Rethinking Barbie (the doll) and her positive impact
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Anonymous
I only had two Barbies in the early 80s. One was the traditional blond, but the other one was black. I'm white and chose the black Barbie because she was pretty and had a nice dress. They both dated tall stuffed animals and a very short He-man , wore homemade dresses made of strips of fabric wrapped around their bodies, and lived in milk crate houses. |
Anonymous
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I remember being given pink n pretty barbie for my birthday. My mom was very anti-barbie but gave up when I kept nagging. I loved that barbie so much! Then got given the Barbie Caravan which we then converted to a Cabbage Patch Kid bus when they became the next thing
My little sister pulled the head off pink n pretty barbie. I was so upset! She then always looked a bit odd with her short neck. Literally cannot ever remember looking to her as a role model or comparing my figure to hers. My teacher mom was the most glamorous woman I knew and my role model. |
Anonymous
You’re seriously proposing that women don’t have it that bad now at a time when women’s basic human rights are under such grave assault in the US? Women are dying and facing dire medical, social and financial consequences in large numbers due to anti abortion laws. It is also affecting women who actually want to give birth to healthy children (and are in good positions to raise them in responsible ways) as so many medical on gun practices are fleeing states with anti abortion laws. I have never had or wanted an abortion but it is not up to me or anyone else to make that decision for other women. Women are being sl^t shamed like never before even when pregnancies are the result of rape/ incest. Female Children are being forced to give birth in states with anti abortion laws. That said, I agree that there are also societal pressures on men and they also should be spared from unrealistic and unhealthy idealized stereotypes. We are all human. |
Anonymous
| Gen-X here who loved her Barbies. I never thought of them as anything other than dolls. They provided many hours of innocent imaginative play. For all of those who vilified dolls like Barbie you have your tik tok, insta and Snapchat now. Congrats! |
Anonymous
Hahahaha Thank you. These two posts have made my day! |
Anonymous
| Why do we feel good about Ken being an after thought. |
Anonymous
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Barbie just did not work for me. She was too elongated and not posable while standing, and I wanted sturdy little toys that could be posed standing as they went on endless adventures. Since I had carpet, Legos and Playmobil only worked on my desk, which was limiting. I did have a lot of them anyway: my favorite Lego activity was recreating Ancient Egypt, a time period I was fascinated with, and build pyramids with the yellow bricks, with labyrinths inside, figurines acting as mummies, and treasure. But my all-time favorite was Calico Critters: they hit all my criteria of cute, animal, furry, and posable while standing, and came with drool-worthy accessories that of course my parents never wanted to buy. All I had was the schoolroom, and most of my Critters were hand-me-downs. But we still went on lots of adventures. It's interesting that my son and daughter have replicated that in their pretend play. No Barbies, lots of Legos and Calico Critters. And I don't stint on the accessories! |
Anonymous
Because Barbie’s life didn’t revolve around him. She had an awesome life that he could join, but she was autonomous. She already had a career, the nice house with a pool, and a convertible on her own. Ken was there for fun trips to the beach, but it was Barbie’s world. |
Anonymous
Okay but why is that important. Why should anybody being a 2nd thought be a good thing? |
Anonymous
| We had a few Barbie and some clothes for her that were way too hard to put on. I don’t remember thinking Barbie was beautiful or anything- her legs were so long and she was a doll that was hard to play with. What I did LOVE was cutting all of their hair. But obviously that’s a one time activity. |
Anonymous
You’re being willfully obtuse. Barbie was a toy that broke the “housewife/mother-in-training” mold for girls and taught them to think about what they wanted to do with their lives outside the home. Ken wasn’t a second thought because Barbie was mean to him or he was “less than;” he was a second thought because you could play Barbie without him. He was an accessory. |
Anonymous
Agreed. I loved Barbie. I never thought I needed to look like her. |
Anonymous
I think women think taking the worst part of misogyny and reversing it is empowering and I think it’s wrong. Why not say Grace was an afterthought or accessory or a second thought? Or Midge or Nikki…? |
Anonymous
Why does everybody experience have to do the same as yours? |
Anonymous
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The jobs were for the moms buying the dolls.
Every little girl made up her own story in her mind as she pretend played with the dolls and her accessories. |