Barbie Draft 3

Owning a Barbie doll is almost considered a right of passage for a young girl. Even I, someone who despised playing with dolls due to my lack of imagination, owned various Barbie dolls, Princess Jasmine Barbie being my favorite. Now, there are countless different Barbies: Malibu Barbie, Superstar Barbie, Fashion Model Barbie, Halloween Barbie. But where is the Aerospace Engineer Barbie? Or Accountant Barbie? And why has Barbie been slowly becoming skinnier and skimpier than when she was originally created in 1959. Barbie has transformed into the most attractive piece of plastic you can find in order to appeal to possible customers. But why does a doll for girl need to be found attractive to the male eye? This is because even young girls under the age of five have been trained to want and be what is found appealing to men. Society has been built around the male perspective and Barbie’s image is only one of infinite examples.

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One striking piece of evidence of the altering male gaze can be seen through the evolution from the original Barbie and the current doll seen today. Barbie has dropped a few pounds but somehow also managed to grow bigger hips and a larger behind. If Barbie were life size, her dimensions would equate to a height of 5’9, weighing 110 pounds, and having a waits of 18 inches. Basically, as the male’s perspective of the ideal woman’s body has changed, she has as well in order to fit their standards. And as a result, so has the perspective of millions of little girls across the country. Barbie also has spiced up her wardrobe by showing a lot more skin. For example, why is it necessary for Barbie to wear short shorts and knee-high boots for Halloween? Their obvious sexuality objectifies women and sends messages about the proper roles and behavior for woman to girls as young as two years old. This Barbie holds a powerful influence over a child as one of her first toys. Young girls look at Barbies and believe this is what they will one day grow up to look like. However, Barbie fails to portray real women in our society that work hard for a living and come in all shapes and sizes.

However, there are a great variety of Barbies from an Astronaut Barbie to a Basketball Barbie. You name it, there’s probably a Barbie that does it. But if you look at the Astronaut Barbie you may notice that not only is her space suit a bright pink color, but it also rips off to become a skirt so she can dance around once she arrives on the foreign planet (as seen on the commercial from the eighties). Rather than researching or exploring on the new world, she breaks out in a dancing sequence. This is a prime example of how even the Barbies that appear to be pursuing some higher profession, are made to somehow fit the role a male would find more suitable for a woman. The first African American Barbie was created in 1967, called “Colored Francie”. However, she causes controversy because she was constructed of the original Francie doll mold just with dark skin, rather than holding any African American features. Once again, in 1980 the “Black Barbie” was made, also avoiding any black features. It was not until 2009 that the first line of Barbies was made to depict Black women in a realistic light. This failure to properly represent all women within our culture represents the manipulation of the male gaze and it’s large influence on everything down to our children’s toys.