Barbie is Born
The Begining of Barbie in the Fifties!
Izzy Lamanna and Sierra Smith
Who Is Barbie?
Ever since the 50's when Barbie was born she has been a girls best friend. She became a part of young girls childhood's. Not only is she the most popular toy but she is an icon for girls everywhere. She displays the perfect body and perfect life for each girl. The best part about Barbie is that you can make her anyone you want her to be, with only a touch of imagination. Coming out of WWII our nation needed something to keep it headed in a forward direction, and for many girls the idea of their perfect life was what kept them going. Barbie became a new fresh face for the "American Dream" and showed girls what was possible, helping girls believe in themselves.
What Did She Accomplish?
Barbie not only accomplished the image of the "American Dream" but earned a heavy income as well. To this day she is worth $2 billion, which amazingly is more than Armani or the Wall Street Journal. She has taken over massive shelf space in all toys stores throughout the nation, ever since the 50's. Also, through surveys it has been proven that the average girl in America owns 11 Barbie Dolls. Imagine how many Barbie Dolls that is all together taking into consideration the millions of young girls in our country.
The Everlasting Barbie
The key to Barbie's success is that she ages with the girls and with the generations. Thus, allowing her never to go out of style. Every decade her clothes, hair, and reputation change to mirror the stereotype of the time. Not only has her look changed, but so has the way she is perceived. As woman have become bigger parts of our working society, Barbie has stepped into a more permanent and independent role in the modern workforce, as she is made to be doctors, lawyers, fire fighters, pilots, and much more. The Barbie Doll definitely does have some genius behind her, as she has truly mastered the marketplace for decades and will continue to create a reputation for herself in the future.
Barbie and Ken
The 1950's Barbie and Ken represented the seemingly perfect American dream. They became important figures to not only many girls across the country, but also as an inspiration to all looking to improve their image.
Barbie Evolution
From the early days of Barbie in 1959 to the present 2015 models, the overall shape and appearance of Barbie has changed drastically.
Barbie takes on Hollywood
Being so iconic, it is not a surprise that Barbie can now be seen in dozens of children's movies all over the world. In these movies, it is not uncommon for her to take on new identities and entertain her audiences with new accessories and friends.
The Impact on the Decade
With the war just having ended, most of society was ready to conform to one image that was thought to be superior to all others. Many people today believe that Barbie represented and unrealistic standard for what women and girls should look like. She also had caused controversy within the decade as she glamorized the all-white American Dream. What seemed to be the ideal look for Americans: tall, blonde and flawless, excluded every other race but hers. This angered many as most people thought the doll was sleazy and provocative and pushed girls to extremes measures to reach that unbelievably high standard of perfection. However, supporters of Barbie propose that the doll drove women to achieve excellence. Although some took matters to extremes, Barbie seemed to push women to achieve good health and attain that self image that was so desired. She also pushed people to reach their goals as it was often a common goal to live a life like Barbie. All in all, this everlasting image of beauty and success may have represented a controversial vision of the American Dream, she drove people to be successful in all aspects of life.
Connection to Today
In a time when the average women was responsible for cooking, cleaning, and making her husband happy, Barbie broke the barriers of women empowerment when she took on roles other than that expected of her. Barbie gave women the idea that they can do more than just house work and actually take on a successful life of their own in challenging feilds such as medical, business, and military. Barbie is the connection from past ideals to current women empowerment. It is not an uncommon scene to find at least one aisle at any local convenience store consumed with the ever growing faces of Barbie. In today's society, she takes on countless new careers and lifestyles that would have never even been thought of in the early years of her life. Barbie now represents strength, knowledge, imagination and success just like the women of our generation today!
References
(2002, December 21). Life in - plastic; Barbie. Economist, (8304), 22, Retrieved from http://elibrary.bigchalk.com
Lauren, W. (2015, December 25). Hello Barbie, Your Child's Chattiest and Riskiest Christmas Present. Newsweek (Global Edition), (23), n/a, Retrieved from http://elibrary.bigchalk.com
Pisani, J. "Barbie dolls getting more diverse look." Gainesville Sun. 2016, February 03: n/a.
http://www.about-face.org/barbie-the-young-girls-ultimate-role-model/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/business/consumer-business/barbie-faces-stiff-competition.html/?a=viewall
https://www.windowssearch-exp.com/images/search?q=Retro+Barbie&FORM=RESTAB