Daniella Razzouk | Staff Writer

Having grown up in the late 2000s and early 2010s, the Barbie movies played an important role in my life. The movies featured questionable animation and stories that ranged from classic fairy tales like Rapunzel to wholly original stories. The most memorable part of these movies was the songs. I still have the words memorized now, a full decade after I out-grew the movies. These movies, often lovingly referred to as the “Barbie cinematic universe”, hold a very special place in the hearts of many, myself included. 

However, in my tween/early teen years, I began to notice that not everyone online shared the same affection for Barbie and her cinematic universe. In most online spaces that discussed Barbie, they viewed her as an evil incarnate. Apparently, Barbie had been representing herself as the standard that young girls felt forced to attain but would never be able to. Barbie was somehow subconsciously convincing every young girl that she had to be white, blonde with blue eyes, and impossibly thin in order to be beautiful. This confused me. I was a fat, Arab girl with dark curly hair and dark eyes, but I’d never thought of Barbie this way. Even if I felt unrepresented in the media I watched, that wasn’t Barbie’s fault. None of the characters I saw growing up looked like me, but I still loved those characters more than anything. This discovery changed the way I thought of Barbie for a while, turning her into my enemy when for so long I had seen her as my friend.

Fast-forward to today and Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is taking the world by storm, earning over a billion dollars (and counting) in box-office sales worldwide. The excitement for this movie was palpable before it was even released with many sharing their fond memories of their Barbie-filled childhoods, including the original Barbie cinematic universe. Unlike ten years ago, people who had grown up watching these movies and still held fond memories of her had the ability to share their fondness in online spaces. For the first time, I saw my original experience with Barbie represented online. She wasn’t perfect, but she wasn’t evil either. Barbie was, literally, everything. Her potential was endless, and that is reflected in her movies where she’s been a surfer, a princess, a fashion designer, a reader, an actress, a florist, a tailor, and so much more. Barbie also has friends as well as sisters that she loves, each with their own identity and appearance that many could relate to.

I know Barbie isn’t perfect. Barbie is a brand, and no matter how much nostalgia may cloud my vision, I know that the point of Barbie has always been to make as much money as possible. There have been countless attempts, and therefore, countless doll lines, many of which are actively harmful. This includes the “Teen Talk Barbie”, released in 1992 that says things like “Math is Tough”, or “Slumber Party Barbie”, released in 1965 that came with a bathroom scale permanently set at 110 pounds as well as a book entitled “How to Lose Weight” with directions simply stating “Don’t eat”. I’m also aware that while Barbie might not have done much damage to me as a child, this is not necessarily everyone’s experience, dolls that look like the classic Barbie have been connected to eating disorders in young girls (Anschutz, et al). Some efforts have been made by the brand in recent years to focus more on diversity and representation in their doll lines, but only time will tell whether those efforts are enough.

The issue of representation in kids’ media is not limited to Barbie or “girl’s media” and needs to be given the attention it deserves. I experienced this firsthand my entire childhood, where something as common as curly hair was only ever to be found in the before pictures. However, this is not a problem that can be solved by transforming Barbie into the representative of all that is harmful in kids’ media. It is important for kids to feel represented in the media they watch and the toys they play with. In this regard, Barbie’s fundamental premise of unlimited potential is a clear advantage. However, proper representation goes beyond simply selling dolls of different skin tones.  Part of what makes Barbie so iconic is the media and cartoons made to market it. While the movies I grew up watching have fallen out of fashion, shows such as Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse or her YouTube channel remain popular. Through such platforms, the narrative around Barbie evolves and can transform Barbie into something every child can see themselves in. In short, Barbie is a children’s toy that has existed for decades. This popularity has the potential to allow children to see themselves in the media they love, but it can also hurt them if proper representation is not prioritized. Barbie can be a tool to achieve great things, but it can also be used to harm many. Her vilification was unearned, and the only way forward is to expand upon what has already been built instead of trying to destroy it all.

Sources

Anschutz, Doeschka J, and Rutger C M E Engels. “The Effects of Playing with Thin Dolls on Body Image and Food Intake in Young Girls.” Sex roles vol. 63,9–10 (2010): 621–630. doi:10.1007/s11199–010–9871–6