Gender Norms In Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll

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.

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

It’s ironic that this particular word is used because puberty is actually a stage of emotional crisis’. A hurtful remark was made towards the child, and she was described as having a "big nose and fat legs." The second stanza also begins with the subdued tone mentioning the girls positive aspects, such as being "healthy…intelligent…strong." These specific details are usually related to the male. Once again, the gender characteristics play as an underlying factor. These qualities were not good enough for a woman if they were not beautiful. The stanza then takes a turn like the first turning away from the simplicity. The girl "went to and fro apologizing," while everyone still saw "a fat nose on thick legs." Society places women into the mold where they begin to put on a facade and apologize for their "misfortunes." In the third stanza, the girl was "advised to play coy…(and) smile." Women are once again pressured to act in a way that is unreal, like a "barbie doll." The "fan belt" mention in this stanza is used as imagery to describe how one’s facade can wear out over time, as hers did. She "cut off her nose and her legs," in response to this. The character Nora in "A Doll’s House," is a perfect example of how women are like dolls and do what they are told or what society expects of them. It is only in the last stanza where the girl is dead and has "consummation at last." She is finally given a compliment when someone said,

Just from looking at the title of the poem, we can see that the author believes society's expectations of women are unrealistic. A barbie doll is supposed to be a figure of a “perfect” woman that is tall, skinny, and flawless. This look is obviously unachievable for a human being to accomplish. Barbie dolls are also only given to young girls. They are shown at a young age what they are supposed to look like and how they are supposed to act. This is where girls are first introduced to their female roles in society. A doll is fake and made of plastic, incapable of being intelligent and having a mind of its own. These are the issues that Piercy addresses throughout her poem “Barbie Doll.”

“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.

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"

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.

In Sandra Cisnero’s short story ‘’Barbie-Q,” a Barbie doll is used to portray the author’s inner struggle to achieve perfection, and how her young age and innocence clouds her identity. Throughout the text it is very clear that the author, a young girl, had come from an underprivileged family and faced the issues many families of lower socioeconomic background typically face. In the short story it is also evident that her gender plays a massive role in damaging her self-esteem and confidence, as both the media and the author’s social background have continuously portrayed women as weak, powerless figures. Similarly, in “The Story of an Hour” by Annie Chopin, the protagonist, once again a female figure represented the life of domesticity a woman is expected to hold by society. Although Chopin’s story was written in the late 1800s and “Barbie-Q” is a very modern story, both depict the protagonist females as very helpless, incapable figures that trail after the overpowering men.

“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 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.

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.