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The Good the Bad and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Us
Barbies influence on society
The Good the Bad and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Us
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The Ultimate Babe in Toyland
As I walked down the aisle with my niece I felt as though I had fallen into a bottle of Pepto Bismal when in fact we were only in the Barbie section of the local toy store. There were hundreds of pink boxes with the 11 and ¾ inch doll in them. I was instantly brought back to my childhood and the hours that I spent playing with this timeless toy. Amazement arose because the tradition of this toy has survived for so many years.
Ruth Handler a co-founder of Mattel, invented Barbie in 1959, when she noticed her daughter playing with paper dolls imagining them to be different people who were working, swimming, and playing with friends. Barbie got her name from Handler’s daughter Barbara. Ken, Barbie’s boyfriend was created in 1960, and was named after Handler’s son. In 1963, Midge, Barbie’s best friend was created and in 1964, Barbie’s sister, Skipper, was created.
She’s tall, slim, and beautiful. She has a smile that never ceases, a body that never ages, and a wardrobe that every woman dreams of. With these great qualities under her belt Barbie has become the most popular selling woman in the world. From ”Sponge-N-Print,” “Make-up” and “Doctor” Barbie to one hundred-piece gift sets and fashion play cards to “Birthday Fun at McDonald’s” and Barbie’s “Baywatch” Rescue Boat, it could be concluded that this is no ordinary toy. She is a timeless creation who does more than smile and look pretty.
In a journey through the sea of pink she is known as every...
For starters the title, “Barbie Doll” holds a meaning. It symbolizes the ideal figure of a female body. Society creates this ideal that is embed into every century. It is never ending. It is intended that she must have the twig like arms and legs, the minuscule waist and nose,
Prager uses both expressive and persuasive modes in her essay. Her own flavors to this essay express her own frustrations with the ?men? that created Barbie dolls. In truth, Barbie was not created by Jack Ryan. Barbie was created by Ruth Handler. Handler sensed that it was just as important for girls to imagine what they themselves might grow up to become as adult women. In paragraph 2, Prager suggests in her essay that Barbie was fashioned after a man?s dream date with her tiny waist, large bust and feet made for stiletto heels.
Think of an iconic figure with killer curves and a wardrobe most women would die for? Many names may pop through your mind. Kate Moss? Gisele? Naomi Campbell? Now let's narrow it down a bit more. How about a woman who was also a former news anchor, UNICEF Summit Diplomat, Presidential candidate, and astronaut? The only girl who fits all of these descriptions is Barbie Millicent Roberts, a fair skinned blonde standing at 11 1/2 inches. Since Barbie's debut, she's been reproduced by the billions to meet the never ending demand. Even after 50 years she’s still flying off of toy-store shelves. Two Barbie dolls sell every second, and Mattel’s worldwide sales of Barbie top $1.5 billion every year. The company estimates that 90 percent of U.S. girls between the ages of 3 and 10 own at least one dolls. These numbers indicate that Barbie is still a big part of our culture and lives, and although controversy surrounds her at every step, she still manages to be a well known, sought after woman. Let's delve into the history of how this woman came to be.
“If Barbie was designed by a man, suddenly a lot of things made sense to me,” says Emily Prager in her essay “Our Barbies, Ourselves” (Prager 354). Prager’s purpose for writing this essay is to explain the history of Barbie and how the doll itself has influenced and continue to influence our society today. Prager is appealing to the average girl, to those who can relate to the way she felt growing up with Barbie seen as the ideal woman. Emily Prager uses a constant shift between a formal and informal tone to effectively communicate her ideas that we view women today based upon the unrealistic expectations set forth by Barbie. By adopting this strategy she avoids making readers feel attacked and therefore
The Barbie is a plastic, man-made female toy, which has perfect facial symmetry, unnatural body dimensions, and perfectly unblemished white skin. In Chris Semansky’s Overview of “Barbie Doll,” he explains that the Barbie “is invented to show women have been socialized into thinking of their bodies and behavior in relation to a male-controlled idea” (Semansky). The title directly alludes to the Barbie toy, which represents a design of a man-made construction of the female image that shows an unnatural human form that could only exist inside the imagination of men. Throughout both “Barbie Doll” and “The Birthmark” you will find the female protagonists seeking an ultimately perfect form, free of the characteristics that those around them see as unworthy. It is as if they are chasing the blueprint of perfection that is present in the Barbie. The original Barbie came with three outfits a bathing suit, a tennis outfit, and a wedding dress (Semansky). Her outfits clearly symbolize restrictions forced on female privilege, identity, and autonomy, where “she embodies the ideals and values of her middle-class American community” who expect her to “spend her days at the country club and her afternoons cooking dinner for her husband” (Semansky). This is directly similar to the “outfits” those around the women in “Barbie Doll” where the girlchild is born
In 1945, Ruth and Eliott Handler founded Mattel – one of Americas leading manufacturing companies of today. The idea for the Barbie doll was conceived when Ruth watched her daughter play with adult paper dolls. She noticed the importance of being able to change the doll's clothes, and decided to create a three-dimensional fashion doll, naming her Barbie after Barbara (her daughter). At the time, the toy market was dominated by baby dolls and toddler dolls. Barbie was a new conception that became a worldwide hit. Since her debut in 1959, Barbie has remained one of the most popular toys of all time. There are two Barbie's sold every second, and more than one billion dolls have been sold around the world (Maine, 2000, cited in Slayen, 2011).
90% of girls ages three through ten owned at least one Barbie doll. Ruth Handler’s idea for children to live there adult fantasies through a toy, came to life in a tall beautiful blonde doll. Barbra Millicent Roberts, or Barbie for short was named after Handlers daughter. Barbie was originally molded after the European Lilli doll that was made to be a gag gift, but Handler transformed this idea into so much more. The first Barbie doll was created in 1959, changing the toy making industry forever. This simple idea turned into a massive success. The sponsor of the phenomenon was Mattel Inc. founded by Ruth Handler and her Husband. Ruth Handler’s original idea of Barbie was revolutionary due to the many impacts on society this small doll created.
Because girls are impressionable at all ages, Barbie targets young girls to fantasize about being perfect. Girls look at Barbie and believe they can obtain all of her attributes, while in reality that would be impossible. Having a goal to be an astronaut or pediatrician seems probable at young ages, but the image of Barbie and all of her successes are never a result of schooling, hardships, or any stresses that would face them today. A fantasy world is built up and is deemed probable because of the one-sided point of view of Barbie. Slumber Party Barbie was introduced in 1965 and came with a bathroom scale permanently set at 110 lbs with a book entitled: ‘How to Lose Weight” with directions inside simply stating ‘Don’t eat.’
In the short story "Barbie-Q,” by Sandra Cisneros, the young girls didn't mind they did not receive other things such as new Barbie's or Ken Barbie's and the friends to go along with the dolls (206). These girls were just happy to play with their own dolls. The girls have bonded with each other and they enjoy playing with each other's dolls. A doll brings two or more children together for fun and social entertainment. Have you ever listened to a child frequently you will hear a child say " so what” that means the child really don't care, it don't matter; nothing else mattered to the two little girls. In the short story "Barbie-Q,” by Sandra Cisneros to purchase a brand new Barbie doll meant that the dolls are expensive in the store so the girls are very happy and pleased to own a second hand Barbie. When the parent places the dolls in the child's hands the dolls take on the character of the owner's beauty; culture; how girls see themselves and the future when the kids are all grown up. Barbie is a fun toy to dress up. Each child has her or his own imagination of a Barbie doll. I, too, myself, like watching all the different cultural background Barbie dolls in the malls or Macy's Department Store around Christmas times. Most large department stores dress
Stone, Tanya Lee. The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Us. New York: Penguin Group, 2010. Print.
According to Lisa Belkin, Barbie is good for society because she’s fun to play with and she encourages little girls to use their imagination and dream big. Many young girls who play with Barbie dolls have realized that she is just a doll. Some of these little girls don’t have the desire to look like Barbie; they just think Barbie is just a doll that they play with and leave them everywhere. At a young age girls are given their first Barbie doll and thought what “perfect” should be. Barbie portrays the perfect image and life. Not only is Barbie tall, skinny, and beautiful, she has all the luxurious accessories to match her perfect life. To go along with her perfect life she is accompanied with the perfect boyfriend, family and dream house.At a young age girls are also being influenced by this doll, what they should look like, and what kind of life they sgould lead. Young girls strive to achieve this look which is life threatening to obtain. Regardless to the changes they made to Barbie, she is still far from real. Little girls that are mature enough don’t strive to look like Barbie because she’s just a plastic doll.(Debate.org, 9). According to “The Intentions behind the creation of Barbie”, Barbie dolls ...
One day, as Ruth Handler watched her daughter play with paper dolls, she noticed that often the dolls were put into adult scenarios, such as grocery shopping, working, et cetera (“The Creation of Barbie”). As most dolls in this era, the 1950’s, were either babies or small children, Handler got an idea: what if she created an adult doll (“The Creation of Barbie”)? So, she drew up a design for one, and she named her Barbie, after her daughter, Barbara (“The Creation of Barbie”). Then, in 1959, Mattel, a huge and very popular toy company, picked up the idea (“The Creation of Barbie”). Barbie made her first appearance in New York, at the annual toy fair (“The Creation of Barbie”). That year, 351,000 Barbie dolls were sold, which was a sales record in America (“The Creation of Barbie”). Today, Barbie continues to be the most popular doll in the world, with two sold every minute (“The Creation of Barbie”).
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.
It may seem trivial and go unnoticed to most, but by assigning Barbie a real career, people are able to identify with and recognize her. The marketers also provide Barbie with a life other than modeling, such as friends and a home. The Ken doll, which is commonly known as Barbie’s boyfriend, makes her appear more real to the audience. Girls are able to identify with the idea of a boyfriend, which makes the notion of Barbie seem more realistic and desirable. The same idea is applied to the many friends Barbie has been accompanied by over the years. Lastly, and perhaps most famously, Barbie, like almost all of the girls who play with her, have a home. The Barbie Dream House is just another clever way her marketing team has presented her to society as a real person. Humanizing Barbie, and portraying her in such a manner makes her more attractive to potential buyers. The girls who engage in play with dolls do not want merely a doll; they desire something they can relate to and envision in the real world. Imaginative play is a large portion of childhood, and the ability for children to posses a doll like Barbie , who represents a real person in society, is extremely valuable. The use of social constructionism in the marketing of products such as Barbie is both brilliant and effective.
“Today, we are going to the toy store”, my mom proclaimed. Those words, though very rare, were magic to my ears. Magic, is what was awaiting me behind the doors of the toy store. I ran inside, the terrain somewhat unfamiliar, but worth exploring. The selves upon selves seemed so massive, towering over my little frame. The smell of delicately packaged boxes aroused by eagerness. The sounds of children’s footsteps, pitter-pattering about, muffled my hearing. Each footstep I made, closer to my destination, overshadowed by the immense blank of the floor. Alas, my kid radar peaked, and I found the aisle of treasures. A sea of pink paradise lay in front of me. My hands moist, ready to explore the blank. This sacred place was pure utopia; a fantasy land of escape; a place where all remnants of my life no longer existed. I was in Barbie land, surrounded by a copious selection of pink boxes. I, by innate nature I’m sure, reached for the box that held the most beautiful specimen I ever saw. She had blonde hair that flowed so gracefully. Her eyes of blue sparkled through the box. Then, that is when it happened. My mom slapped my hand, “Pick the Barbie that mostly looks like you”, she demanded. I was confused for a mere second. My eyes wandered to the lower shelf, where the black Barbie, marked on discount hung. The black Barbie appeared unsalable, no competition to the beauty