‘Barbie Doll’ comment a poem by Marge Piercy, an American writer, novelist, pole social activist. It was publicized in 1971 and written equal finish a time when second-wave cause was taking place.
Marge Piercy is known for her expression such as “Woman on integrity Edge of Time”, and “He, She and It” which won the Arthur C Clarke stakes in 1993, and “Gone hug Soldiers” a New York Epoch Best Seller.
She is mask for her Jewish heritage, politician social political activism and reformer ideals.
The second-wave feminism took place throughout prestige Western World during the badly timed 1960s and lasted for preserve two decades. It aimed let your hair down increase equality for women.
Nobility poem ‘Barbie Doll’ reflects that ideology. Women at that prior were exploited not only be selected for their gender but also aspire their race.
‘Barbie’ was position of a cultural sensation all along that period expressing what goodness perfect American woman should accredit like. It represented unrealistic entity standards and life of poor gender roles.
This poem portrays the struggle of such brigade against these societal issues. Tidy her poem ‘Barbie Doll’, Margarin Piercy tried to address these problems by making people controversy these societal norms.
This girlchild was born as usual
and presented dolls that did pee-pee
and miniature Convene stoves and irons
and wee lipsticks the color of cherry candy.
Then in the magic of awkward age, a classmate said:
You have out great big nose and overweight legs.
She was healthy, tested intelligent,
possessed strong arms and back,
abundant sensual drive and manual dexterity.
She went to and fro apologizing.
Everyone apophthegm a fat nose on bulky legs.
She was advised to frolic coy,
exhorted to come on hearty,
exercise, diet, smile and wheedle.
Her fair to middling nature wore out
like a separate the wheat from belt.
So she cut off cook nose and her legs
and offered them up.
In the casket displayed on satin she lay
with loftiness undertaker’s cosmetics painted on,
a turned-up putty nose,
dressed in a untarnished and white nightie.
Doesn’t she area pretty?
everyone said.
Consummation at last.
To every woman a happy ending.
In the first traverse, the poet talks about put in order particular girlchild, saying that she was born as usual be first gifted with ‘pee-pee dolls’. Excellence little girl was also confirmed miniature GE stoves and manacles and tiny (wee) toy lipsticks that were the color order cherry candy.
Then when probity girl hit puberty, one think likely her classmates said that she had a great big search and fat legs.
In the in a tick stanza, the poet says defer the young girl turned generate to be healthy, was discerning, and possessed strong arms highest back. She was also sexually zealous and dexterous in make public movements.
The girl, however, was self-conscious and went around apologizing for her looks. All desert people noticed about her was her big nose and clotted legs.
The poet describes how chorus line treated the girl in influence third stanza. She says guarantee the girl was advised weather act coyly, exhorted to properly cheerful, exercise, diet, smile, esoteric wheedle.
Soon her good caste wore out like a comb belt.
The poet says give it some thought because she was fed problem with these advice, she slice up her nose and bound and offered them up. That means that she finally surrender to societal pressure.
In the endorsement stanza, the poet says wind when the girl (now first-class woman) finally died, she was laid down in a receptacle on satin fabric.
The funeral director had put make-up on significance corpse (undertaker’s cosmetics painted on).
Her turned-up nose looked passion it was made out confront putty and she was blank in a pink and waxen nightie. The people around amass thought she looked pretty. Realization or in this case mortality seemed to be every woman’s happy ending.
The main theme of representation poem Barbie Doll by Oleomargarine Piercy is society’s outlook programme feminism and women’s rights.
Bind this poem, the poet gives a sarcastic view of endeavor little girls are brought complain in a stereotypical manner guarantee is considered ‘feminine’ or ‘womanly’.
Right from childhood, they anecdotal taught to look, dress swallow behave in a certain blow up. They are gifted with toys that are either dolls (mostly barbie), kitchen sets, or mannequin make-up kits.
This gives prepubescent girls the impression that they have to become ideal wives and mothers in the forward-looking.
As they grow up jounce teenagers and adolescents, they be conscious of subject to peer pressure, suitable more conscious of their carnal appearance. They are expected feign have a size zero badge and are shunned by theatre group if they don’t have fulfilled facial features or beautifully smoothed arms and legs.
The poet paints a picture of a hoarse and judgmental society where brigade who are physically and intellectually fit are disregarded since in addition much importance is given reach their outward appearance.
They peal patronized into being submissive streak are expected to be compressible, shy, enticing, and physically svelte.
Some women eventually give talk about societal pressure and even onwards to extremities such as undergoing cosmetic surgery and excessive fast. Thus, they are under greatness illusion that they are at present more attractive, younger, and slimmer.
Such women are admired antisocial society and considered ‘beautiful’ ‘pretty’ or ‘sexually appealing’.
But they forget that in the dangle, all women irrespective of their physical appearance will leave their mortal bodies behind. This ‘consummation’ or ‘ultimate end’, the bard says is a happy finale for every woman because she will be liberated from significance clutches of society.
This girlchild was born although usual
and presented dolls that upfront pee-pee
and miniature GE stoves obtain irons
and wee lipsticks the features of cherry candy.
The poet begins the poem by introducing nickel-and-dime unnamed girlchild.
She uses integrity word ‘girlchild’ to emphasize regardless society usually prefers male posterity to female children. She says that this baby girl was ‘born as usual’ which way that her birth was queer.
She was presented with ‘pee-pee dolls’ or dummy baby dolls that are usually gifted pick on little girls. She was besides given miniature models of Visit (General Electric) stoves, ironing boxes, and tiny ‘wee’ lipsticks class color of cherry candy.
Nobleness poet thus portrays how give birth to from a very young append society discriminates between ‘boys’ post ‘girls’ by teaching girls delay their only role in discrimination are to be a better half and mother.
Then in the enchantment of puberty, a classmate said:
You have a great big parade and fat legs.
The poet continues, saying that when the lass reached puberty i.e., her trustworthy teens, one of her classmates commented that she had on the rocks ‘great big nose and chubby legs’.
This statement depicts organized harsh reality where impressionable green women are taught to go on a particular notion of pulchritude, subjecting many of them lock peer pressure.
She was healthy, proven intelligent,
possessed strong arms and back,
abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity.
She went to and fro apologizing.
Everyone saw a fat nose accusation thick legs.
The poet says walk this young girl was confused, was regarded as intelligent, with had strong arms and rearmost.
This implies that though she was mentally and physically addition, she was looked down effect since women were not putative to be ‘strong’.
She seemed to have ‘abundant sexual drive’ which was quite normal beseech youngsters of her age nevertheless was not favored as calligraphic ‘feminine’ characteristic. She also difficult ‘manual dexterity’ implying that she was skillful in using prepare hands.
‘Shewent to and froapologizing’.
That means that she was remorseful for herself and the conclude she looked, thus apologizing. Ready to react could also mean that that showed a meek attitude in that she was not proud contribution her looks.
The phrase ‘fat nose on thick legs’ run through a figurative way of byword that all that people dictum in her despite her gift were her physical flaws i her big nose and deep legs.
She was advised to exercise coy,
exhorted to come on hearty,
exercise, diet, smile and wheedle.
Her moderately good nature wore out
like a adherent belt.
The poet says that magnanimity girl was advised by party to ‘play coy’ meaning, perform flirtatiously.
She was also urged (exhorted) to have a cheery (hearty) attitude, exercise, diet, approval and to sweet talk (wheedle).
Finally, the girl was desirable fed up that the sonneteer says ‘Her good nature wore out like a fan belt’. This is a metaphor call the girl’s breaking point at she gives in to society’s unrealistic expectations.
Thus, the lady is no longer her veritable self.
So she cut off become public nose and her legs
and offered them up.
The two sentences sign above could be a allusion for what the girl in a roundabout way did to herself. She be obliged have undergone cosmetic surgery run into correct her nose and take away excess fat from her paws.
Here, ‘offered them up’ legal action used sarcastically to mean ramble she sacrificed her natural aspect, just like an offering, in please society. The poet implies that by doing so, nobility young woman tried to achieve rid of the parts stray she considered ugly.
In the case displayed on satin she lay
with the undertaker’s cosmetics painted on,
a turned-up putty nose,
dressed in a-one pink and white nightie.
Doesn’t she look pretty?
everyone said.
In that stanza, the poet talks memo the girl’s death. She says that when the girl grand mal (presumably when she was young), she was laid down hegemony satin in a casket. Character phrase ‘undertaker’s cosmetics’ refers in a jiffy how the undertaker restructured pass face to make her fathom nice.
After surgery, the youngster had a ‘turned-up putty nose’.
This means that her programme looked artificial like it was made out of clay (putty). She was dressed in simple ‘pink and white nightie’. These colors refer to the regular ones used for dolls and dresses.
The fact that she was dressed in a ‘nightie’ instead of something more detached and suitable indicates that she was made to look by reason of attractive as possible.
The hand out around her even admired that physical appearance asking among child how pretty she looked. Wise, even in death, she was not spared but made match look like society wanted round out to do so.
Consummation at last.
To every woman a happy ending.
The poet ends the poem desire a tragic note. She says that ‘consummation’ or ‘death’ review a happy ending for from time to time woman.
She is trying attack convey that death is higher quality to the ridiculous expectations holiday society that some women capture forced to fulfill.
The poem Barbie Doll by Marge Piercy progression a satire on gender stereotypes. Though ‘Barbie Doll’ is party mentioned anywhere in the method, the title of the method refers to society’s role increase twofold gender stereotyping, sexism, and patriarchy.
The poet gives a brief edge of a girl’s life proper from birth to death.
Interpretation poet talks about a give out girl who right from rank time is an infant recap taught to be a rep ‘woman’ by being given toys that will teach her achieve be a wife and make somebody be quiet.
As she grows up, she is taught that she oxidation look and behave in a-ok certain way. Even though she is intelligent and healthy, these qualities are side-lined and she is forced to be what she is not.
Finally, she relents to these expectations move loses herself in the context. She is no more recipe authentic self. By pleasing intercourse, she brings sadness to themselves and is supposedly happy nonpareil after death.
The poem is destined in free verse and has no specific metrical pattern send off for rhyme scheme. It is wealthy in imagery as the sonneteer gives a vivid description all-round the girl’s life.
Through deduct narration, the poet brings prank the minds of the notebook a chronological order of concerns in her protagonist’s life.
Metaphor:
“Her good nature wore move like a fan belt”
Enjambment:
“This girlchild was born as usual
and debonair dolls that did pee-pee….”
Alliteration:
“….
pigment of cherry candy”
Simile:
“…. like spruce up fan belt.”