Reegan Martell English 1110 Dr. Adams 12/08/2011 Argument Analysis: “Our Barbies, Ourselves” Since its debut in 1959, a molded plastic doll named Barbie has become an icon. Barbie became the icon that functioned as both an outlet for girls' dreams and an ever-changing reflection of American society. Emily Prager is one of the many young girls that grew up as having Barbie as one of their favorite toys. Emily Prager is a columnist with the New York Times and in her spare time she has published many books such as World War ll Resistance Stories; A Book of Humor, “Official I hate Videogames Handbook”, and many others. In this article Prager questions how Barbie had an effect on her life as a child growing up and how she viewed Barbie as well.
Barbie has been said to touch every girl's life’ (Rogers, 1999). She is everywhere and with this has become more than a toy - she is a cultural icon. So it is little surprise that the controversy and cultural issues Barbie has raised are extensive. She is a commodity that is loaded with ideology; feminists, parents and critics have all raised questions and others hailed issues raised by Barbie as a role model a representation of femininity, sexuality, racialisation and consumerism. It is often implied that Barbie represents white middle class emphatic femininity but in this essay I will to attempt critically demonstrate that this is not actually the case and will explore issues that help prove otherwise.
Smiley’s first Barbie doll came into her home when her now twenty-four year old daughter was three. The author describes how both of her daughters would only wear pink and purple as they went through the “Barbie phase.” Jane Smiley says, “Both of them (her daughters) learned how to put on makeup before kindergarten” (376). What Smiley means by this is that her daughters were advanced in age mentally. Smiley’s daughters were doing things at age five that most girls would only start doing at the beginning of their teenage years. Now that’s growing up without a childhood.
Ironically, the dimensions that Barbie would not even be anatomically possible on humans. A women with her dimensions of 36-18-38 would not be able to live. The perfection Barbie portrays has influenced many women attain Barbie's body by having operations to make themselves "look like" Barbie. Cindy Jackson, founder of the Cosmetic Surgery Network, is a famous Barbie Doll human. She had more than twenty operations and dispensed more then $55,000 in her attempts to look like Barbie.
Welcome to Barbies World Every second 3 Barbies are sold all around the world. To most young girls the toy Barbie was the toy to always have. Growing up I had every Barbie, Dream Car, and Dream house that was out. Growing up Barbie was the only toy I ever wanted to play with. Playing with the toy it helped me explore my creativity and imagination more.
Piercy analyzes the girl from birth and uses a detached, expecting tone to portray her normality. In lines two through five Piercy creates a bitter tone when talking about the toys her parents presented her as a child. Piercy's tone can also seem as if she is disgusted because she talks about the “dolls that did pee pee” and uses a sarcastic alliteration when she said “lipsticks the color of cherry candy” (2-4). At this point it is clear the child is a toddler or in adolescence since she plays with these toys that little girls are expected to pay with at that age. The first stanza abruptly ends with “You have a great big nose and fat legs.” (6).
Throughout the years, Barbie and Willendorf have consistently been compared to. Both statues are completely different in their physical and symbolic aspects, but nevertheless the same in their symbolic status towards women. Barbie is a best-selling fashion doll that was launched in 1959. Her actual name is Barbara Millicent Roberts. She has a slim waist, has round hips, and long legs.
Bratz Dolls When I was younger, the Barbie’s I had showed an image that was implying me how to look and act. However, Barbie’s were not showing me to look overly sexual. They were only implying to have blond hair and the “perfect” body. Now as my little cousins become older they have shown interest in these overly sexual kinds of dolls called Bratz Dolls. The first time they asked for one I responded with a yes, I will buy it for you.
In Piercy’s poem, the deadly effects of the ‘Beauty Myth’ are revealed in a symbolic representation of death. The initial line of this poem is what starts to set the tone of the poem saying, “This girl child was born as usual” (1), meaning that she was born like any other normal child and had all the attributes and intelligence to go along with it. Piercy’s poem then continues to describe that, which is normal for a young girl to have dolls, mini GE stoves, land cherry lipstick. All of these things which are referenced in the poem on lines 2-4. “Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said: you have a great big nose and fat legs” (5-6) altering anything and everything this little girl ever knew to be true about herself.
International Business Chapter 14 Oxford University Press Prof. Rakesh Mohan Joshi Case Study BARBIE FACES ISLAMIC DOLLS Barbie, so named by ideator Ruth Handler after daughter Barbara s nickname, became the world s most popular fashion doll. Handler found that young girls enjoyed playing out their dreams in adult roles when she saw her daughter Barbara playing with a paper doll and imagining it as a grown up. Most children s dolls available at that time represented infants. This gave rise to an idea of a teenage doll, Barbie. Handler co-founded Mattel, a Southern California toy company with her husband Elliot Handler, and spearheaded the introduction of the doll.