Barbie: A Girl’s First Role Model
Barbie is not just a popular doll that girls like to play with, she is an example of the perfect woman. Barbie always has her makeup perfect, her hair styled and healthy, and her body does not have any fat or imperfections. However, we cannot be as “perfect” as Barbie seems. Barbie gives false expectations for young girls, because they might not have the same body, house, significant other, and looks as Barbie. My glitch art is meant to warp our perfect image of Barbie, because she was my first model of how to live and the ideal way to look, however young girls should not aspire to look and live like Barbie, they should be more interested in being themselves.
Barbie is beautiful, but Barbie is most commonly a caucasian and blonde, but there are so many different hair and skin colors that are just as beautiful, but not as popular models of this iconic doll. This image is meant to show Barbie in different colors, because she is still just as beautiful in her own right with any of those skin colors.
This is an image of Barbie in a tight-fitting formal dress. She looks perfect- too perfect. This piece of glitch art is meant to demonstrate the unrealistic and skewed version of a beautiful body that Barbie displays. She has very thing legs, a tiny waistline, large breasts, and perfectly thin arms. Girls should not attempt to look this way, but their own body type.
One very common aspiration for a young girl is to be a princess. It has become more and more popular for Barbie to be seen as a princess. Almost every princess is now a Barbie doll, and Barbie has “played” princessses in animated films. Being a “princess” is not a valid aspiration for young women to try to achieve. One of the most popular princess is Cinderella. Cinderella is a damsel in distress who is saved through her marriage to a prince she hardly knows. In any story book or movie of Cinderella, she lacks personality; she is likable, but never seems to have her own life goals other than to find the perfect man. Girls should not want to follow this example; they should have their own lives and goals without it relating to marriage. This piece, “The Empty Damsel” is meant to show the lack of Barbie Cinderella’s ability to think on her own and be her own complex individual.
More recently, Barbie has been depicted as a career woman; the doll has had any and every occupation from astronaut to zookeeper. These versions of Barbie still have perfect make up, hair, bodies, and outfits. These versions of Barbie still seem to have it all. This, however may not be true. We can never look perfect every minute of our lives and achieve everything we attempt to accomplish. This glitch art image is meant to show how thin a career woman is spread and how difficult it is to have everything Barbie seems to easily have.
When you think of Barbie, you think of her significant other, Ken. Ken and Barbie are supposedly the perfect couple. These two give young girls a warped sense of love and relationships. Ken is just as attractive as Barbie- with rock hard abs, no fat on his body, and perfect hair. There is no official story of Barbie and Ken we do not know if they are dating or married, if they lvie together or separately, what Ken’s career is, if they have children. These are all characteristics left up to the imagination of the girl playing with her dolls. Still, at the end of the day, almost everyone can agree that Barbie and Ken are in a relationship. “The Perfect Relationship” is meant to show that they are not “perfect” and that there is more than one type of healthy relationship regardless of the unlikely expectations that Barbie and Ken give girls.
Something that is irrefutable about Barbie is that she has everything and anything. Barbie has any type of car, pet, article of clothing, or house that you could possibly imagine. Barbie is very materialistic and very extravagant. Recently, there was an animated series titled “Barbie Dreamhouse” that is meant to give an inside look on the life of Barbie. This version of Barbie has a large pink mansion. It is difficult to tell who she lives with in this home, but because we never see ehr parents, we can assume that she does not live with them. Moreover, this version of Barbie does not have a job- she spends her days on adventures with her best friends. A very common part of the show is her exploration of her closet. Her closet is never-ending and it includes any type of clothing a girl could dream of. My little cousin absolutely loves the show and has watched the episodes multiple times on Netflix. She told me that she wants to live in a house like Barbie’s. I think that it may seem like the perfect dream to live in Barbie’s massive home, but girls should want something that is not so materialistic in nature- they should desire a home where they live with people that they care about and have their needs met and not just material desires.
My final piece is based off of the original Barbie doll released in 1959. This version of Barbie has a flatter chest, a little wider waist line, and less makeup. This version of Barbie was created by Ruth Handler with the intention of giving her daughter, Barbara that chance to have a more grown-up doll that could do anything. The original Barbie could do anything and be anyone, but there were not as many outfits, play sets, friends, and material goods for Barbie to own. This original Barbie was able to show girls that they can be anythig they want to be, without stressing the desire to be materialistic. “The Original Barbie” is meant to pay homage to the first Barbie that was relased who was beautiful, classic, and inspired a message of woman empowerment, but now she has changed into a symbil of materialism and unrealistic perfection that young girls look up.
Barbie has the ability to teach and inspire young girls in so many ways, but this version of Barbie is not an appropriate first role model of the girls of today.
