let’s go party
Filipino drag queen Slaytina via Pexels
I’m excited to see the much-hyped (some might say overhyped) Barbie movie tomorrow, to my confusion. I played with Barbies as a kid, but once I got older, I thought they were stupid. An anatomically impossible body shape that’s the equivalent of size-3 feet and a neck too small to lift her head? Ankles so thin she’d have to crawl on all fours? Isn’t that pretty much the opposite of feminism?
Not to mention this:
In a psychological study, girls from age 5 to 8 were shown images of either a Barbie doll or a more realistic "size 16" doll. Those who saw the Barbie dolls had less self-esteem and worse body image and had a stronger desire to be thin.
Yikes. Why am I so excited? I wondered. (So excited that I bought tickets ahead of time, painted my nails pink, and watched all the trailers.) What is WRONG with me?
Then I read this:
I know some folks are not a fan of Barbie, particularly because of the unrealistic beauty standards that she has represented for years. And somehow, I am totally wrapped up in the pink and nostalgia even though I never really saw myself represented through Barbie. I think we can hold space for both?!
—Lauren Leavell, body-positive fitness instructor & trainer
I really like this take. It’s much more compassionate than yelling at myself, for starters. Plus, the media blitz for Barbie has been unavoidable—Mattel really went all out on a truly ridiculous number of brand collaborations. (A less generous take might be that the Barbie movie has been shoved down our throats. No one asked for Barbie x Ruggable.)
And I think a lot of it has to do with global and national landscapes. We’re facing staggering inflation, widespread homelessness (and politicians who seem clueless about what to do), and the Ukraine/Russia war, but everything is supposed to be fine because COVID is “over.” It’s a really fucking depressing time to be alive, and this movie looks like fluffy, delicious escapism. I keep thinking of Legally Blonde and Mean Girls, both of which are quotable and silly and iconic, and hoping this movie is witty and subversive and joyful enough to sit alongside them. (Not that they aren’t both flawed and problematic too.)
Then there’s something I’ve also been trying to wrap my head around lately: decoupling pink, sparkly things from gender. After all, in the 1910s, pink was a masculine color:
The generally accepted rule is pink for the boys and blue for the girls. The reason is that pink, being a more decided and stronger color, is more suitable for the boy, while blue, which is more delicate and dainty, is prettier for the girl.
—Earnshaw’s Infants’ Department, 1918 (via A Little Bit Human)
Wild that things completely flipped.
I’ve been thinking about gender lately. The most widespread images of nonbinary people are thin, white, androgynous hotties wearing colors like black, navy, and gray. But I hate those colors. (Unless I’m having a summer goth moment.) I love pink, rainbows, and unicorns! I want my clothes and home to look like funfetti cake topped with iridescent glitter! I want Party City’s mermaid section to throw up on me! Who decided those things had to be “feminine”?
One quote I keep coming back to is “Femmes can be thems.” I can like stereotypically “girly” things without identifying as a girl. Wearing sparkly eyeshadow doesn’t mean I’m a woman. (At least, I hope not? I’m still trying to figure this out.)
Anyway, back to Barbie. It looks campy and queer and colorful and irreverent, and I AM HERE FOR ALL THOSE THINGS. Of course I still think capitalism is bullshit. Of course I hate that girls start thinking they should go on diets at, like, age 7.
But I also need a little treat sometimes, and I’ve been trying to feel less guilty about that.
Here’s hoping it’s a delicious little escapist treat.*
*the fact that conservatives and Fox News are already complaining it’s “too woke” is a good sign.