me a forum post on a Sims website where a girl was asking for “Cheat-Codes” to make her Sim thinner when she’s an adult. She claimed that when her Sim was a young adult (Age 18-30) her body was toned, and her legs and arms were very thin. She was angry because when her Sim became an adult (Age 30-50) her legs and arms became wider and her body was not as toned. I hate to break it to you Sim-Girl but that’s usually how it works!!! In a later post she claimed that she was much happier now because her Sim had become an elder (Age 50-80) and she had become much thinner again....I have to wonder what the girl playing with this Sim really looked like. Was she blonde and petite like her Sim? Or was she a lot heavier? The truth is she could be either. 

The Sim from Sim-Girl's forum.

The point of The Sims game is to reflect reality, but at the same time, give you the option to make an alternative reality. I would not say The Sims  is responsible for making us reflect our societal norms onto our Sim- they give us the option to make our Sim look however we want! It does however put us on the spot and have us admit to ourselves that we have fallen into societal norms. I have made a Sim that looks like me before and I played with her until I got bored, but I have also made Sims that look nothing like me. I admit that when I create a Sim, I want her to look toned, slim, with awesome long hair and a tan. Do I look like that? No. I am 5”4, pale-skinned, flat chested, and covered in freckles. Am I making that Sim to look like everything I am not? Not necessarily, but then I have to think WHY do I want my Sim to be tanned? WHY do I want her to be a size zero? WHY does she have to have long bonde hair? I try to swallow my words but the only thing I can think to say is: “Because she looks good”. This doesn't mean I think everyone should look like this nor is it something I am striving to look like, but it does show me how much the media has brain washed me into thinking that a tan, toned Barbie is my first option when making my idea of a “perfect woman”.