Marlni Jackson Bad Toys

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.

3. Barbie dolls came into existence in 1959. During that time all dolls were infant dolls and Ruth Handler creator of the barbie dolls saw that “children will enjoy giving the Barbie adult roles” because it is different than playing with infant dolls. It has evolved over time, due to the improving technology, the dolls these days look very realistic. The social impact it has made is that it gives children a chance to play with more advanced toys and gives them the ability to admire Barbie’s achievements through her various career

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

Young girls have been playing with Barbie dolls since the dolls inception at the American International Toy Fair in New York. Recently, researchers have been skeptical on whether the dolls have an effect on the self-image of girls who play with them. In order to determine if Barbies have an impact on young-girls self-concept, clinicians have carried out several studies where they monitor the interaction between the young girls and the famous figurine. From these experiments, scientists concluded that Barbies can have a bearing on a girls self-image, making the consumers who buy the doll more aware of the issue Barbie

Barbie has been the face that many girls all over the world have looked up to for 50 plus years. Since her debut in 1959, she has undergone so minor design changes and has even added a couple of friends. There were a few authors who wrote articles and poems about Barbie. Among the authors, Hilary Tham who wrote a poem called Barbie Shoes. Tham did mention some prejudices with Barbie shoes that can be compared to today’s society. She used words such as “useless” and “mismatch” which could detail that most Americans put things down in the basement to preserve for their children and grandchildren. Although Barbie shoes are “useless” and “mismatch” they still reintroduce newcomers with a like spark from the old shoes but go buy new Barbie shoes

As I was on the hunt for the perfect gift for an 8 year old’s birthday, I discovered the doll market is quite different than my coming of age. Undoubtedly, Barbie is still problematic, but now she has competitors, including Bratz, and Monster High dolls, who are noticeably thinner than barbie and dressed up to look like grown women getting ready for a night of clubbing than a game of tennis. As I pick up the first doll box, I find a doll chained up in a slither of clothing with a blank expression on her face, a prominent thigh gap, with the tagline “GREAT for girls ages 5 and up!” By all means, I never imagined in my life that I would miss Barbie. For that reason, I begin to sit myself down in the toy aisle to start googling everything I could about these dolls on my

Children’s child play has become a form of an unrealistic world. Although, it is considered for children to begin creating a creative imagination, the mind fascinates children into toys. Some child’s play toys are not ideal for young children, like the one and only “Barbie”. Barbie has become a worldwide toy product for children all over the world, from the North Pole to the South Pole. These dolls have emerged from one ethnicity to another. In Ann DuCille, “Dyes and Dolls: Multicultural Barbie and the Merchandising of Differences” the author talks about the race and gender differences; found in Barbie. She argues; “Is Barbie bad?” her response, was “Barbie is just a piece of plastic” (459). In contrast, this piece of plastic is not just a piece of plastic to young girls; it is much more than that. A piece of plastic that little girls all over the world wish they could be. Even though, it is only a piece of plastic to adults that Barbie significantly means nothing to them. Growing up, I owned a couple of Barbie dolls. The tall, long blond hair, blue-eyed doll was my best friend and my “role model”. I wanted to become exactly like Barbie. As a child, I thought only beautiful people who looked liked Barbie signified beauty. To my little to no knowledge, I soon came to find out no one really looks like Barbie, except people who want to become like Barbie. In my adolescent years, no one taught me Barbie was “unreal”; no one taught me it was just a figure in my imagination.

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 the short story “Hill like White Elephants’, the poem “Barbie Doll”, and the drama of “Trifles” all deal with the struggles that women face. Breaking down these issues helps to give a clear plan on how to not just survive, but to thrive at being a woman. The Barbie Doll is an iconic figure in the toy industry. According to “Barbie” by Sara Pendergast, the average girl between the ages of three to 11 owns ten Barbie dolls.

Why have America's perceptions of Barbie changed since 1959? Introduction //summary of the entire paper Barbie is a well-known doll from Mattel that has achieved worldwide fame in its lifetime of over 50 years(Barbiemedia.com, 2009). Its impact has been commented on by many professionals both economically as well as its impact on society mentally.

The message the ever so popular Barbie doll has been trying to push to children all over the world has varied in a way over the years. In 1959, when Barbie was first released, it was all about the ‘girly’ barbie and how women should look like and what they have to do, kids were playing with a doll that had an ideal body and expectations barbie put in their minds were intangible. Barbie’s image has changed overs the years in effort to keep up with the change in pop culture. In the 1960’s, Barbie wore designer clothes and took most of her inspiration from the First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, as well as wearing mini skirts and white go-go boots. During the 1970’s Barbies attire was very much fitting for the glitz and glamour of the decade.

At the beginning, the author addresses the issue that children do not play with the toy to imply the cavity and innocence in their childhood. However, with the development of the story as well as the time, children grow up and become adults. They do not care about the fantasies, mysteries and stories about toys because Gaiman indicate that they are trapped in the dullness of life and losing the innocence. This structure brings out a contrast of people. Death and age have already taken over their lives and the memories of childhood. Life is used to be colourful, joyful and imaginative, but it becomes a boring, depressed and vacuous one. This reflects how the time shaped their mind and force them to forget the happiness they used to have,

Society is known for holding unrealistic expectations and the pressures put on women through gender roles and stereotyping. Marge Piercy’s “Barbie Doll” is no exception, “Barbie Doll” is the story of a young girl who try’s endlessly for society’s version of perfection, but she dies trying to reach the unrealistic expectations that she is being force fed. Marge Piercy published “Barbie Doll” in 1971, during the time of second-wave feminism. The history and dedication that many women contributed during this time affected the way our society is today. The feminist movement is largely related to Marge Piercy’s literature. The purpose of “Barbie Doll” is to display how society is the issue and never the person. Marge

Since the beginning of time, toys have often been an indicator of the way a society behaves, and how they interact with their children. For example, in ancient Greece, artifacts recovered there testify that children were simply not given toys to play with as in the modern world. The cruel ritual of leaving a sick child on a hillside for dead, seems to indicate a lack of attention to the young (Lord 16). The same is true of today’s society. As you can see with the number of toy stores in our society, we find toys of great value to our lives and enjoy giving them to children as gifts. Ask just about any young girl what she wants for Christmas and you’ll undoubtedly get the same answer: “A Barbie.” But what exactly has caused

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.