Venus of Willendorf vs. Barbie Doll, Outline Example

Thesis Statement

• The feminine form that is stylish and fashionable today may not be stylish and fashionable tomorrow. The Barbie Doll and the Venus of Willendorf are icons of style and fashions in their respective eras.
• The Venus of Willendorf is acknowledged for her maternal form.  The Venus of Willendorf was acknowledged as a symbol of health, fertility and prosperity.
• The Barbie Doll of the contemporary age is acknowledged for her slender physical appearance and her delicate features.
• A comparison of the two symbols will be conducted and the evolution of the two forms will be explored (Dusheck et al., 1999; Baiter, 2013).

The Barbie Doll

• The Barbie doll is recognized as being one of the most enduring toys in American history. Barbie may not only represent the facial characteristics of America, she has physical features that have established a standard of beauty. Barbie made her introduction to the American public over fifty five years ago in 1959.
• Barbie was invented by Ruth Handler. Ruth noted that her daughters had become bored with playing with paper dolls. Ruth’s husband Eliot was a designer who had initiated in the industry of making plastic picture frames.
• The plastic from the picture frames was applied in order to create a doll. After the doll was presented to the public in 1959, the Handler’s started the Mattel Toy Company, which is one of the largest manufacturers of toys in the world (Dusheck et al., 1999).

Evolution

• Ruth conceived the idea of Barbie while she had been traveling in Europe. As Ruth was traveling in Germany, she had noticed a platinum color haired doll which was named Bild Lilli. The doll was portrayed in the window of a cigar vendor. Ruth Handler purchased three of the dolls and brought them back with her to the United States.  Consequently, this was the inspiration for the Barbie doll.
• Ruth redesigned the doll and the Barbie doll made its introduction on March 9, 1959 at the American toy fair. Ruth designed Barbie as a doll that would be fashionable for the time. The doll was outfitted with earrings, stiletto heels and a zebra striped coat. The doll was not as successful as Ruth would have hoped.  The outcome was that orders began to arrive for the new Barbie doll which had been priced at three dollars.

Impact On Society

• Barbie is presently configured in a number of ethnic appearances. The ethnic appearances range from a Native American Barbie doll, an African American Barbie doll and a Hispanic Barbie doll. Barbie dolls have evolved over the years (Dusheck et al., 1999).
• The Barbie doll was conceived and promoted in order to encourage self-esteem among girls during their stages of development. Barbie represented a fantasy where the young girls could accomplish anything that the envisioned. These objectives were to be accomplished by using the doll as a mechanism for role play.  There are a number of parents and children who gain insight from the interactive roles that are engaged while playing with Barbie.  Barbie has been a multigenerational toy (Dusheck et al., 1999).
• The Woman of Willandorf was named Venus as a jest. This had been attributed to the voluptuous form that was manifested by the sculpture.
• The sculpture was discovered on an expedition during an archeological excavation. The discoverer, Josef Swombathy named the sculpture Venus as a result of the influence that the name Venus has demonstrated over artwork during the centuries (Baiter, 2013).
• It is not amazing that the first artwork was that of a feminine form. The Woman of Willendorf was more than likely created by male hands. The bodily components which seemed to be the most pertinent on the sculpture were the genital, abdomen and breasts.
• Perhaps as the artist was sculpting the figurine 25, 000 years ago, these had been the physiognomic aspects of a woman which were of the most interest. Perhaps the artist was imagining having a wife and a family in order to perpetuate his bloodline.
• Perhaps the artists and Ruth Handler had been engaged in the same endeavor, of making a toy for their daughters. It is impossible to ascertain what had been on the artist’s mind who created the Woman from Willendorf (Baiter, 2013). Notwithstanding, the feminine form in art has been a subject of enduring interest.
• Ruth Handler also created the Barbie doll from affective qualities which originated in feminine inspiration. The primary motive that Ruth Handler produced the Barbie doll was the affection for her daughter. In the application and play with the Barbie doll, girls have the ability of fantasying that they are adults engaged in an adult world (Dusheck et al., 1999).

Conclusion

• The feminine form has been a subject of art and symbolism throughout history. The mutual characteristics of the Barbie doll and the woman of Willendorf is that they may have served as toys during their respective eras. The figures may have also been symbols of hope. Art continues being fascinated with the feminine form to the present day.

References

Baiter M. (2013). Seeking meaning in the earliest female nudes. Science Now, 2/ 27/2013.  Academic Search.         http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.chamberlain.edu:8080/ehost/detail/detail?vid=16&sid=7fbfd7b4-1357-4a87-9189-0b7a4a2f0b16%40sessionmgr115&hid=105&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#bb=a2h&AN=86642556

Dusheck, Barbra, Meredith, K., Barber, H., Bryan, E., Williams, W., Burns. A.… & M   McCormick, H. (1999). Book Review on the Barbie Chronicles: A living doll turns 40 by Yona Zeldis McDonough. Touchstone.  Literary Reference Center Plus. http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.chamberlain.edu:8080/ehost/detail/detail?vid=18&sid =7fbfd7b4-1357-4a87-9189-0 0b7a4a2f0b16%40sessionmgr115&hid=105&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=lkh&AN=2290481

Egan, R. Danielle (Sept 2005). Book review: In the flesh: The cultural politics of body modification. By Victoria Pitts. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. SocIndex with Full Text. http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.chamberlain.edu:8080/ehost/detail/detail?vid=20&sid =7fbfd7b4-1357-4a87-9189-00b7a4a2f0b16%40sessionmgr115&hid=105&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=sih&AN=18903219

Paglia, C. (2004). The cruel mirror: Body type and body image as reflected in art. . Art   Documentation: Journal of the Art Libraries of North America, 3(2): 4- 7. Library Information Services & Technology. http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.chamberlain.edu:8080/ehost/detail/detail?vid=26&sid =fbfd7b4-1357-4a87-9189-00b7a4a2f0b16%40sessionmgr115&hid=105&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=lih&AN=15612883

Paglia, C. (2004). The cruel mirror: Body Type and body image as reflected in art. Art   Documentation: Journal of the Art Libraries of North America, 3(2): 4- 7. Library Information Services & Technology. http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.chamberlain.edu:8080/ehost/detail/detail?vid=26&sid =fbfd7b4-1357-4a87-9189-00b7a4a2f0b16%40sessionmgr115&hid=105&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=lih&AN=15612883