Krysten Bond
1st block
Vanity, Skin Deep
In “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy, the idea of perfection being halted by insignificant flaws brings out the realism of true human nature. A girl, though beautiful and sweet, zoned in on the two things that made her feel uneasy… her big nose and fat legs. A simple thing in reality, but when pointed out by a fellow classmate, these flaws become her life’s focus. No matter what accomplishment she made, those two things ripped the joy away from her.
The second to last line is the resolution to a tortured lifestyle. “Doesn’t she look pretty? Everyone said.” Her whole life she had tried to accomplish beauty in her surrounding people’s eyes. No longer were material and intellectual items valuable to the girl, her only focus was achieving a pretty face in society. This reminds me of an animated video I once saw called Doll Face. It was just a face connected to a bar that moved it. Doll Face was intelligent, but once she saw beauty on television it changed her whole attitude. Reaching perfection was her only goal, and with every change on her face it seemed like society came up with something new, something further out of reach.
Doll Face did everything to become what those around her viewed as perfect, and n the end it was too much. This strive for perfection lead to the destruction of the girl. All the knowledge she possessed no longer mattered, and all those times she had been pretty held no interest to those around her. Just like Marge describes in “Barbie Doll” how destructive image can be. How destructive we let it be.
In the end, the girl finally lost her battle against perfection. As she lay in the casket, with her previous flaws hidden from others, all they could remark to was how pretty she was. She had finally achieved her image in life, she was that girl that people envied, but it was already too late. It had consumed her to the point of no return… death. Which is only where such unreachable desires may lead us.
1st block
Vanity, Skin Deep
In “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy, the idea of perfection being halted by insignificant flaws brings out the realism of true human nature. A girl, though beautiful and sweet, zoned in on the two things that made her feel uneasy… her big nose and fat legs. A simple thing in reality, but when pointed out by a fellow classmate, these flaws become her life’s focus. No matter what accomplishment she made, those two things ripped the joy away from her.
The second to last line is the resolution to a tortured lifestyle. “Doesn’t she look pretty? Everyone said.” Her whole life she had tried to accomplish beauty in her surrounding people’s eyes. No longer were material and intellectual items valuable to the girl, her only focus was achieving a pretty face in society. This reminds me of an animated video I once saw called Doll Face. It was just a face connected to a bar that moved it. Doll Face was intelligent, but once she saw beauty on television it changed her whole attitude. Reaching perfection was her only goal, and with every change on her face it seemed like society came up with something new, something further out of reach.
Doll Face did everything to become what those around her viewed as perfect, and n the end it was too much. This strive for perfection lead to the destruction of the girl. All the knowledge she possessed no longer mattered, and all those times she had been pretty held no interest to those around her. Just like Marge describes in “Barbie Doll” how destructive image can be. How destructive we let it be.
In the end, the girl finally lost her battle against perfection. As she lay in the casket, with her previous flaws hidden from others, all they could remark to was how pretty she was. She had finally achieved her image in life, she was that girl that people envied, but it was already too late. It had consumed her to the point of no return… death. Which is only where such unreachable desires may lead us.
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