Understanding the Barbie Doll Poem: A Deep Dive

The “Barbie Doll” poem, written by Marge Piercy in 1971, is a powerful piece of literature that explores society’s expectations of women and the harmful effects of these pressures.

In this post, we’ll break down the poem, look at its different parts, and talk about what it all means.

We’ll use easy-to-understand language to help you really get the poem’s message.

The Poem: Barbie Doll by Marge Piercy

Before we start our analysis, let’s read the poem:

This girlchild was born as usual and presented dolls that did pee-pee and miniature GE stoves and irons and wee lipsticks the color of cherry candy. Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said: You have a great big nose and fat legs.

She was healthy, tested intelligent, possessed strong arms and back, abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity. She went to and fro apologizing. Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs.

She was advised to play coy, exhorted to come on hearty, exercise, diet, smile and wheedle. Her good nature wore out like a fan belt. So she cut off her nose and her legs and offered them up.

In the casket displayed on satin she lay with the undertaker’s cosmetics painted on, a turned-up putty nose, dressed in a pink and white nightie. Doesn’t she look pretty? everyone said. Consummation at last. To every woman a happy ending.

Breaking Down the Poem: Stanza by Stanza

Stanza 1: The Birth and Early Years

Let’s look at the first part of the poem:

This girlchild was born as usual and presented dolls that did pee-pee and miniature GE stoves and irons and wee lipsticks the color of cherry candy. Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said: You have a great big nose and fat legs.

In this stanza, we see the birth of a girl and her early childhood. The poet uses the word “girlchild” instead of just “girl,” which makes us think about how society sees girls as small or less important than boys from the very start.

The toys the girl gets are all about being a mother (dolls that pee) or doing housework (toy stoves and irons). Even the lipstick, which is described as small and candy-colored, shows how early girls are introduced to makeup and the idea of looking pretty.

The last two lines are a harsh change. Suddenly, the girl is going through puberty, and a classmate insults her looks. This shows how girls often face cruel judgment about their bodies as they grow up.

Stanza 2: The Girl’s True Self vs. Society’s View

She was healthy, tested intelligent, possessed strong arms and back, abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity. She went to and fro apologizing. Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs.

In this stanza, we see a big difference between who the girl really is and how others see her. The poem lists her good qualities: she’s healthy, smart, strong, and skilled with her hands. She even has a strong sex drive, which shows she’s a normal, healthy person.

But despite all these positive traits, the girl keeps saying sorry. The last line shows that people only see her “flaws” – her nose and legs that were insulted earlier. This part of the poem shows how society often ignores women’s real qualities and only focuses on how they look.

Stanza 3: Society’s Conflicting Demands

She was advised to play coy, exhorted to come on hearty, exercise, diet, smile and wheedle. Her good nature wore out like a fan belt. So she cut off her nose and her legs and offered them up.

This stanza shows all the confusing and often opposite things society tells women to do. She’s told to “play coy” (act shy and innocent) but also to “come on hearty” (be strong and confident). She’s told to exercise and diet (to change her body), and to smile and “wheedle” (try to persuade people by being charming).

All these demands wear her down, like a fan belt that’s been used too much. The last two lines are shocking – they say she cut off her nose and legs. This isn’t meant to be taken literally. Instead, it’s a powerful way of showing how the girl tries to change herself completely to fit what others want, even if it means destroying who she really is.

Stanza 4: The Tragic Ending

In the casket displayed on satin she lay with the undertaker’s cosmetics painted on, a turned-up putty nose, dressed in a pink and white nightie. Doesn’t she look pretty? everyone said. Consummation at last. To every woman a happy ending.

The final stanza is set at the girl’s funeral. Even in death, she’s made to look “pretty” with makeup and a fake nose. The poem is saying that society cares more about a woman looking good than about her being alive and real.

The last three lines are bitter and sarcastic. People say she looks pretty, and the poem calls this a “happy ending.” But it’s not happy at all – the girl had to die to finally be seen as beautiful. The word “Consummation” usually means the completion of a marriage, but here it means the completion of society’s work in turning the girl into a perfect, lifeless doll.

Key Themes in the Poem

1. Society’s Expectations of Women

Throughout the poem, we see how society puts a lot of pressure on women to look and act in certain ways. From the toys given to little girls to the comments about their bodies and the advice to diet and smile, the poem shows how women are constantly told to change themselves to please others.

Example: The line “She was advised to play coy, exhorted to come on hearty” shows how women are often given conflicting messages about how to behave.

2. The Harm of Beauty Standards

The poem strongly criticizes the idea that a woman’s worth is based on her looks. The girl in the poem has many good qualities, but people only focus on her appearance. This leads to her feeling like she needs to completely change herself, which the poem presents as a kind of death.

Example: The line “Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs” shows how people ignored all the girl’s positive traits and only focused on her appearance.

3. Loss of Identity

As the girl in the poem tries to meet society’s expectations, she loses her true self. The act of cutting off her nose and legs symbolizes how women might feel they need to destroy parts of themselves to fit in.

Example: The line “So she cut off her nose and her legs and offered them up” is a powerful image of self-destruction in the name of fitting in.

4. The Objectification of Women

The poem compares women to dolls, suggesting that society treats women like objects to be looked at rather than real people with thoughts and feelings. This is especially clear in the last stanza, where the dead girl is described like a doll on display.

Example: The title “Barbie Doll” itself suggests that women are expected to be like perfect, plastic dolls.

Literary Devices Used in the Poem

1. Imagery

The poem uses strong, often disturbing images to make its point. For example, the image of the girl cutting off her nose and legs is shocking and memorable.

2. Irony

There’s a lot of irony in the poem, especially in the last stanza. The idea that the girl’s death is a “happy ending” is deeply ironic and highlights the absurdity of society’s expectations.

3. Symbolism

The Barbie doll itself is a symbol of unrealistic beauty standards. The toys given to the girl at the beginning symbolize the limited roles society expects women to fill.

4. Sarcasm

The last lines of the poem use sarcasm to drive home the point about society’s twisted values. The phrase “To every woman a happy ending” is clearly not meant to be taken at face value.

Historical Context of the Poem

Marge Piercy wrote “Barbie Doll” in 1971, during a time of significant social change in the United States. The women’s rights movement was in full swing, and people were starting to question traditional gender roles and expectations.

The Barbie doll itself, which had been introduced in 1959, was becoming a cultural icon. While it was popular, it was also starting to face criticism for promoting unrealistic body standards for girls.

By using the Barbie doll as a symbol in her poem, Piercy was tapping into these ongoing discussions about women’s roles and beauty standards in society.

The Poet: Marge Piercy

Marge Piercy is an American poet, novelist, and social activist. Born in 1936, she has been a prominent voice in feminist literature for decades. Many of her works, including “Barbie Doll,” deal with themes of gender roles, social expectations, and the experiences of women in society.

Piercy’s own experiences growing up in a working-class family in Detroit during the Great Depression influenced her writing. She often writes about the struggles of ordinary people, especially women, in a society that can be oppressive and unfair.

Impact and Relevance of the Poem

Even though “Barbie Doll” was written over 50 years ago, its message still resonates today. While society has made progress in many areas of gender equality, unrealistic beauty standards and pressure on women to look and act certain ways are still very much present.

The poem continues to be studied in schools and universities because it raises important questions about gender roles, societal expectations, and the value we place on appearance versus other qualities.

In today’s world of social media and constant exposure to edited and filtered images, the pressure to look “perfect” can be even more intense than when the poem was written. This makes “Barbie Doll” perhaps even more relevant now than it was in 1971.

How to Analyze a Poem: Tips and Tricks

If you’re studying “Barbie Doll” or any other poem, here are some steps you can follow to analyze it:

1. Read the poem multiple times: First for overall understanding, then to notice details.
2. Look at the title: What does it suggest about the poem’s theme?
3. Identify the speaker: Who is telling the story or expressing the thoughts in the poem?
4. Consider the tone: What’s the overall mood or attitude of the poem?
5. Look for literary devices: Metaphors, similes, personification, etc.
6. Analyze the structure: How is the poem organized? Does it have a specific form?
7. Examine word choice: Why did the poet choose these specific words?
8. Think about the context: When was the poem written? What was happening in the world at that time?
9. Consider the theme: What is the main idea or message of the poem?
10. Reflect on your reaction: How does the poem make you feel? Why?

Connecting “Barbie Doll” to Other Works

“Barbie Doll” is part of a long tradition of literature that critiques society’s treatment of women. Here are a few other works you might find interesting if you liked this poem:

1. “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman: A short story about a woman’s mental health decline due to restrictive gender roles.
2. “The Bell Jar” by Sylvia Plath: A novel that explores a young woman’s struggle with societal expectations and mental illness.
3. “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid: A short story written as a list of instructions from a mother to her daughter, showing societal expectations for women.
4. “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou: A poem about resilience in the face of oppression, including sexism.
5. “The Beauty Myth” by Naomi Wolf: A non-fiction book that examines how images of beauty are used against women.

Reading these works alongside “Barbie Doll” can give you a broader understanding of how different writers have approached similar themes.

Conclusion

“Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy is a powerful and thought-provoking poem that challenges us to think about how society treats women. Through its vivid imagery and biting irony, the poem shows the harmful effects of unrealistic beauty standards and restrictive gender roles.

The poem’s enduring relevance speaks to the ongoing need for discussions about gender equality and societal expectations. By studying works like “Barbie Doll,” we can become more aware of these issues and work towards creating a more inclusive and accepting society.

Remember, the true value of a person lies not in their appearance or their ability to meet societal standards, but in their character, abilities, and unique qualities. The tragedy of the “girlchild” in the poem is that society never appreciated her for who she truly was – a lesson we would all do well to remember in our own lives.

Related Articles

Analyzing Themes In The Poem ‘Barbie Doll’

Analysis of Marge Piercy’s “Barbie Doll”

FAQs about “Barbie Doll” Poem

1. Q: Who wrote the “Barbie Doll” poem? A: The “Barbie Doll” poem was written by Marge Piercy, an American poet, novelist, and social activist.
2. Q: When was the “Barbie Doll” poem written? A: The poem was written in 1971.
3. Q: What is the main theme of the “Barbie Doll” poem? A: The main theme is the harmful effect of society’s expectations and beauty standards on women.
4. Q: Is the poem literally about a Barbie doll? A: No, the poem uses the idea of a Barbie doll as a symbol for unrealistic beauty standards imposed on women.
5. Q: Why does the poem end with the girl’s death? A: The girl’s death symbolizes the destruction of her true self in trying to meet society’s impossible standards.
6. Q: What does “girlchild” mean in the poem? A: “Girlchild” emphasizes the idea that society treats women as less than fully adult or human from a young age.
7. Q: What do the toys given to the girl at the beginning of the poem represent? A: The toys represent traditional gender roles that society imposes on girls from a young age.
8. Q: Is the poem still relevant today? A: Yes, many people feel the poem’s critique of beauty standards and societal pressure on women is still very relevant.
9. Q: What does “consummation” mean in the last stanza? A: In this context, “consummation” ironically refers to the completion of society’s work in molding the girl into its ideal image.
10. Q: Why is the poem called “Barbie Doll”? A: The title refers to the Barbie doll as a symbol of unrealistic and harmful beauty standards for women.