The author of “Barbie Doll”, Marge Piercy, is know as a American poet, novelist, social activist, and social force for the feminist movement. “Barbie Doll” is a narrative that was published in 1971 during the second wave of feminism. The message the poem portrays is how a patriarchal society puts expectations and pressures on women through gender role stereotyping. It tells a story about a girl who dies trying to meet the unrealistic expectations that society holds for her. It starts off talking about a little girl, and then continues chronologically through the girl’s life. Using strong diction and various rhetorical devices, the poem hits on strong feminist issues such as gender stereotypes, sexism, and the effect of a patriarchal society. Marge Piercy wrote this poem during an era of second wave of feminism, a time in which women were concerned about sexuality, family, and the workplace. This ties in with Barbie Doll because the poem is expressing the stereotypes, sexism, and patriarchal influences that women were submitted to during the 1960s. The purpose of the poem was to display the struggle women faced because of these societal issues in hopes of changing them.

The Second-wave feminism is a period of feminist activity and it is believed to have began in the early 1960s in the United States, and eventually spread throughout the Western world and beyond. In the United States the movement lasted through the early 1980s. The first-wave feminism focused mainly on woman suffrage and overturning legal obstacles to gender equality. Woman at the time fought to abolish unfair laws.

An example of these laws is coverture, which is a law that insisted, “that a married woman did not have a separate legal existence from her husband. A married woman covert was a dependent, like an underage child or slave, and could not own property in her own name or control her own earnings, except under very specific circumstances (Woman and the Law)”. The traditional housewife was not able to neither possess property nor control the financial aspects of the family during this time period. The second-wave feminism broadened the debate to a wide range of issues: sexuality, family, the workplace, and inequalities. 

The title of the poem came from the Barbie doll. Barbie’s were a prominent cultural icon during this time period, expressing what the perfect American woman should be like. It instead represented unattainable body standards and a life filled with stereotyped gender roles. This representation led to women looking up to something that did not actually exist in reality, and as the story goes in the poem, the girl ended up dying trying to be what her Barbie represented. This can even be seen in our society now, called the “Barbie effect”. Overall, Barbie does not have the best effect on young girls, and that later carries on through the rest of their life. Barbie's effect has caused bankruptcy, low self-esteem, and eating disorders. Leading to death. This beautiful doll gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “if looks could kill” (Glausiusz). The first stanza begins with a girl being born; fitting perfectly into a mold provided by the society she was born into. The stanza goes on listing toys that the little girl played with, such as dolls and miniature GE stoves and irons. The doll is a very important part of this stanza, as well as in the entire poem. The Barbie Doll has been a cultural icon since it was created in 1959, a little over 10 years before this poem was published. In the context of this poem, the Barbie Doll ends up being a negative aspect of the girl’s life, creating a poor self-body image among other problems.

In the next stanza Piercy talks about the girl in terms of what attributes she held, but also how she and society did not see them. She was described as healthy, smart, strong, sexually able, and fast, yet she did not see any of these things. She had learned from the time when she was a just a child that she had imperfections and was not good enough. She compared herself to her doll, and therefore apologized to society for her imperfections. She did not see the good in herself, only the comparison between what she was and what society says she should be. In this stanza, her qualities are listed one after another, which is then followed by her disapproval. Piercy proceeds to talk about the sexist expectations that society has placed upon the girl. As a girl, “she was advised to play coy, advised to come on hearty, exercise, diet, smile and wheedle” (Piercy). This list shows the expectations that are placed upon women in society. The power within the society is what is responsible for the belief of certain “standards” of women. Women are expected to play nice, come across as good girls, be skinny, eat little, and be happy all of the time. There is sexism represented in these lines because only women have lengthy expectations to meet. Piercy’s diction in this stanza creates a powerful vision of the way people exert their influence on young women. She ultimately died trying to be as perfect as her Barbie Doll, a cookie cutter woman molded by society. She died trying to reach something that was unattainable which is where the real problem lies. She was displayed in her casket, all dolled up. Society had finally made her who it wanted her to be, but at the cost of her life. Now that she was covered in makeup, reconstructed, and nicely dressed, she was considered pretty. The stanza finishes with the line “to every woman a happy ending." This shows that in the end, this was all she wanted. She strived and strived to meet society’s unrealistic expectations and when she died trying, she finally did. Being viewed as pretty by society was her goal, and she accomplished it.

Although “Barbie Doll” might be understood as a product of the 1970s feminism, it raises questions about gender and social expectations that remain relevant. The girl in the poem was born in innocence, but because of the society she was born and raised in to, she became corrupted. This poem shows a sad case of girl who lived trying to be perfect and died trying. From the very beginning she was taught to cook, clean, and be who she was “supposed” to be, or in other words, who society told her she was. Because of these sexist influences, she was never completely satisfied with herself. The tortures of society cost the girl her life. 
