Literary Analysis Of Marge Piercy 's ' Barbie Doll ' And ' A Work Of Artifice '

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.

In The Barbie Doll, the author writes about a girl' s life. The author starts off by describing her childhood. She was given dolls and toys like any other girl and she also wore hints of lipstick. This girl was healthy and rather intelligent. Even though she had possessed many good

This is an example of Cisneros childhood and wanted the reader of this short story to understand that growing up with little wasn’t always the worst (Frever 126). While at the flea market the two young girls finally get what they wanted the most, they end up getting all the Barbies they ever could want. This occurs when a warehouse full of barbies burnt down and somewhere salvageable after. The two girls are incredibly excited about their “new dolls”. However, the dolls aren’t in the best condition. One the girls go on to say that they smelled like “smoke” and were “soaked” in water (Cite). The two girls are described by Cisneros in this situation as grateful for getting these “new” dolls (Cite) . Also she wanted the reader to understand and take in that society wants women to have a perfect body, clothes and hair, which is conveyed through the description of the dolls not being in the condition they were bought in. Cisneros wanted to demonstrate throughout “Barbie-Q” the ideal image of women in society. By exposing the fact of being materialistic and perfect like a Barbie doll isn’t how real young women are. Also by expressing the fact that everyone doesn’t grow up with lots of money and that women come in a

     It is my opinion that Prager has failed in her attempts to persuade the reader that Barbie is a tool created from male fantasy or a poster child for modern feminism. If anything this essay has helped me to realize that Barbie is a combination of both worlds. She is both sexually appealing to men and someone that women can admire and even a toy that little girls can play with and hope to be like when they are older. I still remain adamantly devoted to my Barbie dolls, seeing her as neither temptress or sexually frustrated object.

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

A little girl’s world begins as such a wonderful place. Makeup, dresses, tea parties and prince charming are what little girls dream of. Marge Piercy uses a variety of poetic devises to convey the theme of stereotypes and the struggle girls face is brought to attention in this free verse twenty-five-line, open-form narrative poem titled “Barbie Doll.”

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.”

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.

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.

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.