WTF!: Barbie

One of the top toys designed for girls sold in the world is the one and only Barbie made by Mattel. Well Barbie isn’t one and only because there are so many different models it is almost impossible to believe but it is still a very unique doll when you think about it. Since 1957 the bad blond stereotype has been one of the foremost leading to little girls to growing up and having poor body issues.

I did a little bit of research into the iconic toy for girls and discovered some interesting, and borderline creepy, facts.  I will share with you some of the strange things I found out about the classic plastic plaything

Before Barbie got her start on the shores of America her older “cousin” got her start as an adult sex toy named Lilli in the smoke shops of Germany.  I guess you could call Lilli Barbie’s trashy skanky European cousin.

For a long time the little girls of the world have idealized the beauty their Barbies portray and have thusly set unrealistic expectations for their futures. This all begins with the unreal build of Barbie’s body, granted she is a toy but if she were real her improbable dimensions for a woman are a crazy 39” bust 18” waist and 33” hips. That is the kind of body figure that if achieved in real life is only the result of malnutrition or an eating disorder.

I found this interesting article about Barbie and an eating disorder and a girl who made a life size barbie to prove it: The Scary Reality of a Real Barbie Doll

I always knew I didn’t like Barbie, and I never understood exactly why, until I realized that she is attributed to negative body issues I never had a good reason not to like her. More than likely this mentality probably means that her main man Ken is the reason that women have such an unrealistic expectations of the men of the world. Strangely enough Ken and Barbie were designed to be lovers from the beginning (not married) but Barbie was named after Ruth and Elliot Handler’s (the founders of Mattel) daughter and Ken after their son… what does that say about how fucked up their family is.

All those cultural biases being formed put aside just because good slut Barbie is made of plastic doesn’t mean she doesn’t have the same insides as us. Or at least that is how artist and sculptor James Freeny saw it when he sculpted his latest creation. Now showing the anatomically correct Barbie, well mostly, she is still missing a nipple and a lack of… ummm “female definition”.

Buy prints in James’ Store

Just thought I would share a little bit of the weird things I discovered revolving around the iconic Barbie.

Sincerely Urban Yeti