In the poem “Barbie Doll,” Marge Piercy suggests that girls are peer-pressured into fitting social norms based on appearance rather than on other qualities. The poem begins with the speaker describing a girl’s early life with barbie dolls, then progresses to society’s influences on her: “She was advised to play coy,/exhorted to come on hearty,/exercise, smile, and wheedle” (ll. 12-14). The use of passive voice emphasizes the girl’s reluctancy to be “advised” and “exhorted,” two words synonymous with “to urge.” At the same time, the speaker leaves out the subject of the sentence, the people who urge the girl to imply that it could be anyone—in other words, the society. She is forced to “play coy,” “come on hearty,/exercise, smile, and wheedle,” all actions portraying an acceptable image. …show more content…
Society pressures the girl into adjusting her appearance, one perhaps untrue to her nature.
As the poem advances to the girl’s death, the speaker paints the scene at her funeral: “In the casket displayed on satin she lay/with the undertaker’s cosmetics painted on,/a turned-up putty nose,/dressed in a pink and white nightie” (ll. 19-22). The undertaker, who plans the funeral, is tasked with dressing the deceased, and fits society’s expectations for the girl. With “satin,” “cosmetics,” “a turned-up putty nose,” and “a pink and white nightie,” the speaker lists many of the luxurious items that society expects her to have. Before the girl is influenced by society, “[s]he was healthy, tested intelligent,/possessed strong arms and back,/abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity./She went to and fro apologizing” (ll. 7-10). Again, the speaker omits the people she interacts with, with the implication that it is the entirety of the population. In other words, she “went to and fro apologizing” to the society because of her qualities that deviated from the societal
norms. Throughout the course of the girl’s redundant life, she becomes increasingly influenced by society until her death. The form of “Barbie Doll,” particularly the use of repetition and irony, emphasizes that any girl faces pressure to fit into society’s expectations on appearance rather than to fit into their own desires. The speaker uses repetition of the girl’s nose and legs in the last lines of three out of four stanzas: “You have a great big nose and fat legs,” “Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs,” and “she cut off her nose and legs / and offered them up” (ll. 6, 11, 17-18). As the poem progresses from one stanza to the next, the girl’s nose and legs are called to attention and displayed with greater disdain. It begins with one person bluntly telling her that her features are poorly defined, then further develops into “everyone,” society, seeing her in the same lens. It gets to the point where she sacrifices these imperfections to appease them. The speaker does not indicate to whom the girl “offered them up,” therefore implying society, once again. The girl feels coerced enough to give up her nose and legs—her very existence. The recurrence of the nose and legs stresses the growing pressure of appearance. After her death, when she is dressed by societal standards, the speaker utilizes irony to further emphasize the importance of appearance in society: “Doesn’t she look pretty? everyone said. / … / To every woman a happy ending” (ll. 23-25). With the “undertaker’s cosmetics” and other decorations on the girl once she is placed in the casket, the question of “Doesn’t she look pretty?” implies that everyone believes she represents the new general consensus that she is indeed “pretty” and one to gaze upon. Ironically, this perceived “happy ending” for women is death, as dying in beauty is the ultimate goal. The irony highlights that appearance in society shapes women tremendously through social pressure.
Author, Marge Piercy, introduces us to a young adolescent girl without a care in the world until puberty begins. The cruelty of her friends emerges and ultimately she takes her own life to achieve perfection in “Barbie Dolls” (648). At the time when all children are adjusting to their ever changing bodies, the insults and cruelties of their peers begin and children who were once friends for many years, become strangers over night caught in a world of bullying. A child who is bullied can develop severe depression which can lead to suicide; and although schools have been educated in recognizing the signs of bullying, there is an epidemic that has yet to be fully addressed within our schools or society.
Students are often required to submit essays throughout the school year, however, many are not able to write an effective essay. After extensively reading and analyzing This I Believe narratives, I came across many essays that are great examples for students to use as a template for effective writing. One essay that stood out amongst the rest was, “A Grown-Up Barbie” by Jane Hamill; I recommend this short narrative for students that strive to achieve an effective essay because it provides useful rhetorical devices such as: anecdote, imagery and diction.
Marge Piercy wrote the Barbie Doll poem in 1973, during the woman’s movement. The title of the poem Barbie Doll, symbolizes how females are supposed to appear into the society. In the poem Barbie Doll, the main character was a girl. She was described as a usual child when she was born. Meaning that she had normal features that any person could ever have. Piercy used “wee lipstick the color of cherry candy” as a smile to describe the child before she has hit puberty. After the character hit puberty, the classmates in her class began to tease her saying “you have a big nose and fat legs.” (Piercy pg. 1) Having a big nose and a fat leg is the opposite of what females are supposed to be presented as in the gender stereotype. In the society that the girl lives in, follows the gender stereotypes that presented females as a petite figure with a slender body. These expectations made the character go insane. She wanted to fit into the society so she “cut off her nose and legs and offered them up.” (Piercy pg. 1) Even though the girl was “healthy, tested intelligent…” (Piercy pg. 1) no one saw that in her, but her appearances. In the end of the poem the girl end up dying, a...
The poem starts with the line, “This girlchild was born as usual,” which suggests that as soon as a girl is born, society already expects her to learn the role she will soon play in when she hits puberty (1). Thus, showing why we are given dolls as little girls to illustrate how we should act and appear according to society. After we learn all the roles we will soon take part in, “the magic of puberty,” hits and girls immediately begin applying the ideals to their own lives (5). As if this attempt to conform is not enough we have other people telling us we are not to perfect. “You have a great big nose and fat legs,” says a classmate to the girl (6). This type of pressure can slowly but surely destroy even the little confidence women do have in themselves.
In such a cruel society young woman tend to feel pressured with keeping up a perfect image or appeal just to please everyone around them. The speaker in this poem is third person, the audience is very clear focusing on society and parents raising young girls. The overall theme is how society has a standard of how pretty someone is. It causes woman to feel pressured into looking and acting a certain way. A “girl child” is born and once she hits puberty, she is humiliated for what other people point out and see as her flaws. Soon she tired of trying so hard to be what she was not. She eventually got what she wanted which was to look pretty, though it cost her own life. In this eye opening poem “Barbie Doll”, Marge Piercy gives a great representation of how society’s view affects a young woman’s self-image using similes, gruesome symbols, and strong irony.
In Marge Piercy’s poem she states “ She was healthy, tested intelligent, possessed strong arms and back, abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity.” If a young lady possesses all of these things then why would she not feel that she was up to par? How could intelligence and capability not be enough for this girl who was obviously a well rounded individual? The idea of what her classmate thought about her appearance caused feelings of inferiority, because in our society everything truly seems to surround physical beauty. When you are beautiful you have more opportunities, you receive more attention, and it is suggested that you live a better life. Thi...
Fashion is Damaging Women Fashion is a constantly changing industry; what is trendy one day is outdated the next. The 21st century has been a catalyst for a large movement in fashion. Paris, New York, and London are some of the main contributors to the fashion industry (“Fashion Capitals”). Along with being the main influences in fashion, they have significantly connected the world on a global level. Even on a local level, students and young adults indulge in fashion as a way to express themselves.
It was very common to have a Barbie doll growing up, and it wasn’t just a toy, it was a representation of a “perfect life”. From dream houses, to boats, cars, a perfect boyfriend to exiting careers, Barbie had the perfect life. Barbie had the perfect lifestyle AND the perfect body, long legs, small waist and a curvy chest. This taught children from a very young age that having a boyfriend, a career, a house and a petite body is very important. (Worldpress 2011). Barbie’s “attention has been generated by the secondary role she plays in popular culture the artifact of female representation” (Wright 2003). Barbie isn’t just a toy, she mimics
Her poem, “Barbie Doll,” tells the story of a young girl who was short-lived. She was beaten down by society's expectations of what she should be. The poem was a major eye-opener for many, especially considering the time period it was written in. It helped to put the inappropriate and materialistic standards that women continued to be held up to on full display. It broadcasts the effects of these insane standards with an uncensored, real and raw approach.
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” Martin Luther King Jr. knew it was better to speak up than to stay quiet. This is a lesson that needs to be taught throughout both middle schools and high schools. All around the world, suicide rates are going up, and most of these cases relate back to bullying. The children often do not say anything because they are afraid the bullying will only get worse. When nothing changes, they are driven to suicide to relieve the pain that they are feeling. As Marge Piercy examines in “Barbie Doll,” students are picked on for being or looking different than others. No matter what type of bullying it may be, it hurts people more than they are willing to let on. All forms of bullying, whether it be in schools, physical, verbal, or online, have an impact on teen suicide ideation.
In the beginning of “Barbie Doll”, pleasurable and unpleasurable imagery is given so that the reader can see the extremes girls go through to be considered perfect.
Those perfect days as a child when your countless days were filled with playtime. The time to set up those houses and dress the dolls up, and act out the future. “Through their play Barbara imagined their lives as adults. They used the dolls to reflect the adult world around them. They would sit and carry on conversations, making the dolls real people” (Ruth Handler). As a young child, it is all you look forward to in your future: being successful and confident, loved and cherished. Many dolls were used to project this. Specifically, the Barbie. Barbie is a positive role model girl should look up to for confidence and inspiration. She is a talented and educated career woman, self-sufficient in every aspect of her life, and a stunning example to young girls the body that is healthy and fit.
Barbie, a doll manufactured by Mattel, Inc., encourages an unrealistic body image, racial insensitivity, and contradictive goals, and it is having a negative influence on young girls everywhere. Launched in March 1959 by Ruth Handler, an American business woman and president of Mattel, Inc., Barbie quickly became popular and has gone on to sell three dolls every second, in over one hundred and fifty countries. However, Barbie’s rise to success has not been wholly positive – there have been numerous controversies, parodies, and lawsuits, all addressing a number of issues. One such issue is how Barbie promotes an unrealistic and unobtainable body image. For example, to scale, Barbie is five feet, nine inches tall, has a thirty six inch chest, eighteen inch waist, and thirty three inch hips. Had Barbie been a real person, she would not be able to walk, much less hold her head up. Secondly, Barbie is racially insensitive and perpetuates stereotypes. “Mexico Barbie,” from Barbie’s “ethnic” line, comes with a passport and a Chihuahua, as well as stereotypical red lace ribbons in her hair. Lastly, Barbie portrays goals that are both unobtainable and contradictive. Barbie has had a variety of careers, such as being a doctor, astronaut, and President of the United States, but also engages in stereotypical domestic activities, such as cleaning and baking. These characteristics are affecting young girls in a time when they are most developmentally susceptible, and teaching them a number of negative lessons.
In “Barbie Doll,” by Marge Piercy, the speaker’s tone is remorsefully cautionary because she aims to protect females from the societal standards that caused the female subject of the poem to commit suicide. Early in the poem, the speaker illustrates the teen prior to her death: “She was healthy, tested intelligent, / possessed strong arms and back, / abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity” (7-9). Clearly, the girl had the potential to be very successful, as a result of her many natural gifts. However, she was constantly harassed and nagged because she had a “great big nose and fat legs” (6). Even though she had all the attributes of a very successful woman, she was still abused by her fellow classmates because she did not uphold the societal
“Everybody feels like an outcast because the world is so large and every fingerprint is so vastly different from one another and yet all these standards and beliefs, and dogmatic systems of judgment and ranking in almost all the societies of the world” -Ezra Miller. All around us, cliches and standards are seen throughout culture. This is because judgment is a constant challenge in today's society. If one dress, acts or plays out of the considered normal, then those people are put into rankings and are distanced from everyone else. In today’s world, the experience of being an outcast is universal.