Rebellion In Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll

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“Drugs are a waste of time. They destroy your memory and your self-respect and everything that goes along with with your self-esteem. They're no good at all,” (Cobain) Drugs are referring to the opinions of others. They take over our mind and we become addicted, which is the opposite of “being yourself.” In the 21st century, other’s words can make or break a person. Other’s words can lead to self confidence or self deprecation, depending on how you take the words. Other people’s opinions are created based off of social pressure and stereotypes. What we think of ourselves does not matter as much as how we want to be seen due to social pressure and stereotypes in our lives. In the 21st century, we’re shown as the ideas and theories of others. Although someone may not know everything about us, they will still assume or identity and past. In the poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Pierce, the author shows that this figure was told to live her life in the way of stereotypes. Doing this to the figure, she started to lose everything about her. It stated, “She was advised to play coy, exhorted to come on hearty, exercise, diet, smile and wheedle. Her good

“Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy is about a girl who is a normal child growing up; playing with dolls, miniature kitchen items and pretend make-up. It quickly takes an interesting turn when a pubescent child makes fun of her nose and legs and she was advised to exercise and diet despite the fact that she was intelligent and healthy. The poem continues on by the girl cutting her legs and nose and a bizarre visual of her laying in a casket with an ending that states “to every woman a happy ending”( Piercy 791). This poem was written by Piercy in 1969 a year in which many women liberation groups were forming and the breaking of womanly roles was taking place. The poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy,

Negative self-image among women has been a struggle in society for a long period of time. Social media, magazines, and the pressures of society has caused many young girls to feel bad about themselves because they do not look like the clothing model on the runway or the bathing suit model on the front of a magazine. Females grow up with the pressures of having to be in shape, wearing the best clothes, and putting on a full face of makeup for a male to find them attractive. Society has deemed that only "fit" women are beautiful, and that idea has caused women to harm themselves, develop anorexia, and feel insecure of themselves daily. Two works of literature that discuss the struggles women face from society is Marge Piercy's poem "Barbie Doll"

She points out the stereotypes of young girls growing up with toys that are similar to what older women do. With that being said, the girlchild is already being forced into adulthood. Like any other little girl, girlchild is getting what she may every girl dreams of. As she gets older and develops into puberty, kids from her school notice that her body is developing. What may seem normal to her, isn’t normal to other children around her “Then in magic of puberty, a classmate said/ you have a great big nose and fat legs” (5-6).

   An underlying theme in A Doll's House, by Henrik Ibsen, is the rebellion against social expectations to follow what one believes in their heart. This theme is demonstrated as several of the play's characters break away from the social norms of their time and act on their own beliefs. No one character demonstrates this better than Nora.  Nora rebels against social expectations, first by breaking the law, and later by taking the drastic step of abandoning her husband and children.

The poem I have chosen is “Barbie Doll”, composed by Marge Piercy. The reasoning behind my decision is the message conveyed throughout the text and the form in which it was displayed. The author created a phenomenal work, by incorporating literary and sound devices such as rhyming couplets, assonances, free verses, imagery and symbolism. The poem presented the superficial expectations of society and the pressure of young female children to attain that certain perfection. The poem begins as a fairytale with the lines, “This girlchild was born as usual/and presented dolls that did pee-pee/and miniature GE stoves and irons/and wee lipsticks the color of cherry candy” (Piercy 1-4).

The poem, "Barbie Doll," written by Marge Piercy tells the story of a young girl growing up through the adolescence stage characterized by appearances and barbarity. The author uses imagery and fluctuating tone to describe the struggles the girl is experiencing during her teenage years, and the affects that can happen. The title of this poem is a good description of how most societies expect others, especially girls to look. Constantly, people are mocked for their appearance and expected to represent a "barbie-doll"-like figure. Few are "blessed" with this description. The female gender is positioned into the stereotype that women should be thin and beautiful. With this girl, the effects were detrimental. The first stanza describes the

In the first stanza, “This girlchild was born as usual,” (1, 1), the reader learns that the girl was born like any other normal child and the following lines show that the girl child was “presented dolls that did pee-pee/ and miniature GE stoves and iron,” (1, 2-3). These kinds of toys represent the type of work woman are expected to do during this era. Take care of children, cook, and iron. They are also supposed to look good, as they are given lipsticks and makeup to play with. The girl soon experiences puberty and becomes self-conscious of herself when a classmate says, “You have a great big nose and fat legs,” (1, 6). This is when the girl begins to question her appearance.

From the start the girlchild was given gifts that stained in her mind as what she was suppose to become in life. With the little dolls, GE stoves and irons, and lipstick her parents put this ideal image of the perfect woman in her head. With these types of presents the girlchild is already learning her role in society.

The Poem “Barbie Doll (1969)” by Marge Piercy describes the life of a young girl who fell victim to society’s idea of beauty. Marge Piercy was a known social activist and uses this poem to bring attention to serious issues facing young females in society. “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy is a narrative poem; the poem is written in free verse. The author selects a free form of poetry and other devices to help get her point across.

“Girl” is a short story in which the author, Jamaica Kincaid, unofficially presents the stereotypes of girls in the mid 1900s. Kincaid includes two major characters in the story “Girl”, they are the mother and the girl. Although the daughter only asks two questions in this story, she is the major character. The mother feels like her daughter is going in the wrong direction and not making the best decisions in her life. The whole story is basically the mother telling her daughter what affects her decisions will have in the future. The mother believes that because her daughter isn’t sitting, talking, cleaning, walking or singing correctly it will lead her to a path of destruction. “Girl” is a reflection of female sexuality, the power of family, and how family can help overcome future dangers.

The poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy in relation to diversity alludes to specific aspects of gender, mainly targeting the female gender perspective and expectations. In the poem, Piercy is writing about a young girl transitioning from a child to a women and how society and its idea of beauty affects her. My interpretation of the poem is that the girl is basically crying out for help saying look I am healthy, intelligent, and strong but no one sees or cares about those things because the only thing they see when they look at her is her outside appearance and what society considers to be the flaws that she possesses. Although this was written in 1936 Piercy accurately describes the feeling of being defined or constricted by society to think, act, and look a particular way which is similar to that of todays society which is fueled by social media, where some find personal gratification and self confidence fueled from likes and retweets they receive.” Barbie doll “ is the perfect title for this poem because for the longest time a Barbie was a sign of something perfect and beautiful, a toy enjoyed by everyone and a conventional symbol for little girls all over the United States. Similarly the girl was conforming to be sort of like the Barbie doll in a way because of societal expectations and the want to be viewed in a particular light by ones peers.