In “Barbie Doll,” Marge Piercy destroys the preconceived notion that a woman has to be “perfect” to be beautiful. Piercy uses the title, diction, and repetition to show that a woman is not perfect nor should she be expected to be.
Piercy uses the title “Barbie Doll” as a way to bring the image of a stereotypically “perfect” woman to the forefront of her audience’s mind. The use of the title juxtaposed against the “girlchild[‘s]” (1) own body in “you have a great big nose and fat legs” (6) paints a picture of a woman striving to achieve an impossible body image. Barbie has an eighteen inch waist which, while possible, is extremely unhealthy. Piercy then mentions the woman’s suicide “so she cut off her nose and her legs,” (17) further maintaining …show more content…
The speaker reiterates the fact that the “girlchild” (1) has “a great big nose and fat legs” (6) three times. This reflects the internal struggle women go through to achieve the impossible body image. Each instance is surrounded by a negative connotation, such as, “She went to and fro apologizing. / Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs.” (10-11) She hated the body she was given because society deemed it “unfit.” On the third occasion she “[cuts] off her nose and her legs / and [offers] them up.” (17-18) The reader may suspect metaphorically at first but the narrator soon tells of her “turned up putty nose” (21) at her funeral, leading into the last lines which reveal the sardonic tone of the poem, “Consummation at last. / To every woman a happy ending.” Which emphasizes how utterly useless it is to hate one’s “big nose and fat legs.” (6) Through repetition and tone the poet unveils her theme: beauty is what society deems “appropriate,” however; society is flawed.
“Barbie Doll” illustrates a woman moving through her life. In the end, though, the pressures placed on her break down her resolve and she ends her life; “consummation at last.” Her life of suffering through society’s pressures to look and act a certain way is
Piercy uses the title “Barbie Doll” as a way to bring the image of a stereotypically “perfect” woman to the forefront of her audience’s mind. The use of the title juxtaposed against the “girlchild[‘s]” (1) own body in “you have a great big nose and fat legs” (6) paints a picture of a woman striving to achieve an impossible body image. Barbie has an eighteen inch waist which, while possible, is extremely unhealthy. Piercy then mentions the woman’s suicide “so she cut off her nose and her legs,” (17) further maintaining …show more content…
The speaker reiterates the fact that the “girlchild” (1) has “a great big nose and fat legs” (6) three times. This reflects the internal struggle women go through to achieve the impossible body image. Each instance is surrounded by a negative connotation, such as, “She went to and fro apologizing. / Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs.” (10-11) She hated the body she was given because society deemed it “unfit.” On the third occasion she “[cuts] off her nose and her legs / and [offers] them up.” (17-18) The reader may suspect metaphorically at first but the narrator soon tells of her “turned up putty nose” (21) at her funeral, leading into the last lines which reveal the sardonic tone of the poem, “Consummation at last. / To every woman a happy ending.” Which emphasizes how utterly useless it is to hate one’s “big nose and fat legs.” (6) Through repetition and tone the poet unveils her theme: beauty is what society deems “appropriate,” however; society is flawed.
“Barbie Doll” illustrates a woman moving through her life. In the end, though, the pressures placed on her break down her resolve and she ends her life; “consummation at last.” Her life of suffering through society’s pressures to look and act a certain way is