Feminism has always been a prevalent issue in societies all over the world. Marge Piercy wrote "Barbie Doll" during the second- wave feminism period, where issues were focused mainly on social and cultural barriers. By using dark humor, irony, sarcasm and a narrative set up, "Barbie Doll" conveys the issue of gender and social expectations, while the secondary article gives an affirmative background and meaning to the actual issue of second- wave feminism.

The use of dark humor and irony in "Barbie Doll" show the general reaction to women's rights during this time. In lines one to three Piercy writes, "This girlchild was boring as usual and presented dolls that did pee-pee and miniature GE stoves and irons" which after further research into the second-wave of feminism shows the stereotype of how girls should be in the 1970's: pretty, and be able to cook and clean. In the secondary article, women's employment was called into question, saying that most women only worked part time so they could tend to their housewife duties for the remainder of their time, because overall it was the man's job to work full time and make the majority of the money. This article also talked about how women unionists were "either invisible in these accounts or dismissed as unimportant to the development of feminism's objectives and strategies", meaning that society viewed many women groups as counteractive to the feminism movement. 

Throughout the secondary article, historical facts on events and issues are consistently discussed, many revolving around sex discrimination on top of equal employment. One woman from Missouri was quoted in the article saying: "I believe justice demands that we receive these same right, privileges and rewards as male workers"; but she did not think that women with small children should be working because it is their main priority to be taking care of their children. Even women during this time period believed that tending to their children should be a woman's top priority. In July of 1965, there were large amounts of sex discrimination charges being filed at work places, but the attention was focused on abolishing racial discrimination. No labor organization could avoid sex discrimination charges, for on some level they did unfairly treat women. In some work places, women's positions were sabotaged by giving them hard tasks that would usually require a men's help, in hopes they would abandon their jobs. Women were "fighting for survival" during the period of second-wave feminism, and they barely had any help. 

The audience that "Barbie Doll" targeted was women, and young girls who could relate to what Piercy was writing about.  From reading into the secondary article, Piercy is targeting an audience of women's rights activists, or anyone who would listen. Women, and young girls today who read "Barbie Doll" have the potential to be influenced by Piercy's strong message. Young girls especially who learn about sexism, and gender expectations in school, have more of a connection to what is being discussed because they have another source of information, similar to the secondary article. The article discusses how not only women were fighting for their own rights, many industrial unionists were as well, concluding that the general audience being targeted in the article was the public as a whole, but providing more factual evidence to the issue. 

With the new found awareness of the issue of sex segregation, more and more people and parties started to protest the working conditions in which women were exposed to. The Kennedy administration's President's Commission on the status of Women report was released in 1963, along with the Title VII, both of these creating motivation for feminists to fight for their rights. The secondary article shed more light as to what "Barbie Doll" was arguing. The article interpreted what Piercy was saying in a deeper, more factual manner, giving light to the many issues within second- wave feminism. It does this by going more in depth on the gender equality problems that women faced, not just the social expectations or objectification through physical features. The poem's main focus was to criticize the way society judged and objectified women in the late 1900's during the struggle for women's rights. Piercy's main concern was to show people how the harsh treatment and expectations of women affects them. It was a powerful message that definitely would have grabbed the readers attention, however, the secondary article gives a new interpretation of "Barbie Doll". It brings the reader to realize the severity of sex discrimination that is goes beyond objectification; it affects a woman's lifestyle in its entirety. The secondary article is an example of a reliable, informative source, which can further educate the reader on second- wave feminism and the issues revolving around that time. 

Marge Piercy wrote "Barbie Doll" to show how serious of an issue gender and social expectations are. The secondary article informs the reader of the more specific issues within those gender and social expectations, giving more educational information on the topic of second- wave feminism. Both the poem, and the article spread awareness to the general public of the severity of the issue of sex discrimination, not only in the work place but also in society as a whole. It is because of articles and literary pieces such a these that the feminism movement began, and real change was made to benefit the quality of life for women. 

