From the start of age four, potentially younger, almost every innocent girl imagines living their life as the unrealistic Barbie doll. Growing up, it was evident I would have done anything in my power to be just like her. I would be caught stealing makeup from my mom at only the age of six, and would argue that if my best friend wore makeup, what was the big deal if I did? I was taught that having a designer bag or a face of makeup on was not something that made me beautiful. I am confident that I was definitely not the only girl who went through this and that girls continue to. Parents assure their kids that Barbie is just a piece of plastic; however, they are wrong, she is not just a piece of plastic to young girls, she is a part of their life, and a figure they dream of being every single day.
What would life be like if Barbie never existed; never affecting millions of girl’s self-images? What if all us girls were able to go through life every day feeling one hundred percent confident with who we are? Girls are looking in the mirror every day beginning from such a young age, imagining their lives with a slimmer waist and a flawless face. Could Barbie be guilty for these imaginations? Barbie has made the mirror a girl’s worst en
emy in the blink of an eye. Being guilty of the many girls who wished they could appear thinner, I see Barbie being the convict of this theory. Millions of girls claim they will do anything to make their dream come a reality, yet typically do not act on it. However, there is one insecure girl out there who did. Valeria Lukyanova, from top to bottom changed her appearance in high hope of appearing just like Barbie. She is now referred as the “Human Barbie.” She claims her reasoning behind this is because she insists on the fact that if you want to be “perfect” you could be. She aims for the slim waist and flawless face that Barbie has, and does everything in her power to reach that. Is it possible that this ten-inch plastic doll could have had such a dramatic impact on this girl?
As many people who want to believe the positive effects Barbie has on girls around the world, it is almost completely proven that it distributes a more negative effect on girls. Briefly, some of the effects include girls with eating disorders because being encouraged by a doll is mentally brainwashing girls and the way they cognitively think they should look. Being a young girl you are supposed to not have a care in the world about what people think of you or suffer from lack of self-confidence. Yet, being surrounded in a world where a silicone doll determines what a girl “should look like” is destroying that entirely. In a world where the reality of looking like Barbie is to surgically remove two ribs from your frame or dropping ten pounds. Barbie has caused low self-esteem, eating disorders, and mental disorders. Girls are dreaming of living the perfect rich
life Barbie has with her perfect looks, yet it is not always practical. Barbie is teaching the exact opposite of what almost everyone is taught from when they are practically born, “No one is perfect.” What is Barbie though?