Reality Barbie

A Brief History of Barbie

Ruth Handler, co-founder of the popular toy company Mattel, intended the Barbie doll as a nice counterpoint to all the "baby" dolls available. With the arrival of Barbie in 1959, little girls could dream about becoming graceful, beautiful, and above all glamorous teenagers. Barbie has changed somewhat through the years, always keeping up with fashion in terms of her sumptuous wardrobe. At first, many mothers found the doll scandalous and did not want their daughters to play with Barbie -- but girls loved her immediately and fervently, making the doll an immense success.

There is more to the story. Barbie owes her figure to a German doll called "Lilli" ... a plastic sexpot marketed for men. That figure would also cause some problems for a real woman shaped like Barbie; at life size, Barbie would stand 5'6" but only weigh 110 pounds. She would have a bust measurement of 39 inches, a waist of 18 inches, and hips of 33 inches. It has been said that she would be too thin to menstruate. It has also been said that Barbie promotes an unhealthy attitude that women should be skinny and pretty and fashion-conscious rather than actually accomplishing anything. Sure, little girls love this doll, but is Barbie good for them? Maybe, maybe not.

For my part, I never found Barbie very interesting. All she did was dress up. The only thing about her that intrigued me was the way her knees bent without visible hinges; I thought that would make a nice start on building an android. Now if Barbie had possessed a more diverse (as opposed to merely extensive) wardrobe, I might have found her more appealing. How about a suit of armor, I thought, or maybe an astronaut's uniform? Eventually I sat down and wrote (with the help of my partner/business manager Doug) a whole list of Barbie dolls that I would have loved. After all, it's hardly fair to blame Barbie for looking like she does; she should have the chance to make a great career for herself regardless of her body type. So here are some ideas...

Real Role Model Barbies

Speculative Fiction Barbies

Barbie, Pro and Con: The Link List

• Barbie Main Page - The Official Barbie Doll Web Site -- Pro
• Mad About That Barbie Doll! -- Pro
• The Distorted Barbie -- Mixed
• "We love to bash Barbie" article in The Modesto Bee Online -- Mixed
• "Barbie and Ken Speak Out" -- Con
• Midge and poney's Barbie Bashing Page -- Con

"Reality Barbie" copyright 1998 Elizabeth Barrette.

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Art on this page is from the "Scroll Fetish" set, at Moyra's Web Jewels.

The URL for this page is http://www.worthlink.net/~ysabet/misc/rbarb.html and it was last updated on October 13, 1998.