it’s a Barbie world

Researching Barbie inventor Ruth Handler for Home’s Mothers of Invention brought up memories of my first Barbie, gifted by Santa when I was in elementary school. Santa, being male, wasn’t aware that Barbie needed more than one swimsuit and one off-brand picnic dress to live her fabulous life.

Enter our teen neighbor.

Hired to babysit, she brought black vinyl cases stuffed with tiny tea dresses, rompers, pajamas, cocktail dresses and coats trimmed with fur. Little drawers held high-heeled shoes, sunglasses, purses, long white gloves and a tiny poodle. As she displayed her treasures, I was both jealous and confused. My pre-adolescent brain couldn’t connect this embarrassment of glamour riches with the sports-loving cropped-hair-and-jeans-wearing tomboy that I knew.

Barbie’s complicated role in pop culture past and present is the topic of Hulu’s Tiny Shoulders: Rethinking Barbie. The documentary begins when criticism surrounding Barbie’s love of conspicuous consumption and her unrealistic body image has caused sales to drop dramatically. Mattel’s Barbie team is tasked with rebranding her by launching the Fashionistas collection, the most diverse line in the company’s history featuring an unprecedented variety of skin tones and body sizes.

Feminist icons and social historians are brought in to discuss Barbie’s impact on women and their place in today’s world. Most inspiring are the women who drive the brand change, navigating traditional home/life balance issues with kick-ass business skills. The lead designer, who credits Barbie for her love of fashion, speaks movingly about being one of the first same-sex couples to marry and her belief that Barbie teaches children to dream bigger. The title of the documentary comes from a comment about the social weight being placed on Barbie’s tiny shoulders.

Whatever your position on Barbie, Tiny Shoulders is an interesting case study and can be streamed on Hulu.

Some quick Barbie facts:

  • Ruth Handler dreamed that Barbie would let girls imagine their future, grown-up selves in control of their own destinies as a counterpoint to traditional baby dolls designed to teach girls to nurture others.
  • Through perseverance and business savvy, Handler steered Mattel, the business she cofounded, to a Fortune 500 company.
  • Yes, Barbie’s ample bosom was intentional and designed to teach girls about their bodies.
  • Barbie has a 98 percent worldwide recognition rate – higher than brands like Coca-Cola.
  • Barbie was a feminist, promoted as single and in charge of herself, and was marketed with careers – like fireman and astronaut – before there were women in those fields.
  • Handler’s second million-dollar company was Ruthton Corp., which manufactured more realistic models of breasts for mastectomy patients after her own bout with breast cancer.