Marge Piercy's Barbie Doll

In the poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy, the tone of the poem starts off with a child-like feel to it. The main character in the poem is a girlchild who “was born as usual” (line 1) but never gets the chance to feel contend or safe in who she is for her character but is judged by others for her looks; when all she wants is to be accepted for who she is as a person. The girlchild in this poem embodies all girls in society. It shows a little insight that each little girl was made to feel unaccepted because of their inadequacies at one point or another. Particularly in women, society has continuously had some type of control over each individual’s lives. In our American culture, the public encourages women on how to dress, act, think and be in the chance to stay accepted. From a young age, little girls are projected to convert into seamless feminine trophies, learning how to cook, clean, and iron for their prospective spouses.” Barbie Doll” hones in on the social characters in contrast to a doll. The author keenly shows a glimpse of foreshadowing and theme even before the poem begins with the title “Barbie Doll” which is the most iconic and idolized toy

With puberty, changes to the body begin to ensue. Whether we like them or not, body parts begin to grow, hair starts forming in weird, unsuspecting places, and let us not forgets the smells that begin to follow. That is when the condemnation of her classmates follow suit, “You have a great big nose and fat legs.” (Line 6) At this point, the girlchild initiates the re-evaluation of her appearance and becomes self-conscious in her own skin. Her classmates are only doing what they see adults do. Children mirror what they hear their parents talk about day in and day out. Children need to test their boundaries to learn their role in the world. What can they get away with and what is forbidden