Preview

Analysis Of Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
189 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Analysis Of Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll
I think that Marge Piercy's titled her poem "Barbie Doll, because the way that everyone had expected her to look was similar to the comparison of a Barbie Doll. Therefore she was teased, even though she had many triats that was worth more than looks they went unnoticed because physically she was not attractive. She stated "In the casket display satin she lay with the undertaker's cosmetics painted on, a turned up putty nose. This is the way that is used in the poem, which means that, even though that those are the looks that people perfer, they are not the most attractive in her eyes. (Stuck-Up) The point that William Shakespeare is trying to make even though his mistress is not the prettiest of them all, hestillwould much rather be with her.
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll
    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll

    The poem, “Barbie Doll”, by Marge Piercy, is about a normal “girlchild” who gets criticized by society for not looking like a perfect doll. She changes herself to fit society’s expectations just to fit in, but only in the end does society see her as “pretty”. Piercy’s purpose of the poem is to show how society has appalling expectations of how women show look and act. Imagery, irony, and tone are terms that show how vile society's expectations are.…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Barbie doll
    • 997 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Barbie doll

    Society's idea to be attractive is to be nothing less than ideal. To lack perfection is not acceptable in society. Also society tells people how to dress and act, having people be and look a certain way to be accepted. The desire to be accepted can destroy ones’ self-esteem and many lose sight of their own true beauty. Many will do whatever it takes to not be, say, or do what society thinks is disturbing. Marge Piercy’s poem “Barbie Doll,” written in 1973, is a powerful poem about society’s pressure on a young woman. The name carries a lot of meaning because a Barbie doll has long been an icon in society. Although it is a children’s toy, a Barbie doll demonstrates a woman with a perfect body and pure beauty. The poem portrays a summary of a life since birth to the end of life at a funeral. The main character in the poem never has a chance to live life to the fullest because she is always trying to please others and be accepted, which leads to a life of unhappiness. Piercy uses form, diction, and imagery throughout the poem to help imagine the “perfect” woman in the eye of society and the price one may be willing to pay.…

    • 997 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll
    • 741 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll

    The Poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy is about a girl who struggles with her body image. The speaker in the poem acts as an observer; watching the girl encounter different experiences as it related to her body image. Today’s generation is much similar to the life of the girl in this poem. Girls are forced to keep up with rising standards that are overwhelming and destructive. This poem uses form, imagery, and word choice to express how society chooses not to accept girls who do not represent the “ideal” woman.…

    • 741 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    History of the Barbie Doll
    • 544 Words
    • 2 Pages

    History of the Barbie Doll

    George Washington became the first president under the new Constitution on April 30, 1789. Washington gave a speech that day revolutionizing the generation’s principle of tremendous historical importance. Although political harmony was a sought out goal at this time, the 1790’s became known as an “age of passion” because of each party’s uncertainty of the others faithfulness to this new founding nation and with the voice of the people taking it upon themselves to ensure the “survival of American freedom” there would bound to be revolutionizing turn in society.…

    • 544 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Poem Analysis: Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll
    • 285 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Poem Analysis: Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll

    One of my favorite poem is “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy. “Barbie Doll” is a irony poem. A Barbie is beautiful when she is a little girl. But when the Barbie grow up, her appearance is changing. People start to judge the adult Barbie does not meet a beautiful standards. The adult Barbie apologize to people people, then she cut off her ugly nose and plum legs. The Barbie change a nice nose and a spindly legs. The adult Barbie become a perfect Doll.…

    • 285 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Barbie Doll Analysis
    • 995 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Barbie Doll Analysis

    People should always try to stay true to themselves even when so many people are pressuring them to change. At the end of the poem where the young girl is described, “In the casket displayed on satin she lay / with undertaker’s cosmetics painted on / a turned-up putty nose” (lines 19-21). In her casket, she is buried under makeup and fake cosmetics; ironically, all this work she got done to please everyone was only seen when she was dead. They also “packaged” her like a Barbie Doll, lying on satin, which is what she wanted to be in life. During her funeral, “dressed in a pink and white nightie. / Doesn’t she look pretty? Everyone said” (lines 22-23). The gown she wore in her deathbed, is similar to what Barbie wears and when she was dolled up to fit everyone’s expectations and finally got the approval she needed. This young girl went through her life always trying to get everyone’s approval when all she needed was her…

    • 995 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Dangers of Barbie Girl
    • 1387 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Dangers of Barbie Girl

    Toys started out as children’s entertainment, but have toys always just been for entertainment? Or can they affect the way a child develops, or interprets the world around them? The toys you play with as a child send messages that can influence your idea of what is socially acceptable. Toys teach you how to become who you are because of the roles they play. Media plays a major role in that, if you have a certain toy that comes out in a TV series, you play with the toy the way the media portrays the toy to be used. There are many different examples of how toys reinforce social norms. For example, Barbie is a doll that many young girls praise for her beauty and the social life media puts on her. Barbie is only one of many popular toys that subliminally sends a message of female gender roles to young children. Even though Barbie just seemed like a doll to play with, she makes it desirable to grow up to the cult of domesticity, which reinforces the traditional lifestyle that has been imposed upon women.…

    • 1387 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Comparision of "Barbie Doll" by Marge Piercy and "Suicide Note" by Janice Mirikitani
    • 1598 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Comparision of "Barbie Doll" by Marge Piercy and "Suicide Note" by Janice Mirikitani

    The poem “Barbie Doll” is a poem concerning a young girl who has let the societal expectations that America puts on young women destroy her. The poem starts out by explaining a small female child who is just like all young girls. She had dolls and miniature ovens and lipsticks for the dolls, but when she hit puberty and her body began changing a classmate called her fat (Piercy, 687). This seems to be the beginning of all of her internal battles and self-esteem issues. The next stanza describes all the wonderful characteristics that this young woman should have been very proud of. She was a healthy intellectual who was also quite strong and skillful with her hands (Piercy, 687). The second stanza is predominantly sad to me because she possesses many of life’s more important qualities and it is a shame that she was unable to comprehend that. By my standards intelligence is a more prestigious quality to possess over beauty. The image that she owns is not incorrect in an empirical sense, but it is one that America does not accept as being the definition of the perfect woman. The girl’s human…

    • 1598 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Barbie: The Ideal Woman
    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Barbie: The Ideal Woman

    Society today, has changed people in the way how they act, and dress. The short story Barbie Q explains that a Barbie is the ideal woman. The Barbie is an example of what women believe to be perfect. The quote “So what if we didn’t Get our new bendable legs Barbie in nice clean boxes and had to buy them on Maxwell street all water soaked and sooty”(Cisneros). This quote means that anyone would buy a Barbie for a cheaper price because they didn’t have the money at the time and who would care if the dolls were wet or smoked. For example the barbie with the melted leg putting a dress on the doll would cover the leg. this event talks about women these days where men rate the women from very beautiful to ugly as they show in the story where the…

    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Barbie Doll Marge Piercy
    • 1709 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Barbie Doll Marge Piercy

    The poem “Barbie Doll’ by Marge Piercy dramatizes the conflict between stereotyping and perfection within society. The title accentuates the theme of the poem; the Doll symbolizes society’s interpretation of beauty and a reflection of how the girl’s ideas of this beauty shape her self-worth. According to Steven Ratiner, author of Giving Their World: Conversations with Contemporary Poets, it is Piercy’s realistic interpretations of life experience which develops the theme of her poetry: "... her poems contain visions of a woman’s struggle to take responsibility for her own life..." By comparing the young lady in the poem to a Barbie doll, the author reveals the irony of the title. The societies within America usually describe someone as beautiful if they are thin and have the perfect body, such as a Barbie Doll. Throughout the poem, the girl is presented as a passive figure that is continually put down by a society obsessed with set standards of perfection. The speaker is aware of the events taking place in the young girl’s life, just maybe somebody who knows her or a person observing her from the sidelines. However, the speaker is not aware of her feelings about what is happening. The poem is written in an open form much like a Barbie storybook or movie, by using similes, symbols, and a fairy tale-like tone, Piercy creates a story starring a suicidal young girl instead of a Barbie, the glamorous sex symbol the girl is compared to throughout the poem. Each of the four stanzas shows the different stages of the girl’s life, and how the influence of peer pressure and stereotypes destroy her.…

    • 1709 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    An analysis of Barbie dolls
    • 1959 Words
    • 8 Pages

    An analysis of Barbie dolls

    Barbie dolls were born in the Wisconsin state of American 50 years ago. They are no longer simple dolls, but a symbol of American women, American culture and an ideal embodiment of global female. The following essay will firstly discuss Barbie dolls’ historical and cultural background of the era when they appeared. This part includes three aspects, which are the consumer society of America at that time, the prevailing of hedonism in the consumer society and the enhancement of self-awareness among Americans. Then the essay will illustrate the marketing strategy of Barbie dolls which is emphasized on the fashion. The illustration comprises the explanation of the relationship between consumption and fashion, the description of the figure of Barbie and the fashion culture in Barbie’s world. Finally, on the basis of the discussing above, three arguments about Barbie dolls will be presented. Three main arguments, which are Barbie dolls had made an important contribution to the awakening of female consciousness to a certain extent, too perfect and unrealistic figure of Barbie has no benefit for the growth of children and teenagers, and Barbie is essentially the perfect female body in the dreams of men under the patriarchal society.…

    • 1959 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Marge Piercy's Use of Barbie Doll
    • 925 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Marge Piercy's Use of Barbie Doll

    Marge Piercy ever herd this name before? Well if you have, did you know she was the founder of Leap track Press? Marge Piercy is very well known as an American poet, novelist and social activist. Many of he founded work has been graded as best-selling. Piercy has a goal to have her feminist voice be herd by society. She shares her opinions threw the characters she makes in her writing and poetry. Piercy wrote the poem Barbie Doll, and in this poem she states woman do not need to fit into society’s point of view of what a woman should look and act like. Piercy has a fascinating history and high valued awards, but what was Piercy’s message to her audience when Barbie Doll was published in 1973.…

    • 925 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Analysis on Poem Barbie Doll
    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Analysis on Poem Barbie Doll

    In the poem “Barbie Doll,” the author Marge Piercy provides four short stanzas to inform readers of how society and culture puts pressure on young girls. In this poem, a young girl’s life flashes before her eyes as she tries to live up to society standards. The tone of this poem is depressing and sad. In this poem Marge Piercy uses a theme, symbols, and a plot to describe the ideal girl.…

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Controversy's 'Barbie Doll'
    • 204 Words
    • 1 Page

    Controversy's 'Barbie Doll'

    After reading "Barbie Doll," I cannot help but agree with the argument in which the author is trying to make. To be a woman in today's day and age means always being told how you should dress and act based on society's standards. There is so much controversy concerning how women should appear, and this is due in part to the media's depiction of how a woman should look. The ideal woman used to have curves, but now women are expected to have a super tiny waist but still have larger breast and a large but; these are standards with which woman have had a nearly impossible time to meet. Between new diet and workout plans, it is easy for a woman to get mixed up with an unhealthy lifestyle of starving herself and exercising too much which leads to…

    • 204 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Snapshot Harvey Cedars Analysis
    • 1121 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Snapshot Harvey Cedars Analysis

    The young girl in the story is constructing her entire identity on the ideal body of her Barbie Doll, in which her future step-mother is compared to. The line, “Barbie was sex without sex”, suggests that the girl is being inculcated with the idea that her self-worth is dependent upon her beauty as a sex object. Real girls should have many other things on their minds other than their body and sex such as school, friends, and family; but these other points are completely absent from the story. The girl explains that her new barbie was “who [she] wanted to be”, with the idealistic figure of having “torpedo breasts, the wasp waist, [and the] tall-drink-of-water-legs”. The bodies of dolls are negatively impacting young girls to make the wrong decisions regarding their bodies; this is where eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia originate. Despite the girl’s dead mother prohibiting her from having the doll given by her stepmother, she decided to take it in and let it have an influence on her instead. In addition, the girl’s future stepmother is described as having “auburn curls bouncing in the early May light…[and a] suit of fuchsia wool blooming like some exotic flower” The imagery and the simile used in this excerpt are portraying some perfect female form that’s not usually attainable. The focus on the physical features in both the doll and the stepmother strengthen the message in the young girl’s mind that her worth is proportional to her physical beauty. The story reaches the point where the desire for the idealistic female body is so strong in the young girl that it overpowers the respect she has for her dead mother’s memory, and so she accepts the new barbie doll from the stepmother. By doing this, she may be losing respect, in the long run, not only for her dead mother but also for…

    • 1121 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More

Related Topics