plastic feet formed to fit polymer heels
lofty heights
false ideals
dance in girls’ minds
to fairy-tale tunes
flawlessly complected marketing tools
young thoughts make creative formations
of too tiny waists
and bone-thin limbs
manifested years later
in anorexic meals
and bulimic fits
to fit
lovely lies
melted years earlier in colorful molds
hardened in impressionable minds
for uniform standards
unreal
~
Words and Photography ©2017 Tanya Cliff ~ to contact me
Posted in poetry & free verse. Bookmark the permalink.
Oh-so very tragically true! You hit the proverbial nail on the head!
Thank you, Jonathan! I never allowed my daughter to play with Barbie dolls. Now she is helping me make funny stop-motion short films with them…Lol
Ours involve smoke and fake blood though…
LOL Sounds like a real blast! Good for you … both of you! 🙂
It is! I have one almost finished, and my oldest son is back from college in a few weeks to help with another…
Oh, the carnage…lol
🙂 🙂 🙂
I really like this and the words seem to just fall in place. Marvelous Tanya, like always
Thank you, Manuel! I really appreciate the feedback! Hugs…
Oh is my pleasure Tanya
😊
Yes, the battle rages on about the “perfect bodies” which these Barbies have. Of course they don’t look like real ladies. But on the other side of this, news reporters, nutritionists, and such tell all people to eat better, loose weight, and exercise. Doctors put weight loss surgeries “on sale.” They want to fit people into these plastic molds. Why? Because that’s what many people want…to look like Barbie dolls.
BTW, when do you think they will they ever give Ken a pot-belly and unshaven look? Lol…
🙂
It’s all a part of the consumption cycle. We start children out early, and they carry those biases into adulthood. Our focus should be on health, but the truth is that healthy people don’t consume nearly as many products as ill or overweight people do. Our market is tipped toward unhealthy living and ideas, because they drive profits.
We are using Barbie dolls in the next stop-motions, but those involve smoke and fake blood…lol
Have a great day, Steve!😊
I agree with the statements about the profits, as they are true. It just seems part of the world is telling us that we should be okay with how we look, etc. Then there’s the part which is telling us to improve our health through better eating, exercise and such. Of course, that will usually lead to leaner bodies, and better looks. And still another segment of our world is giving us 2 tacos, four hamburgers, and a mega soda for $3.00 bucks! This world is full of so many mixed messages…
Absolutely. Healthy living inside and out comes down to valuing the life we have each been given. We have a lot of products in our market that battle against that.
Have a great day, Steve!😊
We can use a good dose of common sense and reasonable judgment as to what we eat, how much we exercise, and what we are happy with as far as our personal life goals are.
Enjoy your day, Tanya… 🙂
Agreed, Steve. I will do that. You do as well!😊
Powerful words. Barbie’s dimensions are unattainable, so it sets a bar far too high. I wonder how many girls are shamed because of this. I was just thinking about the movie “The Help” where a little girl is comforted and inspired by the maid, played by Viola Davis, after her mother picks on her for not being good enough. The maid would say in a mantra with the little girl, “you are smart, you are kind and you are important.”
Thank you, Keith. We start children out early with impossible standards. Our market economy profits more off of mentally and physically ill people than it does off of balanced and healthy people. If our focus was on “healthy” bodies and and minds, Barbie wouldn’t be popular.
I think it is changing but not quickly enough for me.
Good point, Tanya. This may not surprise you one of the several reasons banks do not like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is they profit off people over their heads in debt. It is the same modus operandi, exploit the exploitable. Keith
The same was true of the subprime mortgage mess and reverse mortgages. It’s a story that is repeated over and over and over. Great comment, Keith! Thank you!
Well written… I really like this one.
Thank you, Robert! Barbie needs to take some lessons from mythology or maybe pattern after Spenser’s Britomart. I might respect her then…Lol
Reblogged this on The Militant Negro™.
Thank you! Have a great Wednesday!
You as well.
Thank you! I will.
Absolutely. Beautifully put <3
Thank you so much!❤
Love it. She’s a real lady though. Didn’t I see her on tv the other night? You’re on a roll, Tanya. Don’t stop now. I never played with dolls myself: but oh those teddy bears!
Lol…I’m finishing up another stop-motion with the Ken and Barbie in the next couple days. Does that constitute “play”? Thanks, Roger!
Thank you very much! I appreciate the comment and the encouragement!
This is an issue that definitely needs to be addressed, I am glad you raised it. Good work!
Thank you so much! I really appreciate the feedback.
Truth.
Thank you, Steph! I know it’s only Thursday, but have a great weekend!
You’re welcome and you too Tanya😃
❤