For my Intro to Women's and Gender class one of the books we read was Women: Images and Realities by Amy Kesselman, Lily McNair, and Nancy Schniedewind. This book was comprised of essays about experiences in women and mens' lives. I enjoyed this book because it made me aware of many life experiences and how differently each person handles these experiences.
One of my favorite essays was called, "Klaus Barbie, and Other Dolls I'd Like to See" by Susan Jane Gilman. Gilman talks about Barbie dolls versus Dawn dolls. She hates Barbie dolls with a passion and named them "Klaus Barbie dolls", after the Gestapo commander. She feels Barbies are a pop artifact promoting Aryanism. In fact, she compares the blonde-hair, blue-eyed dolls to Hitler's cult. Although she commends Mattel on making an effort to create a variety of dolls, she feels they basically have the same Aryan features. Gilman also states, these unique dolls are limited edition Barbies, and not the normal or standard look.
However, Gilman is not anti-doll. As a child, Gilman and her friends played with Dawn dolls. Before this reading, I had never heard of these dolls; however, they intrigue me. Dawn dolls had four dolls in the collection. Dawn was the blonde doll, Angie had black hair (Italian or Hispanic), Gloria had red hair (Irish or a Russian Jew), and Dale had an afro. Gilman and her friends were Jewish, Black, Asian, and Latina and felt if you didn't look like Barbie, you didn't fit in.
Gilman's essay ends with her describing Barbie's she would like to see (my favorite part). These Barbie's include Dinner Roll Barbie, Birkenstock Barbie, Bisexual Barbie, Butch Barbie, Our Barbies, Ourselves, Harley Barbie, Body Piercings Barbie, Blue Collar Barbie, Rebbe Barbie, B-Girl Barbie, The Barbie Dream Team, and Transgender Barbie.
I found this reading unique and interesting. Like Gilman, I'm not sure Barbie is to blame for young girls constantly being insecure with their bodies; however, I do think it is a possibility. Personally, I never played with Barbies much. I found it more enjoyable to pull their heads off or play outside in the sandbox or swinging.
Does anyone agree or disagree with the fascinationtion and/or obsession our cultures has with Barbie dolls influencing young girls?
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