2016 Presidential & Vice Presidential Candidates. Courtesy of Mattel
Ruth Handler created Barbie in 1959, around the same time as second wave feminism started in the United States. From the beginning, the two have been in constant dialogue. Barbie quickly gained international prominence as the mainstream fashion doll, kicking to the curb counterparts like Maxie and the British Sindy. Her ubiquity has made her both a reflection of modern women and a role model to little girls – this is where the plastic blonde runs into trouble.
From the get-go, Barbara Millicent Roberts had some problematic periods. In the 1960’s Barbie Babysitter came with a diet book, titled How to Lose Weight, with “Don’t Eat” written in uppercase across the back; Teen Talk Barbie in the 1990’s had the famous, “Math class is tough” scandal, where the doll was accused of promoting harmful gender stereotypes; and nine years ago, Computer Engineer Barbie also fell into dated gender tropes when the she had to turn to two male friends for help after infecting two computers with viruses. The dolls in question were recalled or discontinued and Barbie evolved.
There were also structural problems that forced the doll to change. Barbie has come under fire for her dramatic proportions that feature an unrealistic breast to waist ratio, which was reworked in the 1990s to become more realistic. Her career choices have also come under fire, leading her to evolve from stereotypical women’s roles of nurse, starlet and stewardess to doctor, producer and pilot. When the doll was too white, the black doll Christie came along, with a slew of other nationalities following. Now, Barbie is more diverse than ever including different body types, even those with disabilities – but it still isn’t enough. For some, the idea of girls playing with dolls, liking fashion and putting on makeup, is still incongruous with their ideas of feminism.
2019 Barbie Role Models. Courtesy of Mattel
Maintaining an elaborate appearance should not be demanded of anyone, but those who do should not be shamed or deemed frivolousness and intellectual deficiency. Too often the argument is made that women are spending time and money on their appearance that men are spending furthering their careers. Huffington Post tycoon and female business guru, Arianna Huffington advocates that women repeat outfits as a power move. It has even been speculated that the founder of the fraudulent healthcare company Theranos, Elizabeth Holmes, intentionally curated an unmanicured appearance in order to appear serious. But there is little scientific evidence that career advancement is at odds with investing in your appearance.
In fact, the beauty and fashion industries have welcomed female entrepreneurs, well before other industries, with women like Florence Nightingale Graham, of Elizabeth Arden, and Coco Chanel founding wildly successful companies before women even had the vote in most countries. Beauty continues to be a financially successful place for women in the Instagram age as beauty gurus, like Huda Kattan and Keeping Up With the Kardashian’s Kylie Jenner have turned their love of makeup into businesses valued in the hundreds of millions. Rihanna also recently became the richest female musician after launching the Fenty clothing and beauty lines, which have recently been taken under the wing of French luxury conglomerate LVMH.
Girls, or anyone who wants to pick up a Barbie, shouldn’t grow up thinking that fashion and looks are the only things that matter – but it also isn’t a plastic doll’s role to teach them the importance of STEM skills or how to succeed in business. At the end of the day she is a toy to be enjoyed and not responsible for creating gender equality. And if you are criticising people for wanting to play with Barbie, you might be worse for feminism than she is.
Check out some iconic Barbie career moments below:
Courtesy of Mattel