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The Effects of the Barbie Syndrome
What is the Barbie syndrome ? a question posed by many that glace through the title on the top of this paper As defined by Farlex “The drive, often of adolescent girls, to attain impossible standards of beauty, projected by toys—e. g., Mattel’s Barbie Doll—and the media, resulting in failure and frustration, issues related to body image, eating disorders, and self-image," this is a formal definition of the Barbie syndrome.The people that the Barbie syndrome it effects are widespread and is not inclusive to women this syndrome also affects men to. causing much damage to their mental and physical health. Britannica Encyclopedia states that “Barbie is a plastic doll, 11.9 inches tall, with the figure of an adult woman that was introduced in 1959 by Mattel Inc.”1
The Barbie doll introduced and created by a woman by the name of Ruth Handler in the year 1955. The Barbie was a modifcation a German pornographic doll called Bild Lilli. This doll would forever affect our American youth with its abnormally perfect body. The doll is named after her daughter Barbara Handler now Barbara Handler Segal due to her marriage, the daughter of Ruth handler does not look like Barbie. Alongside the Barbie doll there was also a Ken doll know has Barbie's boyfriend the Ken doll was introduced in 1961 a few years after the Barbie doll. The Barbie effect is an effect that shows how playing with Barbie dolls affected a child's mind by displaying a perfect or so called perfect body the doll now used as a Childs play toy so many women have played with now for fifty years. Many mothers have yet to notice the effect of the Barbie on their children this is due to the innocence that the doll at first glance has this is a hug...
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...omen & Body Image." Adios Barbie. Accessed April 16, 2014. http://www.adiosbarbie.com/feature-articles/multicultural-women-body-image/.
"Is Your Little One On Track? Childhood Development Stages." Accessed April 15, 2014. http://childdevelopmentinfo.com/child-development/normaldevelopment.
Maine, Margo. Body Wars: Making Peace with Women's Bodies: An Activist's Guide. Carlsbad, CA: Gürze Books, 2000.
"Minnesota Starvation Experiment." Wikipedia. August 04, 2014. Accessed April 16, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota_Starvation_Experiment.
"The Negative Effects of Barbie on Young Girls an the Long Term Results." Divine Caroline. Accessed April 20, 2014. http://www.divinecaroline.com/life-etc/momhood/negative-effects-barbie-young-girls-long-term-results.
Oppenheimer, Jerry. Toy Monster: The Big, Bad World of Mattel. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2009.
Marge Piercy wrote the Barbie Doll poem in 1973, during the woman’s movement. The title of the poem Barbie Doll, symbolizes how females are supposed to appear into the society. In the poem Barbie Doll, the main character was a girl. She was described as a usual child when she was born. Meaning that she had normal features that any person could ever have. Piercy used “wee lipstick the color of cherry candy” as a smile to describe the child before she has hit puberty. After the character hit puberty, the classmates in her class began to tease her saying “you have a big nose and fat legs.” (Piercy pg. 1) Having a big nose and a fat leg is the opposite of what females are supposed to be presented as in the gender stereotype. In the society that the girl lives in, follows the gender stereotypes that presented females as a petite figure with a slender body. These expectations made the character go insane. She wanted to fit into the society so she “cut off her nose and legs and offered them up.” (Piercy pg. 1) Even though the girl was “healthy, tested intelligent…” (Piercy pg. 1) no one saw that in her, but her appearances. In the end of the poem the girl end up dying, a...
Think of an iconic figure with killer curves and a wardrobe most women would die for? Many names may pop through your mind. Kate Moss? Gisele? Naomi Campbell? Now let's narrow it down a bit more. How about a woman who was also a former news anchor, UNICEF Summit Diplomat, Presidential candidate, and astronaut? The only girl who fits all of these descriptions is Barbie Millicent Roberts, a fair skinned blonde standing at 11 1/2 inches. Since Barbie's debut, she's been reproduced by the billions to meet the never ending demand. Even after 50 years she’s still flying off of toy-store shelves. Two Barbie dolls sell every second, and Mattel’s worldwide sales of Barbie top $1.5 billion every year. The company estimates that 90 percent of U.S. girls between the ages of 3 and 10 own at least one dolls. These numbers indicate that Barbie is still a big part of our culture and lives, and although controversy surrounds her at every step, she still manages to be a well known, sought after woman. Let's delve into the history of how this woman came to be.
Every woman grows up knowing that they one day want to be beautiful. In Marge Piercy’s “Barbie Doll” she gives an in depth look at what negative effects the concept of beauty can have on an individual. From infancy to a full grown adult woman, beauty has been a way of thinking and lifestyle. As a little girl you are given petite shaped, blonde, blue eyed dolls. While boys are given brawny soldiers and mechanical toys.
Barbie's image through the shape of her body and all of her accessories is beginning to lead to many issues in our world. Barbie is portraying a negative impact on society through her influential being as a plastic doll. In 1965 the slumber party package was on the market showing buyers how straight forward she is with her products and accessories. The package had all of the normal slumber party things like a robe, comb, and hair rollers but it also had a weight scale set at a permanent weight of "110" and a disturbing book on weight loss that read in all caps, "DON'T EAT." This package is an example of how misleading Barbie and her products really are because it is implying to children that they should not eat and that if they grow up
Since Barbie’s debut in 1959 she has been influencing young girls and swaying their perceptions of beauty when in reality her body, measuring 39-18-33 (bust, waist, hips) is unable to bear a child, she would be incapable of holding up her own back and neck and she is so disproportioned she would need to crawl on all fours (Slayen). Despite popular belief, maybe it is beginning to seem as if Barbie is not so perfect after all. However that has not stopped young girls from admiring their Barbie Dolls perfection, and in ...
Martin, Melanie. “Negative Effects of Barbie on Girls.” eHow. Demand Media, n.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2014.
“If Barbie was designed by a man, suddenly a lot of things made sense to me,” says Emily Prager in her essay “Our Barbies, Ourselves” (Prager 354). Prager’s purpose for writing this essay is to explain the history of Barbie and how the doll itself has influenced and continue to influence our society today. Prager is appealing to the average girl, to those who can relate to the way she felt growing up with Barbie seen as the ideal woman. Emily Prager uses a constant shift between a formal and informal tone to effectively communicate her ideas that we view women today based upon the unrealistic expectations set forth by Barbie. By adopting this strategy she avoids making readers feel attacked and therefore
Hoskins, S. (n.d.). The negative effects of barbie on young girls and the long term results. Retrieved from http://www.divinecaroline.com/life-etc/momhood/negative-effects-barbie-young-girls-long-term-results
Margie Pearcy's "Barbie Doll" details the image that society projects upon and expects from its young female population. From an early age these young women struggle to conform to the standards that society has defined for them. The results often are disastrous, leading to emotional conflicts that are often difficult if not impossible to resolve.
In real life, a Barbie Doll would be five feet six inches tall, with a size two waist, and size two hips. The measurement are impossible. A woman with those measurements would have trouble standing and going about her daily life. “The Barbie doll has become part of the American psyche and it sets unrealistic standards for the female body” (Chamberlain 1). Young girls grow up with Barbie Dolls in hands, dreaming of the day that they’ll be grown and look like the doll they hold so dearly. Some girls fight the stereotypes, they resist. Inevitably they grow weary, fighting societies pressures is not an easy battle. Thus they give up, and live to please society. The poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy shows how expectations put upon women in their
In a world where many are led to believe that they fall short of what society depicts as “perfect”, it is still true that everyone is beautiful in their own way. There are even more demands on girls now a days than there has ever been before. Some may think they need to fit in, so they become someone they are not or they begin to act like a totally different person. “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy, illustrates society’s high and unrealistic expectations on the physical appearance of women, while failing to see that a woman’s self-esteem is at risk of being diminished.
This source is about a study involving Barbie dolls and how it affects young girls. 162 girls where involved in the experiment, where they choose to play with a Barbie, a Emme doll, or no doll at all. The Emme doll had a more realistic body image then a Barbie. The researches hypothesis that these dolls can functions as aspirational role models for young girls, and they wanted to see how the Barbie doll affected the girls. This source helps my argument that the very popular Barbie dolls help internalize the thin ideal into young girls. The researchers concluded that Barbie is a powerful socialization agent of an unhealthy, ultrathin, and unachievable body ideal. The Barbie dolls represent a distorted, and unhealthy thin ideal. This study is
Stone, Tanya Lee. The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Us. New York: Penguin Group, 2010. Print.
Barbie, a doll manufactured by Mattel, Inc., encourages an unrealistic body image, racial insensitivity, and contradictive goals, and it is having a negative influence on young girls everywhere. Launched in March 1959 by Ruth Handler, an American business woman and president of Mattel, Inc., Barbie quickly became popular and has gone on to sell three dolls every second, in over one hundred and fifty countries. However, Barbie’s rise to success has not been wholly positive – there have been numerous controversies, parodies, and lawsuits, all addressing a number of issues. One such issue is how Barbie promotes an unrealistic and unobtainable body image. For example, to scale, Barbie is five feet, nine inches tall, has a thirty six inch chest, eighteen inch waist, and thirty three inch hips. Had Barbie been a real person, she would not be able to walk, much less hold her head up. Secondly, Barbie is racially insensitive and perpetuates stereotypes. “Mexico Barbie,” from Barbie’s “ethnic” line, comes with a passport and a Chihuahua, as well as stereotypical red lace ribbons in her hair. Lastly, Barbie portrays goals that are both unobtainable and contradictive. Barbie has had a variety of careers, such as being a doctor, astronaut, and President of the United States, but also engages in stereotypical domestic activities, such as cleaning and baking. These characteristics are affecting young girls in a time when they are most developmentally susceptible, and teaching them a number of negative lessons.
Hoskins,Stephanie. “The Negative Effect of Barbies on Young Girls on the Long Term Results” www.divinecaroline.com No Pubished Date Web 8,January 2014