Barbie the Teenage Fashion Doll Essay examples - 1212 Words

The idea of Barbie came about when a woman named Ruth Handler was watching her daughter play with dolls. In the 1950’s, girls of all ages only had paper or cardboard dolls to play with and preferred to play with cut outs of teenagers and adult dolls. So, Ruth Handler thought to make The Teenage Fashion Doll for older girls, as a three dimensional doll, called Barbie, named after her daughter Barbara (Heppermann 2010). However, Mrs. Handler met resistance when she went to her husband with the idea, and he didn’t think her idea would work out. When they travelled to Germany, she found a doll called Bild Lilli. This doll was a strong-minded individual that would use all at her disposal to get what she wanted. Bild Lilli was†¦show more content†¦Young girls usually use the dolls to play house or dress-up. Sometimes when there is an accompanying set, there are simple instructions given for example, if the Barbie doll came with the Glam Fashion Jet, it would b e accompanied with instructions of how to use each part of the jet. Moreover, Barbies are very durable and depending on how well they are maintained, they can become family heirlooms and be passed on from generation to generation. Often, depending on the age of the child, the Barbie may be altered either by the cutting of her hair or the changing of her clothes. Yet, due to the fact that Barbie is a lifestyle toy, children are encouraged to continue these alterations to promote creative thought. Therefore overall, Barbies can last indefinitely with proper care or be short-lived if they are not well taken care of. Barbie’s popularity spread like wildfire, leading to her being used as a platform to immortalize popular figures by way of making special editions figures of them. For instance, America’s First Lady in the 60s, Jackie Kennedy was one of the first muses and hence set precedence for future icons. This also extends to many designers such as Christian Louboutin, Vera Wang, and Alexander McQueen who have collaborated with Mattel to celebrate Barbie’s 50TH anniversary, in 2009 (Parker, 2008). This form of branding provides notoriety for both the inspirational figure and his work and for the toy as well. This is no small feat forShow MoreRelatedBarbie Dolls On Young Children Essay1479 Words   |  6 PagesMattel: Influences of Barbie dolls on young children Mattel is considered one of the most leading industry when it comes to the invention of toys and video games. Mattel is also a leading brand company that researches and develops new toys and then buys or license them from inventors. But what exactly are they doing to convince us consumers to buy their products? For the past decades now, Barbie dolls mainly created by Mattel have grown tremendously and have made a huge impact to children’s livesRead MoreEssay on Informative Speech - Barbie940 Words   |  4 PagesOutline To inform the audience about Barbie Doll March 27, 2014 I. Introduction: A. She has had more than 80 careers in her lifetime, from a Rock Star to a paleontologist, to a Presidential candidate. Many of you in this room have probably either purchased or owned one†¦she is Barbie!! B. With her good looks, charm, and charisma, she won audiences over in record time. C. Preview of Main Points: 1. First, I will discuss the Origination of Barbie. 2. Second, I will discuss her growingRead More Barbie Essays1716 Words   |  7 PagesBarbie Since the beginning of time, toys have often been an indicator of the way a society behaves, and how they interact with their children. For example, in ancient Greece, artifacts recovered there testify that children were simply not given toys to play with as in the modern world. The cruel ritual of leaving a sick child on a hillside for dead, seems to indicate a lack of attention to the young (Lord 16). The same is true of today’s society. As you can see with the number of toy storesRead MoreBarbie And The Barbie Doll1006 Words   |  5 Pageslays, Barbie. You might be wondering who this Barbie person is. I am not talking about a real person. I am talking about Barbie, the doll. B. Girls all around the world grew up playing with a Barbie doll. When first released she was a plastic, white skinned, thin, long legged teenage girl. She wore a tiny black and white stripped bathing suit with a pair of sunglasses sitting upon her head on top of her blonde colored hair. C. 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In Marge Piercy’s poem entitled â€Å"Barbie Doll† the title foreshadows the theme of the poem which is that girls are ultimately and fatally entrapped by society’s narrow definitions of femini ne behavior and beauty. When Piercy compares the young lady in the poem to a Barbie doll she is revealingRead MoreMattel s Iconic And Best Selling Brand924 Words   |  4 Pages Mattel’s iconic and best-selling brand is The Barbie. Introduced in 1959 as â€Å"The Teenage Fashion Model,† Barbie allowed girls to experience fashion and to explore various dreams, fantasies and aspirations without ever leaving home. Because of the introduction of the television in the 1950 s, companies discovered a new consumer audience among children and teenagers. The post-war era saw a strong economy advancing the middle class suburban families. Now, buying toys became a year round businessRead More The Creation of Barbie as an American Icon Essay examples2452 Words   |  10 PagesThe Creation of Barbie as an American Icon Barbie, at the age of 41, is one of the longest living toys in America. Analyzing her early history can give a person a look into the societal trends and culture of the late 1950s and early 1960s. There is evidence of fashion innovations in Barbies wardrobe. Also, one can see the perception of females by society, such as what they should look like, how they should act and dress, as well as what their future goals could be. The following essay followsRead MoreThe Between Media And Body Image1348 Words   |  6 Pagessociety. Reading of the fashion magazines that women use these magazines for information about how to be thin and beautiful that should be influencing Females’ dieting behaviors. Everyday teenage girls and women are victim with a narrow definition of beauty, which is only limited in physical appearance. In addition, it is influenced by mass media. The Barbie doll is one of the advertisement of mass media, which also effect on the young girls to binge eating their food. Barbie is very famous femaleRead MoreMovie Analysis : The Blonde Barbie Doll1725 Words   |  7 Pages Initially, the blonde Barbie doll received a disappointing lukewarm reception from the market because most mothers wished their young girls to remain a little younger without jumping to the teenage Barbie overnight. However, Mattel had a masterpiece plan in promoting the toys through the television and mainly children’s TV. In the late 1950’s, most homes in America had television and children’s program had become a regular part of the programming. Subsequently, the Mattel advertisers managed to