Here at the Exponent blog, we’ve had a lot to say about the recent Barbie movie directed by Greta Gerwig. Abby wrote about how being an LDS woman is like being a Ken and again about her experiences with Ordain Women. Katie imagined quotes from General Conference filtered through Ken-dom. I’ve loved these posts and I think that there is still more to say here.
I’ve now seen the movie three times. After the first viewing, I was confused about parts of the narrative but loved many of the jokes. In various commentaries on the movie, I saw references to the queerness of the Barbie movie and the Barbie universe and was intrigued.
I had been under the impression that Barbie was the perfect white cis-het woman, but what I read took those ideas apart. I grew up playing with Barbies but popular feminist critiques of Barbie in the mid/late 1990s made me feel ashamed that I had played with toys that emphasized a particular view of women’s beauty. I had a very poor relationship with my body and it seemed like all of those hours spent playing Barbie-stranded-on-a-desert-island with my best friend was partly to blame.
The movie gave me a bit more historical context for Barbie and some of the commentaries and timelines of the Barbie world pointed out some things I had not considered. As a woman without a vagina, Barbie is not cisgender and clearly prefers the company of the other Barbies to that of her boyfriend, Ken. Both Barbie and Ken thrive in their homosocial spaces, though Ken is obsessed (but not clearly attracted to) Barbie. It’s an interesting dynamic, but not one based in mutual sexual attraction. They are working very hard at playing roles instead of living out an authentic sense of desire.
When Barbie starts to experience complex feelings, the other Barbies do not have answers. They encourage her to visit Weird Barbie, who lives on the edge of Barbieland and shirks so many of the Barbie conventions. Weird Barbie is queer. In her wisdom, Weird Barbie pushes Stereotypical Barbie into a literal journey of education and experience, symbolized by that most comfortable of sandals, the Birkenstock. It is Weird Barbie who visits Stereotypical Barbie at her lowest and offers a solution to their collective patriarchal problem. It is #teamWeirdBarbie that carries out this plan.
Weird Barbie understands more about Barbieland than the other Barbies do because she is living at the edge of that community, playing an important role but othered by the Barbies. Insider status for most of the Barbies does not give them great insight, but limits their perspectives. Guidance about challenges must come from outside the mainstream of the Barbieland community. In life, things are largely similar. Those at the center of a community often hold perspectives that are limited by the thinking of the group, leaving those at the edges to do extra work to navigate life while being ostracized.
In my life, I seek for spiritual wisdom from those who are at the edges of groups, mainly from women of color, many of whom are queer and/or disabled. There is wisdom for the journey in these liminal spaces.
If you are interested in more Barbie talk, check out the “Mojo Dojo Casa Housing Policy” episode of Exponent II: The Podcast.
6 Responses
Mmhm. Love this. Weird Barbie is my favorite character and your explanation explains why. Thanks.
I love your observation about how Barbie and Ken were playing roles instead of acting on their innermost desires.
Weird Barbie was definitely my favorite: Her experiences have helped her realize her position in the Real World, she’s spent time and effort to study and map the nature of the Real World, she’s happy to educate other Barbies when they need that information. She’s a Barbie, but she deliberately chooses how she interacts with mainstream Barbie culture. She reminded me of so many women I’ve met at Midwest Pilgrims: they’re Mormon women, but not Molly Mormons.
I’m in the middle of reading “The Faraway Nearby” by Rebecca Solnit (the book is absolutely gorgeous, I’d highly recommend it) and I just ran across this quote that also goes with the roles and desire bit:
“Even in the wilderness your ideas of what is beautiful, what matters, and what constitutes pleasure shape your journey there as much as do your shoes and map also made by others.”
Ooo fascinating about Ken being obsessed with but not necessarily attracted to Barbie. I watched it a second time, and noticed more that some Barbie’s and Ken’s were paired up. Weird Barbie makes a joke about Stereotypical Barbie’s Ken. After the Barbies reclaim their Dream Houses, one of the Ken’s says, “I miss my friend Barbie!”, and a Barbie and Ken give each other a big hug. Thanks for pointing out the homosocial spaces.
“Insider status for most of the Barbies does not give them great insight, but limits their perspectives. Guidance about challenges must come from outside the mainstream of the Barbieland community.”
I love this reading. So true that in life, it’s those riding the edges of community that have the best vision. And as Juanita Brooks once said, those riding on the edges of the herd actually have the ability to influence the direction of the group.
I’ve been thinking about this ever since it was published. The timing was perfect. I read this and then went to church where a lot of callings were rearranged. It hurt to see callings that I would have liked doing – Young Women Presidency and Adult Gospel Doctrine Teacher go to other people. I couldn’t help wonder if I could have had those callings if I played by the rules better.
As I sat with that pain I thought about this piece. I realized that I’m something of a Weird Barbie in my ward. I don’t fit the mold of what people expect from an active LDS woman. And so I don’t quite have insider status.
But I’m thinking that might be a good thing. I’m here for the people when they have doubts and questions. I’m the one that can sit with them without any judgement when their lives start to look different than the norm.
So even though I don’t have a typical calling, I do have a calling. I’m called to be on the edge and to help others when they find themselves there.
Thanks for helping me see that.