Everyday we get dressed up. Whether it's in the comfort of our homes or going out with friends or even on a simple trip to the shops to get groceries, the clothes we put on are an important part of how we choose to show ourselves to the world. What we wear communicates something about how we internally perceive ourselves or as an external expression of those who see.
Recently, a phenomenon has occurred with the recent release of the movie Barbie that has a lot of moviegoers 'dolling themselves up’ and dressing in eccentric clothes. The movie directed by Greta Gerwig with Margot Robbie as Barbie inspired a huge movement of people wearing all sorts of shades of pink in anticipation of the movie's release and eventually at the premiere and normal viewings of the movie as well. It was a “pink movement”, making a shortage of pink paint and fast fashion trends centring very effeminate and “girly” clothes styling. This has created a wave of several unique artworks and fashions inspired by iconic Barbie looks or niche accessories that many young kids had wished to have or those who did have their own dolls.
There is no denying the influence of Barbie in our society from the infamous 2000’s Barbie movies and series which have resurfaced in popular culture and the internet through memes, which had themes of girlhood and friendship with an unforgettable style and aesthetic consisting of classical music references and stories E.g Barbie of Swan Lake or Barbie as Rapunzel. With the resurgence of the y2k aesthetic ( y2k stands for the year of 2000), it has led to a re-exploration of that era's media with a heavy focus on fashion which has greatly influenced what people wear or dare to wear and the expression of clothing specifically what it means to the wearer.
This spectacle of adornment has become very much a communal event of “I’m wearing pink to see Barbie” as a special event with children and adults alike that feels very reminiscent of Black Panther in terms of how many people showed up in a parade of inspired cultural outfits. It was a way to express that they supported, not just the movie but the message and created a community through the simple action of dressing up. A movie that depicted for the first time in the Marvel cinematic universe a main Black superhero whose origins were based on real African countries in the makings of its fictional world. It makes perfect sense that something like that would rally up the masses of people to wear their heritage proudly and for all the comic and movie lovers who had not seen themselves presented in the media, especially black/African youth.
Now the same effect is happening here with something like Barbie, there was no mistaking who was going to watch what and seeing other people in eccentric outfits, bedazzled hats or subtle shades of pink dresses or shirts. The anonymous coordination felt like a coming together of sorts, an understanding of the movie and what Barbie stands for in the wider context of the world. But why Barbie? What made the movie rally everyone in this specific dress code and the need to present themselves in such a way?
For decades clothing of certain colours has been targeted and fashioned to specific groups of people more specifically women.
Barbie and the world it created with its fashion and accessories have always been allocated to young girls. In its creation, the doll was created as an aspiration for young girls to emulate her characteristics and that is why the image of Barbie has prevailed. Her original look is the 50’s housewife and a German sex doll being at the origin of her design carries significance in how the doll is interpreted and placed in society as the doll was dedicated to Ruth Handler’s daughter Barbara and henceforth named after her( the ken doll was also named after her son!).
Barbie's image is often paired with household items and the house itself, kitchen sets and elaborate outfits being sold to young girls, limiting to a certain extent what a child can do with those items and clothing, introducing them to an ideal that draws an exclusionary line in the sand of gender and how they are expected to function in the society they exist in.
In an essay by Judith Butler (an American philosopher and professor), they talk about the performative act of gender and its phenomenology and how society shapes our definition of what constitutes gender and thus affects how we learn to execute and behave said gender based on our “historical situation”. This term “historical situation” refers to a quote analysis from Simone de Beauvoir, “Often the categorization of what is constituted as natural for women reinforced with “Significantly, it is this claim that Simone de Beauvoir cites in The Second Sex when she sets the stage for her claim that "woman," and by extension, any gender, is a historical situation rather than a natural fact" (1988).
Now if this “historical situation” is situated in our male-centric, patriarchal society, one that actively places women and anything associated with femininity as something lesser than undesirable unless it fits the image of what is desired socially, then a distance and renouncing would seem to be the answer to detaching oneself from these negative images to paint a more positive outlook.
Many 2nd wave feminists in the 1960s- specifically in America, adopted more masculine forms of wear in order to defy and shed the negative connotations of femininity as a sort of defiance. However, that didn’t stop gendered fashion and the persistence of the pink/blue colour binary, the style of what women should wear and the impact on fashion.
And even now as we become more socially aware or “woke”, questioning what we’ve accepted as our norm, Barbie and these concepts of femininity have not ceased in its existence. Instead, the image has been reformed (or trying to be), that archetype of the quintessential woman is now more inclusive and allows for variation in how a Barbie can look to reflect reality for example the new dolls range in 2015, includes different designs such as a person on a wheelchair and with prosthetics to a bald barbie and ken dolls.
While this seems arbitrary and like a shallow move to pacify people demanding inclusivity and to critique what Barbie stands for, it still is a big step in seeing different bodies of real people being incorporated into the toys that children interact with. Shiona Turini ( a black American designer, who was part of the costuming production of Wakanda Forever: Black Panther) talks with People magazine about her black barbie centred digital campaign, the impact of her seeing the first black Barbie and how it affected her experience with the dolls and fashion, she says
“I’ll never forget being in New York as a young black girl and finding a Black Barbie, and especially a Black Barbie birthday set. Barbie is a historic brand that was inclusive before it was trendy. I got to see and play with the first Black Barbie. I was really impressed because she had an Afro, she was very dark skinned and even had this little red pick for her hair, which was culturally so significant.”
They further talk about in the essay, specifically how we identify and its relationship to our bodies, “it is not just a biological function of the body is not perceived as just biological but rather “a stylized repetition of acts.” that must be understood as the “mundane way in which bodily gestures, movements, and enactments of various kinds constitute the illusion of an abiding gendered self”.
Now the question I asked myself is how we dress these bodies if we are a culmination of these stylized actions and cues how we execute this presentation of oneself.
I talked to a few people of colour and of different ethnicities about their perception of Barbie and what makes the movie so impactful to them, their relationship of dressing up and it's meaning. One person talks about how they feel like “there hasn’t been a lot of representation of POC in Barbie dolls until very recently and also just strong women in mass media so it’s just nice to celebrate that”.
There is something that can be very affirming in seeing a toy, even if it is just a product that is made to be consumed, the simple emulation of reality that showcases aspects from life and can offer a form of visibility that shines a light to less seen issues and in this case, identities. With all the strides we’ve made to unlearn and de-centre patriarchy, we still are in the process of dismantling and oftentimes proving that it is a real phenomenon.
Using Barbie, a popular iconography that is widely recognised to try and “address” social prejudices that have been targeted towards young children that are the target audience in terms of commercial products but also appeals to the more mature women who have just entered adulthood or have been adults a longer period of time. It feels only fitting that the brand starts to actually take some sort of responsibility for the importance of diversity even if it might be surface level, such as including a few People of colour in a movie.
Another person commented on why for them, of all brands barbie is impactful and what it means in the larger context of women and femininity in the global world,
“I feel like there’s less stigma on embracing your feminine energy these days if you compare it to just a few years ago when being ‘tomboy-like’ is more a bigger phenomenon. like there was some sort of shame that society brings into women when they dress too sexy or too cute.
I haven't personally seen the movie yet but I think the rise in popularity of women in the entertainment industry gave confidence and power to other women. like we see girl groups dominating the 4th gen, Beyonce and Taylor Swift raking the most no. of attendees their concert tickets contributing a lot to our economy, and I think recently I’ve seen 9/10 spots in the billboard chart was taken by female artists (I think vampire- Olivia Rodrigo was no.1). and of the immense popularity of the barbie movie itself. I think these achievements of women in the media kinda bring positive changes to ordinary women. I feel like we are today what they call the girl’s generation”.
It's the de-stigmatisation of these gendered stereotypes and making the choice to associate and put themselves in close proximity to the feminine stereotypes that make them powerful. Giving us the choice to redefine what femininity means as an individual and how we positioned ourselves. Barbie created that liminal space that desperately needs to be more present in our day to day. And to have that understanding of being represented through the communal act of wearing the simple colour pink and clothing, that act as a symbol of expression for people who can relate to their lived experience.
In one of the statements of the people who responded to my question, they talk about their lived experience and association of Barbie with their childhood,
“What's really cool about Barbie and like the colour pink for young people like myself, who, like I was hyper obsessed with pink when I was younger, I had Barbie curtains, I like used to only wear like dresses and, like, was very much a girly girl. And I feel like I very much got shamed out of that when I was not necessarily shamed, but I think I just became hyper-aware of how girly girls get treated and not as seriously, and so I like flipped the opposite.
I bought a pink dress for the first time this year just because I was like,
“OH, let me try it!” And it looks amazing on me.
And I think seeing loads of women in pink reclaiming may be parts of their lost girlhood or just like you know, feminine. It feels very empowering, it feels like a movement.”
They further expand on their thoughts and share what viewing this movie means to women of colour but is applicable to women of other ethnicities races, and even other gender identities as they talk about how men reacted to the movie as well, “ And I think it's really cool to be able to claim that especially in a world where now there's you know like hyper-masculinity or even like amongst black women you have the whole like hypergamy and like hyper-femininity.
I think you know seeing, obviously, Barbie is mostly catered towards women, but like seeing men wearing their pink and like all that kind of stuff is just like, there's nothing wrong with you know, celebrating things that girls like and all that kind of stuff.”
The movie and its fashion have created a unique platform for many women and even young girls and anyone who identifies with the feminine experience to feel a little less conscious of femininity, well at least in the viewing experience of Barbie and the preparation of what attire.
Even with the flaws of Barbie as a product and the intentions of MATTEL wanting to produce this movie in an era where nostalgia is pure gold dust, one can dare to dream a little of the beautiful utopian world we could be that this movement has inspired in us as a society and reminder that we can exist in our pattern of thinking and expression. A rekindling of that childlikeness that formed the people we are today, not caring about their surroundings and letting them express how they want to be perceived according to their inner Barbie, Ken, Midge, or even weird Barbie.
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