Barbie Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography: Women and Culture: Then and Now

Cloer, L. (2009). Barbie Turns 50. Retrieved from http://www.vision.org/visionmedia/society-and-culture/barbie-dolls-barbie-turns-50/13166.aspx (Accessed on 1/17/2015)

This website article provides the history of Barbie and her newly inspiring images for young women. Barbie was the new popular doll during World War 2 because she provided something inspiring for young girls and something that mothers felt strong about, independence. Barbie helped with what was being told to women, that they didn’t have to settle for being just a housewife or a stay at home mother. Women around the country could have a variety, a choice to work and have a career. “Barbie’s early professions were limited

to those considered appropriate for a woman in the early 1960s—fashion model, student teacher, nurse, ballerina, flight attendant”, (Cloer, 2009). The doll came into play when the maker saw her daughters and friends playing with paper dolls and they were playing “grown-up” with them. So she wanted to make a doll that was more realistic to play with. Barbie comes in many different professions, races and hair colors, so Barbie was easy to customize for every young girls dreams. I will be able to use this article in my paper because it provides the history as to why Barbie was made, how she became one of the most popular dolls still around but most importantly, the article tells a little about Barbie’s images and why so many parents are having an opinion on her measurements and how it impacts on young women when they grow up.
Friedman, J. (2006) Jewish Women's Archive. "Tefillin Barbie: Considering Gender and Ritual Garb." (Viewed on January 17, 2015) http://jwa.org/teach/golearn/jan08
This article provides the understanding of where Barbie was headed.

By this time Barbie was a very popular doll that a lot of young girls wanted to have in their hands. Mothers and other parents were liking the doll because she provided a sense of what the “grown-up” world would be like. Plus, a lot of girl’s loved playing dress up and playing pretend house wife. But Barbie was more than just the house wife, Barbie has a career, many of them and she was a fashion icon. Than Barbie, the classic Caucasian, bond headed went even farther. “In the 80s, she joined the multicultural movement and was depicted as African-American, Latina, and Asian”, (Friedman, 2006). Now, not only could girl choose what profession and career they wanted their dolls to be, but now they could choose the race they were and maker Barbie more like their own. Yet still parents started to notice the Barbie’s measurements and how unrealistic they were. They started to worry about of this would have a negative impact on their children when they grew up to be adults. I can use this article because it explains that Barbie came in different race now but her measurements were so unrealistic. This causes concern and many people still today wonder if Barbie has a part in why women stress over their body

images.
Mirror Mirror Eating Disorders. (2015). Barbie and Body Image. Retrieved from http://www.mirror-mirror.org/barbie-and-body-image.htm (Accessed on 1/17/2015)
This website article goes into detail about Barbie’s real life sizing and how so many girls grow up around this doll. Since Barbie was one of the most popular dolls that every little girl wanted, she became very popular and nearly every young girl had one, if the families could afford the doll. It explains that Barbie’s real life measurements were so unrealistic and was dangerous because young girls grew up with Barbie’s all around them. The issues were that Barbie being so unrealistic, girls looked up to her because she provided a “real” make belief of what being a grown up might be life. But with more and more girls looking up to Barbie, mothers were concerned that they would have image issues when they grew up. “ In the book “Ken and Barbie at life size,” author Kevin Norton states that only about one in 100,000 women actually match the Barbie body image”, (Mirror Mirror, 2015). I can really use this article because it goes into depth of what Barbie’s realistic measurements would be like and how impossible it is to look like her. This will help me demonstrate that we idolize Barbie’s body image more than we do anything else or a more realistic image of a women, like the Venus of Willendorf figurine.
PBS (June 22nd, 2006). Venus of the Willendorf: Exaggrated Beauty. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/howartmadetheworld/episodes/human/venus/ (Accessed on 1/17/2015)
This article explains that the Venus of Willendorf was one of the first figurines we have found that shows what was believed to be what a women’s image was years ago.

It offers and understanding that women were held at a different standard then than they are now. This figurine shows that women had a larger mid-section but was because they either needed the body fat for long, cold winters or the better idea was because it showed they were fertile and they were able to produce babies and keep the legacy going on. It also provides a better image of what the men and women had to go through in order to survive, like the long hard winters, the needing to hunt for food and could mean sometimes not having food. Venus of Willendorf was not considered an obese women, “where features of fatness and fertility would have been highly desirable”, (PBS, 2006). I can use this article because it explains the whole point about a women’s image. Women were not looked at how skinny and “good looking” they were in a pair of jeans. Women, in this time, were looked at as if they can be fertile or not. Being able to have children was a huge thing in this time since it was one of the point of living, to have a

family.
Seshadri, Krishna G. (January 2012). Obesity: A Venusian Story of Paleolithic proportions. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3263182/ (Accessed on 1/17/2015)
This internet article provides information about the Venus of Willendorf. The article explains that in today’s world we would consider this women as obese and with a lot of medical issues. But in reality the figurine was a symbol of fertility. The article also provides and understanding that doctors today stress the issues of being overweight and all the health and medical issues you will have if you are overweight. Where this figurine, she is considered overweight in today’s world but what we don’t know if she was obese or if she was possibly pregnant. Two complete different things. I can possibly use this article because it provided the image of the Venus of Willendorf and it explains that her size compared to what women today are expected to look like are completely different. Whereas what she represents in the Paleolithic ages, this was good, she was well feed possibly or she was fertile. Whereas women this size today are “fat” and have a lot of health problems. Women are expected to keep a slim figure and stay healthy in medical terms. Though, being skinny can have the same effects, if not worse, as being to “fat”. This is a good example to explain that we obsess over being skinny and idolize Barbie, who has unrealistic, real life measurements for women.