Girl's Behavior

For the Love of Barbie!

I don't know if proclaiming love for Barbie is so politically correct these days. And yes, I know she has a dismorophic body and unrealistic measurements, and yes, I know as a woman of colour most of the barbies that were promoted are bleach blond and blue-eyed goddesses, but still, I cannot resist being mezmerized by her every time I set eyes on her! I don't know if it's her awesome lifestyle, her great accessories and clothes, or her friends. But every time without fail, I'm enchanted by her overall awesomeness.


For the Love of Barbie!


Childhood memories are so powerful that, I'm almost 40 years old, and yet buying a new barbie always gives me a huge rush. I have a young daughter and I'm literally addicted to getting her all the cute barbies I can find, to watching all the Barbie movies with her, and just enjoying in this innocent magical world that you can only access when you're young girl. I guess I'm trying to relive that period in my life and to be honest, I don't regret a minute of it despite all the flack and bad publicity Barbie has received the past few years. Barbie is more than a brand, she is a way of a life, and usually a girl's first introduction into imagining herself as a woman.


There was something safe in knowing Barbie would always have Ken and that they'd live happily ever after. She was the material access to my childhood fairy tales and I could re-enact them as many times as I wanted. It didn't matter if she was white and I wasn't, or super-modelesque. She transcends all races, creeds, colours and classes because almost every girl has a Barbie in common.


For the Love of Barbie!


Nowadays, I love that Barbie comes in many different 'races', I enjoy it more as a grown woman because I feel like I've been vindicated (even if it took 25 years) and that Mattel heard all of our little minority voices secretly wishing to have ourselves represented in a Barbie-like form. Better too late than never. Dolls invite children to imagine themselves in the doll's image and Mattel now knows that one "standard image" is simply not enough.


For the Love of Barbie!


I also don't think loving Barbie is any different than the idolization modern media participates in when they obsesses about starlets and socialites, non-stop. I rather love Barbie, because she is still not as sexualized as images of teen and tween idols that young girls are taught to worship today. And with Barbie, you had to have an imagination - you could come up with your own stories and names and places and model her to you. I think that's why I loved her so much back then, if not more now. The relationship went both ways. I had 20 Barbies as a kid, carefully collected and to me they all had unique personalities and names that I can still remember to this day, like an old trusted friend.


I feel as if young girls are losing their childhoods faster and faster these days - and though I cannot fight the societal tidal waves of brainwashing, and of the media shaping desires and commodifying the youth, I'll still chose to stand behind Barbie as a lesser of the many evils, and a doorway to a time when being a girl was just simpler.


Right or wrong, I want to thank Barbie for all the memories and that it's a love that will endure.


For the Love of Barbie!


Did you ever love Barbie?






For the Love of Barbie!
Post Opinion