How Did Barbie Change American Culture

Launched on March 1959, the Barbie doll is a toy that was first put on display in New York. It quickly garnered a lot of attention with the target audience of the creators, young girls. This doll was different than its previous dolls because it was a doll that was an ideal representation of a woman. Thus allowing young girls to use their imagination to create and act-out what this doll’s life is like and what their future would potentially be. To successfully understand this toy, we must think like C Wright Mills, a sociologist who asks to use our sociological imagination, the intersection of one’s biography and history. This artifact reflects and perpetuates the dominant ideology of how to perform your gender the “right” way in the early 1960s. I will argue this demonstrates West and Zimmerman’s concept of “doing gender” which is clarified with Judith Butler’s concept of socialization of gender.

3. Barbie dolls came into existence in 1959. During that time all dolls were infant dolls and Ruth Handler creator of the barbie dolls saw that “children will enjoy giving the Barbie adult roles” because it is different than playing with infant dolls. It has evolved over time, due to the improving technology, the dolls these days look very realistic. The social impact it has made is that it gives children a chance to play with more advanced toys and gives them the ability to admire Barbie’s achievements through her various career

During the time of development and release of Barbie, the feminist movement was in full swing. The concept that Barbie may have been manufactured as a weapon against these feminist groups is plausible as the image of Barbie exploits the female body and challenges the values held by active feminists. Though, from a slightly different perspective, one could argue that Barbie with her freedoms and luxuries supports the ideals of women's equality and rights. Barbie may have been the transition piece of the decade, setting a new path for women and young girls.

In the essay 'Our Barbies, Ourselves,' Emily Prager explores the history of the Barbie doll and talks about the Barbie doll itself. Prager seems convinced that the Barbie doll was an object created by a man and that Barbie reeks of sexuality, sexual innuendo and serves as the anti-feminist embodiment of every man's fantasy. In her own expressive and persuasive modes to fashion an essay designed to persuade the reader that the Barbie doll is a twisted and corrupt tool designed by men to combat the feminist revolution. Though her attempts at persuasion are commendable, I was not swayed in my opinions on Barbie. If anything, I just found fault with this writer's point of view, and I found her

Young girls have been playing with Barbie dolls since the dolls inception at the American International Toy Fair in New York. Recently, researchers have been skeptical on whether the dolls have an effect on the self-image of girls who play with them. In order to determine if Barbies have an impact on young-girls self-concept, clinicians have carried out several studies where they monitor the interaction between the young girls and the famous figurine. From these experiments, scientists concluded that Barbies can have a bearing on a girls self-image, making the consumers who buy the doll more aware of the issue Barbie

Sandra Cisneros’s short story, “Barbie-Q”, describes the life of a young girl never identified by name and the less-fortunate life she and her family lead. The child explains how new toys are a rare find, but she loves Barbies. While entailing the family’s trip to the local flea market, she and her sister find Barbie dolls with water and smoke damaged. The main girl states the flaws of the Barbie, but counters with the positivity of having any dolls to play with. Through this struggle, however, the girl learns to cope with the gender roles and standards set by her peers and neighbors, particularly for women. Cisneros writes with these ideas in relation to her own childhood, motivated by the social standards of gender roles and body image in relation to the Barbie.

Motz’s asserts that the dolls give young girls the power the essentially be anything they wanted to be though they “reflect traditional, outdated roles for women”. The Barbie doll gives young women the idea that life can be spent with leisure without much effort. Considering the dolls have a different outfit for every task/event and portray a life of luxury, even while working or going to school. Motz’s says that the dolls are a symbol for modern American success which emphasizes “wealth, beauty, popularity and leisure”. The message these dolls convey negatively impact the identities of American women.

As I was on the hunt for the perfect gift for an 8 year old’s birthday, I discovered the doll market is quite different than my coming of age. Undoubtedly, Barbie is still problematic, but now she has competitors, including Bratz, and Monster High dolls, who are noticeably thinner than barbie and dressed up to look like grown women getting ready for a night of clubbing than a game of tennis. As I pick up the first doll box, I find a doll chained up in a slither of clothing with a blank expression on her face, a prominent thigh gap, with the tagline “GREAT for girls ages 5 and up!” By all means, I never imagined in my life that I would miss Barbie. For that reason, I begin to sit myself down in the toy aisle to start googling everything I could about these dolls on my

Children’s child play has become a form of an unrealistic world. Although, it is considered for children to begin creating a creative imagination, the mind fascinates children into toys. Some child’s play toys are not ideal for young children, like the one and only “Barbie”. Barbie has become a worldwide toy product for children all over the world, from the North Pole to the South Pole. These dolls have emerged from one ethnicity to another. In Ann DuCille, “Dyes and Dolls: Multicultural Barbie and the Merchandising of Differences” the author talks about the race and gender differences; found in Barbie. She argues; “Is Barbie bad?” her response, was “Barbie is just a piece of plastic” (459). In contrast, this piece of plastic is not just a piece of plastic to young girls; it is much more than that. A piece of plastic that little girls all over the world wish they could be. Even though, it is only a piece of plastic to adults that Barbie significantly means nothing to them. Growing up, I owned a couple of Barbie dolls. The tall, long blond hair, blue-eyed doll was my best friend and my “role model”. I wanted to become exactly like Barbie. As a child, I thought only beautiful people who looked liked Barbie signified beauty. To my little to no knowledge, I soon came to find out no one really looks like Barbie, except people who want to become like Barbie. In my adolescent years, no one taught me Barbie was “unreal”; no one taught me it was just a figure in my imagination.

In Marge Piercy's "Barbie Doll" a young girl is troubled by the classification of what it takes to become a beautiful woman. "Barbie Doll" details the image that society projects upon women. From an early age young women struggle to conform to the standards that society has defined for them. Beautiful dolls such as Barbie are frequently the first source of association that young girls have with the image that society has placed upon them.

Everyday we see young girls look to idols such as people and even play toys. Such thoughts make young girls feel they are not good enough and to strive to look like a doll a very important topic is slightly broken down in an article written by Cynthia Tucker called Barbie Madness. While she touches on the topic of how kids love their toys such as Barbie dolls, she discusses how obsessed they become in looking like them. However, even though she points out that children look up to Barbies, she turns it back around on the parents, stating that they play a much bigger role in their lives than any toy would. Breaking down the article the writer really shows how children are influenced by their environment, their parents, and how its important to encourage them to be themselves.

In the short story “Hill like White Elephants’, the poem “Barbie Doll”, and the drama of “Trifles” all deal with the struggles that women face. Breaking down these issues helps to give a clear plan on how to not just survive, but to thrive at being a woman. The Barbie Doll is an iconic figure in the toy industry. According to “Barbie” by Sara Pendergast, the average girl between the ages of three to 11 owns ten Barbie dolls.

Since the emergence of the Barbie doll in 1959, Barbie has been a populous choice among young children, and more specifically young girls because of its monopolization of the toy market. Barbie is a doll that has been outwardly controversial and debated upon for years and most likely will be for many years to come. The idea of the Barbie doll is a toy for which young girls model themselves after and aspire to be like when they mature and grow up. DuCille states, “more than simple instruments of pleasure and amusement, toys and games play crucial roles in helping children determine what is valuable in and around

When the dolls were first sold, Mattel used the slogan “We girls can do anything”. Since then it has been joined by similar phrases like “Be anything. Do everything.” and the more recent “What happens when girls are free to imagine they can be anything?” The message that Mattel is trying to push is that young girls will play with the doll, and by doing so will imagine themselves living vicariously through Barbie. There have been many iterations of Barbie, and Mattel proudly flaunts all the various careers that Barbie has had over the decades. Careers that include being an astronaut, firefighter, nurse, teacher, and even the president of the United States. Yet the most popular, perhaps the stereotypical image of Barbie, is the one first

Barbie, at the age of 41, is one of the longest living toys in America. Analyzing her early history can give a person a look into the societal trends and culture of the late 1950's and early 1960's. There is evidence of fashion innovations in Barbie's wardrobe. Also, one can see the perception of females by society, such as what they should look like, how they should act and dress, as well as what their future goals could be. The following essay follows Barbie's history from 1959 to 1963, covering her development, her appeal to children, and her existence as a cultural artifact of the time period.