![]() ![]() Women were depicted as playthings for men, necessary for raising a family, and kept below the glass ceiling at work. Playboy Magazine was popular at the time, as was the TV hit "Leave it to Beaver". A woman was not allowed to open a bank account or refuse sex with her husband, even if he was abusive. I was 11 years old by then and starting to understand that women were typically dismissed or derailed. I felt caught in the middle, wanting to please my conservative mother yet desperately wanting to join the ranks of feminists for women's reform.Īnn's mother knitted a sweater for her Barbie doll with an "R" on it to represent her brother's high school Ann Batchelder My mother was horrified that Betty Friedan was burning bras and causing a fuss, but "Aunt Betty," as my friends and I called her, was not to be stopped. ![]() ![]() In 1963, a woman from my hometown of Peoria, Illinois challenged the status quo for women by publishing The Feminine Mystique. I hadn't made it to middle school and already I was anxiously practicing strategies for social success.Īccording to my mother, a young girl's dreams should include going to a high school prom, pledging a sorority in college-something she couldn't afford to do-and joining the Junior League, once married with children, of course.Īnd that's probably what I would have done if it hadn't been for one person. While the game portrayed Barbie as vapid and boring, I have to admit it was a thrill to try to buy the best dress, snag the best boyfriend (Ken, of course), be elected as president of a school club to prove my popularity, and make a dash to be crowned queen of the prom. Go to beauty shop" or: "You are not ready when he calls. I'd panic if I got a card that said: "He criticizes your hair-do. There were cards you could draw that either increased your chances of winning or held you back. In this game, Barbie's entire world was centered around climbing a social ladder to rule over everyone else. Pictured, an advertisement for Barbie's "wedding day set". That's when I discovered a board game called "Barbie: Queen of the Prom." Rather than play with our dolls, my friends and I would compete for hours to see who could be the better Barbie. Plus, I was tired of trying to get Barbie to stand up on her two impossibly tiny feet without falling on her face. Once the novelty of changing the doll's clothes wore off for me, I became bored. The only problem was, Barbie didn't have elbows, so we could never get her into the sweater. She even knit a doll sweater with a big green "R" on it to represent Richwoods, where my brother went to high school. There was a long, champagne-colored ballgown, daytime party dresses, and a cheerleader outfit mom made with a short, felt skirt. One Christmas, she presented me with an entire Barbie wardrobe she'd sewn from McCall's doll patterns. My mother loved Barbie, "the teenage fashion model," too. Lilli was sold in bars and tobacco kiosks as an adult novelty gag gift for men.īarbie's many careers came later, but in the beginning her only aspiration was seemingly to be fabulous and catch a cute boyfriend. Ruth Handler, creator of Barbie, supposedly first modeled the doll's appearance on a popular "sex doll" made in Germany based on a cartoon character called Lilli. While Barbie was a symbol of the new, post-war teen era, I believe she still embodied attitudes about women from the 1950s. Almost overnight, I went from pretending to be a mother for my Betsy Wetsy doll to dreaming about becoming a teenage siren. She even sported big hard boobs like "the blonde bombshell" Marilyn Monroe.Įmboldened by Barbie's confidence and style, I started fantasizing about what my boobs would look like one day. There was something new and daring about Barbie with her high heels and glamorous clothes. Pictured right, the Barbie Queen of the Prom board game. Ann Batchelder, left, is an editor and author. ![]()
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