Comparing Poems 'Richard Cory And Barbie Doll'

The way our culture has a tendency to view other individuals by there appearance will probably never change. In some way everyone has it set in his or her mind what makes a person "perfect". These characteristics include personal appearance, wealth and intelligence. We do not always get the chance to get to know a person, but rather make assumptions. Two poems, which reveal different perceptions of someone, include Richard Cory and The Barbie Doll.

Both of these works seem to correlate with the overall theme of suicide. The poem, “Suicide Note”, reflects on the tragedy of certain cultures where women are so degraded and devalued that they

When reading a story, people do not often think about how much it might relate to another story they have read in the past. In “The Birthmark” Georgiana simply wants her unique birthmark removed from her face. Similarly, in “Barbie Doll” the unnamed young lady wants her nose and legs removed. In both of these stories the reader can see that these women are chasing society’s idea of perfection. The short story “The Birthmark” written by Nathaniel Hawthorne and the poem “Barbie Doll” written by Marge Piercy have almost the exact same theme because both of these short works of fiction are about a woman that is influenced by her peers to become

“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,

The hardships the young girl faces ultimately leads to her death, which Piercy describes as an "happy ending" (Piercy 25). This seems ironic because death is not something to be considered joyful, especially when one is being bullied and cast out of society. It is also ironic because everyone finally thinks she is pretty once she is dead: "Doesn't she look pretty? everyone said" (Piercy 23). It is horrible to think that it takes a tragedy, such as death, to get everyone to stop and pay attention to someone who was not accepted in society. This poem has a negative tone because of the extreme measures that this girl takes in order to be accepted by society, even if that means taking her own

Jane has gotten used to cruelty and biased behavior towards her average looks, and develops a miserable self-esteem that believes the only possible way to describe her exterior is “plain”. This self-esteem prevents her from even beginning to recognize that anyone could appreciate her or find her beautiful in any manner. The society’s typical reactions and judgments shaped Jane’s self-esteem, and prevented her from receiving equal treatment as that of a beautiful woman.

Can one risk their life to meet the society’s idea of visual appearance stereotype? Society’s pressure can make a person can do whatever it takes to fit in with people in the society. The exact same idea is reflected in the poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy. The Narrative poem “Barbie Doll” tells the story of a little innocent Barbie doll. The Barbie doll experiences changes to her body because of puberty. The little girl is forced by society to change her body to fit in with other people. The narrative poem “Barbie Doll” the character description, imagery, and tone reveals the theme that society’s pressure to meet visual appearance standards, can cause tragic events.

Marge Percy “Barbie Doll” is a social commentary about the demanding pressures that the mass media produces about how women should look like and what type of body they should have. Women in the 1970s faced high standards and these standards still go on to this day. These high demands lead women to go above and beyond to meet standards that society has placed upon them. Some of these drastic measures can lead to consequences. In “Barbie Doll” the main character decided to undergo plastic surgery to fix her “big nose” and “fat legs”. Unfortunately she ended up dying in her struggle to meet the standard that the media has placed on her at an exceptionally young age. Her untimely death is a symbol and the theme of the poem that these women will work themselves to death to meet societies demands and most of the time it is all for nothing. All this women wanted was people to accept the way she looked and not critique her looks and it was not until her funeral day, when it no longer mattered, that she finally got that acceptance.

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 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.

From the time they are born, girls are influenced by society as to who they should be, how they should look, and how they should act. Americans believe that women should be to a certain standard; pretty, feminine, and especially, thin. The pressures derive from family, media, and friends. Marge Piercy’s poem, “Barbie Doll” depicts a girl who was never recognized for her character and spent her life trying to be accepted for who she was, rather than how she looked.

“ideals are developmentally ingrained in children and adolescents”( Englis 1). The idea of beauty and ideal looks are engraved into people at a young age. The little girl being given a Barbie doll shows this in the poem. The idea of beauty and how a woman should act are represented in the Barbie doll. The primary take away is beauty is not everything.

In the poem, "Richard Cory" by Edwin Arlington Robinson and the poem, "Glass Ceiling" by T.R. Hummer both poets create a scenario in which portrays the act of shielding oneself and others from reality for social reasons and in my opinion, the both poems have similarities. Not only do they have similarities, but differences as well. Some similarities consist of both authors using characters that pass away and also characters that convey the same message. The main difference are the type of characters involved, in "Richard Cory" Richard Cory was someone who masked his identity and was sad in the end, but in "Glass Ceiling" the mother is the one who mask her identity and in the end was an outgoing person