"Barbie Doll" by Marge Piercy, is a poem which relies
heavily on irony to make its point. Irony, of course, is a contrast or discrepancy
between two things. In this case, the contrast is between the oh-so-normal details in
this young girl's life and the outrageous actions which eventually occur. It starts in
the first lines, when the speaker obviously and ironically knows everything about this
young girl--except her name.
This girlchild was born as usual
and
presented dolls that did pee-pee
and miniature GE stoves and
irons
and wee lipsticks the color of cherry
candy.
The irony
continues as we hear about all the wonderful attributes of this young lady, contrasted
with what we later see as self-loathing strong enough to incite
suicide.
She was healthy, tested intelligent,
possessed strong arms and
back,
abundant sexual drive and manual
dexterity.
The
next description we have utilizes exaggeration and a sense of the ridiculous--she did
not cut off her nose, nor did she cut off her legs, the offending body parts others
criticized. This contrasts with the dark reality of a suicidal death.
So
she cut off her nose and her legs
and offered them
up.
The next irony
contrasts the sweetness of the comments regarding her beauty with the fact that they're
only spoken after she has died. While she was alive, she only heard the negative
comments.
Doesn't she look pretty? everyone
said.
Finally,
the last lines are verbal irony--a contradiction between what is said and what is
meant.
Consummation at last.
To every woman a
happy ending.
Clearly this
poem is a condemnation of the modern standard of perfection (as seen in the symbolic use
of the Barbie image) and it uses the technique of irony to make that
point.
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