Barbie Culture

This book uses one of the most popular accessories of childhood the Barbiedoll to explain key aspects of cultural meaning.Some readings would see Barbie as repr... » 

This book uses one of the most popular accessories of childhood the Barbiedoll to explain key aspects of cultural meaning.Some readings would see Barbie as reproducing ethnicity and gender in aparticularly coarse and damaging way a cultural icon of racism and sexism.Rogers develops a broader more challenging picture. She shows how the culturalmeaning of Barbie is more ambiguous than the narrow appearancedominated modelthat is attributed to the doll. For a start Barbies sexual identity is notclearcut. Similarly her class situation is ambiguous. But all interpretationsagree that with her enormous range of lifestyle accessories Barbie existsto consume. Her body is the perfect metaphor of modern times plasticstandardized and oozing fake sincerity. «