Question

difference between doll and sculpture

Answer 1

The word “doll” is weirdly fraught for a very straightforward concept: Dictionary.com defines a doll as “a small figure representing a baby or other human being, especially for use as a child’s toy.” Which is to say that while not every doll is an action figure, every action figure is, by definition, a doll.But while I was reading about a new truck-and-action-figure playset from Learning Resources, I found myself wondering: what makes a doll an action figure, or not?

You wouldn’t think that the origin of the phrase “action figure” would be this obvious and on-the-nose, but it’s true:  Hasbro coined the phrase to market the earliest G.I. Joe figures to boys who considered dolls to be a “girl’s toy.” Today, an “action figure” is considered to be any poseable doll marketed to boys.

Beyond the fact that action figures are “for boys,” nobody really seems to completely agree on what makes them what they are. Blogger Chris Galdieri contends that“”Action figures depict characters who can blow stuff up, or who consort with those who do.”” However, in the same blog, Michelle Erica Green notes that her Glinda the Good Witch toy, made by famous collectible action figure manufacturer Mego, is distinctly for girls, presumably can blow up items with her magic wand, and could easily be called either an action figure or a doll.