Is Barbie a Good Example for the Young Girls of Today?
Blonde hair, fair skin, thin, blue-eyed Barbie has been the traditional toy for young girls forever. It is now that people are questioning whether or not Barbie is a toy kids should be playing with.
Obviously, Barbie does not resemble all young girls. She only replicates the ones with again, blonde hair, fair skin, a thin figure, and blue eyes. The problem is not everyone looks like this. So why is the traditional toy for young girls so specific and in some cases unrealistic? Some girls have darker skin, green eyes, curly hair, etc. How do you think they feel? That Barbie doesn’t look like me. Probably not great.
With the restricted features Barbie presents, young girls may look at her and want to change to be like her. Barbie is adored by many young girls, so it is not surprising for some to want to be her. However, it is highly problematic because Barbie only exemplifies one set of features. If a young girl desires to look like Barbie, but they naturally don’t have blonde hair or don’t have a thin figure what are they supposed to do? Is that young one just supposed to dye her hair and start to work out? As a society, we should not be letting young ones think Barbie is solely the girl to look up to, that she is the definition of “beautiful.”
Instead, it should be known to young girls that it doesn’t matter your size, the color of your skin, your hair type, etc…. YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL THE WAY YOU ARE. However, this message is extremely hard to get across when the young girls’ favorite toy is Barbie: a doll with restricted features. Now, Barbie doesn’t have to stop being these young girls’ favorite toy. Barbie just needs to change. Barbie dolls need to come in all shapes, sizes, colors, features, etc. If you go into stores, you will see that Barbie dolls are starting to come with different features. Therefore, progress is already being made. This message of being beautiful the way you are has to be enforced to these young girls so that they know a toy doesn’t hold the standards for beauty, but that they themselves are truly beautiful.
Photo by Elena Mishlanova on Unsplash
Mr. Belanger • Nov 3, 2020 at 10:39 AM
You go, Jada! I am totally with you! Well said.
Darren Belanger • Nov 2, 2020 at 9:05 AM
It really is all about kids. So much development happens in childhood, and in this case, it is pretty dangerous development. American Girl Doll has always (I’m pretty sure) prided itself in its diversity in cultural and ethnic diversity in their dolls. I hope Barbie is taking notes!
Angela Sigismondi • Oct 31, 2020 at 4:18 PM
This is a great piece, Jada. It’s so true that children’s toys have an impact on the way they see themselves. Thank you for sharing this!