My first exposure to what would be known as feminist theory would be in Mr. Leonard London’s senior English class at Spring Valley High School.We read Marge Piercy’s poem, “Barbie Doll" and discussed how Barbies depict women into a submissive role.That year, I wrote a paper on how My Fair Lady wrongly subverted the play’s outcome to fit a Hollywood ending.This was the first time I had felt encouraged to express critical views in a classroom setting, which eventually led to my identity/brand as a singles advocate.
Mr. London would have appreciated Barbie, which takes a similar stance.Margot Robbie plays Stereotypical Barbie.She resides in Barbieland, where women pretty much rule the universe.Men exist but are subservient.This changes momentarily when her boyfriend, Ken, who’s feeling neglected, goes into the real world with Barbie and reads all about the patriarchy.He applies those ideas, and eventually, the women are wearing skimpy outfits as they serve beer to the men.
Of course, we return to the status quo.But here are some pro-single themes, which men should pay attention to.Sadly, the ones who most need to probably wouldn’t even watch Barbie:
At the end, Barbie tells Ken she doesn’t want to be his girlfriend, and she encourages him to develop an identity of his own, outside of being Barbie’s boyfriend.I know many men who could use that advice.Throughout much of the film, the Kens (as the men are known) compete with each other for the Barbies’ attention.The movie also knows about how hetero men develop attraction to women; Stereotypical Barbie, with the help of the ostracized Weird Barbie the women she meets from the “real world,” coaches some of the women on how to disarm the men in the hopes of deprogramming the brainwashed Barbies.Such techniques include pretending to be bad at a sport and listening to men play songs on their guitars endlessly.
As a hetero man who used to buy into those old notions of “you must have a woman by your side” before being exposed to Bella’s work, I appreciate this message.I’ve worked for the last decade to develop my own identity outside of romance, and it’s fuller than I ever could have imagined.I wish that for Ken, and for all men, regardless of relationship status.