Is Barbie Harmful?
Is Barbie Harmful to Young Girls?
Blonde hair, blue eyes, business woman, rock star, princess and doctor, can you guess who? It’s Barbie. To be beautiful is to possess qualities that give great pleasure or satisfaction, and for most, Barbie is the epitome of beauty. For years Barbie has been a doll that has been living in the hands of girls of all ages. Some girls start getting Barbies as young as three years old and continue to collect these dolls sometimes into early adulthood. But are these dolls a positive influence on young girls? Barbie is harmful because she gives a false perception of beauty that effects the self esteem, health, and ethnic concerns of young girls. A small portion of feminist believe that Barbie is a good role model for our young women because she has had so many occupations over the years. In the last 50 years, Barbie has over 108 different jobs (Jones). Since the beginning of time it has been a stereotype for a woman to stay home and be a wife and mother. However, today our woman are capable of so much more, and have dreams that go outside being just a wife and mother. Barbie has continued to show that the sky is the limit when choosing your future career. Although Barbie has been consistent with promoting people to chase their dreams, her body has not been so consistent. When Barbie first came out in 1959, she was the equivalent of 40DD breast size, and 7ft tall (Booth). Over the years makers have manipulated the dolls body to try to make her somewhat more proportional. Even after making some changes to her body, manufacturers are so set on making her look like the perfect body, her measurements still come out to be a 32 inch breast, 17 inch waist, and a 28 inch waist, which is unrealistic for an average woman to achieve. To harm something, is to cause physical injury, or mental damage. Many young girls push to have the perfect image that Barbie upholds resulting in mental harm. The self esteems of young girls
Blonde hair, blue eyes, business woman, rock star, princess and doctor, can you guess who? It’s Barbie. To be beautiful is to possess qualities that give great pleasure or satisfaction, and for most, Barbie is the epitome of beauty. For years Barbie has been a doll that has been living in the hands of girls of all ages. Some girls start getting Barbies as young as three years old and continue to collect these dolls sometimes into early adulthood. But are these dolls a positive influence on young girls? Barbie is harmful because she gives a false perception of beauty that effects the self esteem, health, and ethnic concerns of young girls. A small portion of feminist believe that Barbie is a good role model for our young women because she has had so many occupations over the years. In the last 50 years, Barbie has over 108 different jobs (Jones). Since the beginning of time it has been a stereotype for a woman to stay home and be a wife and mother. However, today our woman are capable of so much more, and have dreams that go outside being just a wife and mother. Barbie has continued to show that the sky is the limit when choosing your future career. Although Barbie has been consistent with promoting people to chase their dreams, her body has not been so consistent. When Barbie first came out in 1959, she was the equivalent of 40DD breast size, and 7ft tall (Booth). Over the years makers have manipulated the dolls body to try to make her somewhat more proportional. Even after making some changes to her body, manufacturers are so set on making her look like the perfect body, her measurements still come out to be a 32 inch breast, 17 inch waist, and a 28 inch waist, which is unrealistic for an average woman to achieve. To harm something, is to cause physical injury, or mental damage. Many young girls push to have the perfect image that Barbie upholds resulting in mental harm. The self esteems of young girls