Comments on: A pop culture paradox: Hunger Games’ Katniss Everdeen as a Barbie

By: Alan

Alan — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 05:48:54 +0000

Jackie,

Hasbro had a short-lived female action figure back in 1967–but the G I Jane Action Nurse was too far ahead of the market.

Beginning in the 1990′s companies such as Dragon, 21st Century Toys and Elenor’s Girls hit the shelves. Many women will object to the fact that the female action figures are often military-themed, or feature Anime characters, or come from action/adventure movies.

Besides, Barbie is a career woman. Always has been. If I can believe the propaganda about the glass ceiling, it is “unrealistic” to expect a woman to succeed in a career, too.

By: Alan

Alan — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 05:33:20 +0000

Realistic measurements? Let’s start with height–my Katniss doll measures 11 inches to the heels of her feet, 11.5 on tip-toe. I don’t know of any real-life women under 4 feet 8 inches, and there may be many–the average American woman is five foot four. Not very many joints either–but a step up from the original toy.

Nope. Women aren’t toys. A woman under a foot long isn’t much of a threat. Better shell out for life-size mannikins. They’re out there.

By: Alan

Alan — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 05:24:59 +0000

Mary got it. I was a G I Joe fan during the 1960′s but didn’t get excited about that body–it was little more than a clothes horse to display uniforms and equipment. The scale differences between 2 inches to the foot and full scale…

Besides, there used to be Bild Lilli. Her shoes WERE her feet! And those feet were impossibly small due to a human conceit: small feet equals small genitals. It isn’t just Europeans–the Chinese foot binding bought into that conceit, too.

Try female action figures from companies like Dragon, Blue Box, Dreams and Visions–and Hasbro…

By: Alan

Alan — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 05:19:26 +0000

Barbie has something for haters of every stripe. The Right feels threatened by Barbie’s independence–and her breasts. The Left feels threatened by Barbie’s breasts–and by her independence.

I thought that companies such as Blue Box Toys, Dragon Models Limited, Visions and Dreams or a half-dozen others could have come up with a better Katniss Everdeen–but only Mattel and Hasbro have the deep pockets to buy the license and the distribution network for market synergy with the film. Note the 5 doll limit–to counter “collectors” (I call them “investors” who vacuum up the latest craze in the hopes of cashing in later–see “Toy Story 2″ for an example that Pixar mocked). What? You missed “Toy Story 2″ and Tour Guide Barbie???

By: Jackie

Jackie — Sat, 12 May 2012 12:57:20 +0000

I agree with your points, but as a tomboy I’m excited girls will have their own action figure now. We need to have Rue as another doll, so Black girls can get in on the action too.

By: Heather

Heather — Fri, 04 May 2012 17:56:01 +0000

Diana-
It sounds like you are really empowering your daughters and I can’t tell you how amazing it is to hear mothers reinforcing healthy messages to their children. This was entirely absent from my own upbringing so I am so grateful for the future of girls who have mothers like you, that take responsibility for providing a foundation of positive body messages and emphasizing health over size.

By: Mary

Mary — Fri, 04 May 2012 05:15:02 +0000

Barbie’s proportions were never meant to replicate the body of a nude woman. They were meant to make her look like a woman after being dressed in miniaturized clothing that usually has a lot more bulk at the seams that full scale human clothing has. Mattel did a great job with Katniss!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 04 May 2012 02:56:43 +0000

I say screw this. I just finished the book yesterday, and the entire point of Katniss is not to be a Barbie Doll. I still think that Barbies are incredibly dumb.

By: diana

diana — Thu, 03 May 2012 02:17:30 +0000

I consider every step towards a healthy body type, necessary and progressive.
I would rather have a doll that shows some powerful traits, than the barrage of unhealthy skeletal monster high dolls and scantily dressed barbie dolls, that other people buy for my daughter. I understand that each of my daughters will at some point compare their bodies to movie stars or to the other girls at school. It is my responsibility, as a parent, to give them a healthy perspective about their bodies and to ensure that they stay healthy and thankful for what they have. Until the Katniss doll my only option for a powerful female doll was the Mulan barbie doll. I can’t say for sure that my daughter will like the Katniss doll, but at least she has an option. Perhaps someday a doll will have healthy attainable measurements. Let’s use our energy to take that next step instead.

By: Stacey

Stacey — Wed, 02 May 2012 16:37:38 +0000

“Under those cool clothes, Katniss is still a plastic product of unattainable perfection.” I think this part really says it all. While it’s great that we’ve stepped away from what we usually expect in a Barbie doll, you’re right: underneath the Katniss Everdeen getup, this is still a doll whose body and beauty standard is incredibly unrealistic. Although this blog made me really think about the ambivalence here. It really is hard to decide whether this is something empowering for girls or completely skewing the positive perception of Katniss that we have.