Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll
English 112
10/12/11
Pain Is Beauty, Beauty Is Pain
The poem, “Barbie Doll,” by Marge Piercy, implicitly criticizes the way that women are mixed into stereotypical roles from the time they are young. This poem makes it clear this standard of perfection is impossible to achieve--at least not while one is alive--and starts with something relatively careless at a young age, a Barbie doll. The Barbie doll, one of the best-selling “toys” of all time, has become an icon of U.S. culture for the way it idealizes the female body. Young girls all around the world attempt to model themselves after this “perfect” woman. The urge to become a disproportionate female with a painted on smile overshadows the ideal to love yourself as you are. However, …show more content…
‘Barbie Doll’ goes in depth through the situations and hardships of being a teenage girl. Though the poem was written in 1973, these distorted views of beauty still hold true. We, as teenage girls, are bombarded with visuals which both tell us who to be and how to act. As children, we are presented with plastic toy kitchen sets, dolls with pink dresses, and makeup kits. As teenagers, there are magazines advertisements and clothing stores, all catering to the anorexic, size zero, “sexy” woman. Before we have even had a chance to establish who we are as a person, we are cast into a plastic mold that society believes we should fit in. By providing examples of objects that America is familiar with, this allows the readers to relate to the story …show more content…
This is because the story is not actually about one girl in particular. Rather, she stands for all the young women in our society. This story is meant to alert the reader of the dangers of gender stereotyping. The young girl Piercy writes about is experiencing troubles with being accepted by the people around her. She tries everything to be accepted by society but it is not enough. Since Piercy has written the poem free verse, it carries with more of a story-like flow. The second stanza explains that though this young lady is perfectly healthy and happy on the inside, her outward appearance does not please those around her. Consequently, as the poem transitions into the third stanza, she is bullied and peer pressured until the point where she is no longer a healthy, happy girl. In that girls place is another, one that is unhealthy, full of pain, and deeply depressed, all for the sake of beauty. However, it isn’t until the last verse that Piercy reveals the true theme of her poem-society is unable to accept this girl unless she fits their standards of perfection. Though it seems a bit long, the readers see that this is indeed true. The girl, having completely given up, commits suicide by cutting off her nose and legs, the very objects of her ridicule. In death, she finds her acceptance and
10/12/11
Pain Is Beauty, Beauty Is Pain
The poem, “Barbie Doll,” by Marge Piercy, implicitly criticizes the way that women are mixed into stereotypical roles from the time they are young. This poem makes it clear this standard of perfection is impossible to achieve--at least not while one is alive--and starts with something relatively careless at a young age, a Barbie doll. The Barbie doll, one of the best-selling “toys” of all time, has become an icon of U.S. culture for the way it idealizes the female body. Young girls all around the world attempt to model themselves after this “perfect” woman. The urge to become a disproportionate female with a painted on smile overshadows the ideal to love yourself as you are. However, …show more content…
‘Barbie Doll’ goes in depth through the situations and hardships of being a teenage girl. Though the poem was written in 1973, these distorted views of beauty still hold true. We, as teenage girls, are bombarded with visuals which both tell us who to be and how to act. As children, we are presented with plastic toy kitchen sets, dolls with pink dresses, and makeup kits. As teenagers, there are magazines advertisements and clothing stores, all catering to the anorexic, size zero, “sexy” woman. Before we have even had a chance to establish who we are as a person, we are cast into a plastic mold that society believes we should fit in. By providing examples of objects that America is familiar with, this allows the readers to relate to the story …show more content…
This is because the story is not actually about one girl in particular. Rather, she stands for all the young women in our society. This story is meant to alert the reader of the dangers of gender stereotyping. The young girl Piercy writes about is experiencing troubles with being accepted by the people around her. She tries everything to be accepted by society but it is not enough. Since Piercy has written the poem free verse, it carries with more of a story-like flow. The second stanza explains that though this young lady is perfectly healthy and happy on the inside, her outward appearance does not please those around her. Consequently, as the poem transitions into the third stanza, she is bullied and peer pressured until the point where she is no longer a healthy, happy girl. In that girls place is another, one that is unhealthy, full of pain, and deeply depressed, all for the sake of beauty. However, it isn’t until the last verse that Piercy reveals the true theme of her poem-society is unable to accept this girl unless she fits their standards of perfection. Though it seems a bit long, the readers see that this is indeed true. The girl, having completely given up, commits suicide by cutting off her nose and legs, the very objects of her ridicule. In death, she finds her acceptance and