Barbie's official website does feature an adult doll collection of "Dolls of the World" which has a slightly more diverse range of images, but even these dolls are fairly uniform in style: the Asian doll is decked out in a midriff-bearing sexy, sari, for example, but looks just like a 'regular' Barbie.
In terms of body image, the typical Barbie doll has branched out to slightly more diverse interests than fashion: Barbie now skis and surfs, and even rides dirt bikes. Barbie is athletic, as well as feminine, in the official image she projects to young girls, suggests that one can be outdoorsy and girlish at once. Barbie's "I can be" collection features a Barbie news anchor and computer engineer, the latter in plastic pink 'geek chic' glasses. Barbie's adult line now features less artificial looking dolls that are supposed to represent famous characters from film and fiction, including the recent blockbuster Twilight (the fact that adult Twilight vampire dolls like 'Victoria' look more 'realistic' than the real 'woman' Barbie is somewhat disturbing). Regardless, Mattel's attempts to respond criticisms about Barbie's artificial proportions pale in comparison to how actual consumers use Barbie in an ironic fashion.
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As noted above, during the hunter-gatherer phase of mankind, the desirable physical appearance of the male of the species would have been one that contributed to their ability to hunt and kill the large mega-fauna that roamed the land. By contrast, modern males may not be expected to be able to take down a wooly mammoth, but a healthy physique equates to good genes for reproduction and even modern
North American Women Continue to be the Primary Targets and Consumers of Cosmetic Surgery? In a world in which we are judged by how we appear, the belief that we can change our appearance through cosmetic surgery is liberating to a lot of women. The growing popularity of cosmetic surgery is a testament to society's overrated fixation with appearance. For women living in North America, their appearance is in fact
Abstract for Gause, Simpson & Biggs (2009): "Within the United States, schools offer many opportunities for developing obesity-prevention strategies" (Paxson, Donahue, Orleans, & Grisso, 2006, pg. 9). Many programs are offered in the schools, but most are single faceted programs targeting obesity through reformed nutritional programs or increasing physical activity within the schools. Minimal program offerings and research are available that have a multi-faceted approach to addressing the self-esteem of children
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