Please Help Me With My Homework/Research/Survey

[*Jibrielle*]

Thank you!

 

[mustard]

Barbie girl

Hi everyone

I'm researching my dissertation on Barbie and the media and its influence on young girls and their perception of body image.

I was just wondering what peoples view on this subject is. Do you think Barbie is a bad influence on young girls? Do you think the media places expectations on girls? Do you think images of women in the media has a direct influence on girls? whatever your view, please share!
maybe you think people use the media as a scapegoat!?!?


Any help you can give me would be amazing, especially anything on the subject of Barbie. Did you have one? Do you think you picked up any negative body perceptions from the tiny, unrealistically proportioned toy!?!?

Thanks everyone xxx

 

[michyed]

Well from my own experience, I'd have to say no. Once we learn that Barbie's body is blown out of proportion, therefore literally impossible to achieve, we stop seeing barbie as "physical role model" but a chunk of Manufactured in China plastic. I honestly think it doesn't hold much of an influence at all... Even if you are somehow influenced (negatively) during your childhood, every girl grows out of it eventually.

Media has it's share of influence on the general female population, but there is a good balance (in my opinion). You know how you hear all the model/fashion industry bashing and how they set the standards for the perfect body, leading to anorexia, bulimia etc... On the other side you have a whole flock of people raising awareness about the dangers of eating disorders. It always balances out. So even if the expectations the media places on their female audience are ridiculous, freedom of speech will inevitably lure the masses to point that out!

 

[collusion]

You may have already read this but in case you haven't:
http://www.forbes.com/2009/03/05/mutilating-barbie-dolls-business_harm.html

When I think about the way I related to my Barbie dolls I don't think I garnered any distorted views of my own body or the female body in general.

I always felt very aware that Barbie was a kind of caricature of a woman.. but my mother never exposed me to notions of an 'ideal' figure so perhaps I never had the groundwork for idealising Barbie's body. I say that because I've noticed that my female friends who have notable body-image issues often have mothers who are very open about dieting or goal weights, etc.

The media has an undeniable influence on what the body 'should' be but our first role models - our parents - inform our initial perspectives of the body. (I myself never felt a sense of body-consciousness until late in high-school when I realised all the other girls did.) I don't think Barbie could ever be the catalyst for a distorted body image, but in a very particular set of circumstances I can see how she might aggravate a child's insecurities.

It's reductive to blame the media alone, but they present us with images of the female body in unfathomable amounts and it's these images which create and reinforce a standard to criticise or idealise all bodies.

Just to add, the reason why I liked playing with Barbies was because of their clothes. I loved having new outfits for my dolls, especially the elaborate, sparkly gowns. I suspect this might be the case for most women on this forum. I also loved attaching identities to them, each one felt like a potential character. I never felt like I had to revere Barbie as the zenith of womanhood because to me she was just something to project my imagination upon.

 

[ChloeFrancoise]

I never thought of the Barbies I had as anything to idealize, especially since Barbies are inanimate toys. If I had ideas about how I would be when I got older, it would be from actual people. It wasn't until I was older that I even heard of any female getting self esteem issues from her Barbies and I still don't understand that actually because Barbies aren't actually people. I didn't even like the waistline of my Barbies. I thought it looked strange.
My ideas about the media are somewhat different than some people's might be. I don't consider myself that much to look at, but I'm not someone who feels bad about themselves after looking through a magazine and people could spoon feed me excessively photoshopped images all they want, but I don't actually find beauty in those images. I don't spend time feeling bad about an ideal that someone else is imposing on me. They can impose ideals and I could reject them. Maybe I feel this way though because no one around me ever said things that would make me feel bad about myself. I'm also glad I spent my childhood without even hearing the phrase "body image" and spent time just being a child.

 

[Yeukie]

I've always loved Barbies. I don't think that Barbie is a negative influence on young girls. Barbie was the most glamorous doll growing up. She was great for dressing up and sewing stuff but that's where it stopped. I remember watching TV as a kid with my sister...we had this thing of claiming we were the characters the shows and if there was any dancing we would soon be doing it too. I remember writing the lyrics of my fav songs and filing them away. Looking back now it seems like a lot of work: CD player-check, pen-check and then I would play rewind and fast forward my way to writing and memorizing the lyrics of the song. It was fun. I didn't really think I would grow up to be the person on TV or that I would do all those "naughty" things in the songs I sang. I certainly didn't think I would grow up to look like Barbie. I thought surely she must be corset-trained like some ladies on TV were. lol. It was just playing no different from playing with ragdolls-which I love/Bratz-which I don't care for.

I think a lot of parents blame the media for their children's low self esteem and negative body perceptions but it is really the parent's fault. I figured out way before Science class that I would look like my mom and I love that. Perhaps the kids are not getting positive reinforcement at home in addition to seeing unrealistic images on TV. I went through a pants only phase cos a mean girl at school said my legs were fat and not proportional to my body and my sister, who had great legs she was always showing off, put her legs side by side with mine and they were almost identical...I was back to wearing shorts and skirts in no time. Sometimes people just pass their insecurities to their kids and blame it on Barbie and the media.

Italian Vogue just put out The Barbie issue July 2009. Similar concept to the All Black July 2008 issue only this one features Black Barbies. I love the pictures. Here are 2. I know the first pic is the African American Barbie from the 1959 Barbie Fashion Model Collection. I don't know about the other photo but I like those Barbies too.

Source: fashionologie.com

 

[mustard]

thanks for all of you who have replied to my post

you all sound like really positive people i myself have never really thought about Barbie having a negative impact on children but then, i didn't have a Barbie when i was younger so i didn't know what peoples thoughts were, having a Barbie doll.

Its really interesting to hear peoples views so anybody else wishing to share their view is more than welcome, its really helpful to my investigation.

Are there any people who would object to giving their children a Barbie?

thanks collusion for your link, i hadn't read that! really interesting!

 

[mustard]

hi everyone!!!! if any of you lovely ladies have a few minutes to spare, i would love you forever if you could you fill in this survey for my dissertation.

Its ANONYMOUS, no right or wong answers and will take NO MORE than five minutes.

http://freeonlinesurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?sid=qov0ipv49jgdqmt627424

thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! xxxxx

 

[peke]

I need to do a research about the dressing code in the 1980's.
Any help please? I need some photos and information about this decade, main styles, unique features during this decade, you know, the main info.
Help please!!

Thanks in advance

 

[BetteT]

I did a search of tFS (keywords 80's & 1980's) and found these threads ... read through them and you'll probably get some ideas.

Also, check our History of Style forum ( a sub forum of Designers & Collections) to review designs from various decades.

 

[gius]

I find looking at popular culture during the periods you are interested in is really helpful

the zeitgeist...
What were the most popular movies that time, what did they wear in the movies, also check music, cartoons,

fashion permeates through all of those



you can check the Vintage Magazine sub-forum too under Magazines
categorized under dates

 

[peke]

Thanks for your help!!
Just a little question, does Alexander Wang collections can be considered influenced by the 1980s? I remember to had read something about it, but I'm not sure

 

[BetteT]

I don't know ... I don't follow him. Search for his threads (search by thread titles only) in the Designers & Collections forum (key word "wang") and pick the collections that you think you might have read this about ... like the most current ones? Members in there may have already discussed that and, if not, will be happy to offer you their opinions if you ask there.

 

[Nani]

Hi! I need help in less than a day

I need for my english class a pen pal partner [only from a native english speaking country, ex. us, uk, canada, australia, etc...]

The activity is easy, consists of writting responses every month and they have to be a short paragraph of 175 - 200 words

Any help please??
Thanks in advance & karma

ps. I need to find a pen pal and hand in my paragraph this monday!!:S HELP PLEASE!!

 

[cutefierce]

i wish i could help you. i do live in us. but im from colombia.. idk if i can help!!

 

[Jenmarlin]

The American Dream Girl: Who would you say fits that description?

Hi!

I'm a freelance journalist in Sweden and I'm writing an article about the American dream girl, the kind of healthy, youthful, fresh, wholesome kind of girl that looks sort of sweet, happy and sexy at the same time. Farrah Fawcett in Charlie's Angels, Brooke Shields in Blue Lagoon, Lauren Hutton, the girls of Twin Peaks for example. The kind of girl that wears jeans and a shirt (just an example), almost no makeup and has great hair...

Now, I need more examples of this type of girl – both past and present. Who would you put on a list of American dream girls?

 

[ofewne datwiste]

A. Jolie - she also has a brain to go with the jeans n t-shirt

 

[Jenmarlin]

Here's some pics of what I'm talking about, the sort of fresh faced, innocent-but-sexy girl. Jolie is definitely a dream girl, no questions about it, but she's almost a bit too sexy for this piece if you know what I mean?

Photos from (from left to right) avantgaudy.wordpress.com, livroseafins.com, sodahead.com, josabeth.blogs.se, luckymag.com.

 

[mustard]

Hilary duff?

 

[mustard]

^^^ sorry im not from the US, i wasnt sure if that was a requirement lol!