Maplewood Motherhood: Notes from the Field
Mom Locked in Barbie Battle
Barbie symbolizes the triumph of image over substance, but my girls love her. What am I to do?
I have painted myself into a corner with nail polish and eye shadow. Let me explain. As a child, I was a nature-loving girl growing up in rural Michigan. Now I'm a scientist with three daughters, living in this diverse-funky-happening little community just outside the city line. My 'city' daughters are more savvy and worldly than I ever was. And they love Barbie. I hate Barbie. She makes my blood run cold — from her thick eye shadow and perfect hair, to her unnaturally long skinny spaghetti legs, and skimpy attire. I know she has a 50-year history of entertaining American girls so I should respect her vintage status. I don't. We own zero Barbie dolls. I dread the day my little girls grow up and begin to compare themselves to Barbie dolls (…
Jamie
7:21 pm on Saturday, January 1, 2011
I have a daughter who is petite and beautiful, but she will never be tall, nor will she be proportioned like Barbie, and I don't want her to feel a sense of inadequacy regarding her shape. I disagree with the message of materialism and immodesty that Barbie communicates to girls. I have been to many homes where Barbies are stored in a bin, mostly with matted hair, naked and jumbled together like … more ›