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Barbie
Young
girls believe that Barbie is how a woman is supposed to look
(i.e. no fat anywhere on your body, but large breasts). But,
if Barbie was a real person, she would be 5’9” tall,
have a neck twice the length of a normal human's neck, and
weigh 110 pounds, only 76% of her healthy weight. Her measurements
would be 39-18-33, and she likely would not be able to menstruate
due to being underweight. On top of that, her feet would be
too small to support her when she walks.
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Click
the image above to see what a
woman of Barbie’s size would look like.
(requires Macromedia
Flash Player). |
Batman
is another example of an
outrageously muscular action figure.
Compare Batman's measurements
to those of a normal man. |
Action Figures
Similarly,
young boys are given the impression that men are supposed
to have muscles bulging all over their bodies. Take a look
at their plastic action-figures like GI Joe Extreme. If GI
Joe Extreme were life-size, he would have a 55 inch chest
and a 27 inch bicep. In other words, his bicep would be almost
as big as his waist and bigger than most competitive body
builders. In comparison, the average real-life man of the
same height, even a guy who’s fairly athletic, will have
biceps that are only about 11.5 inches around; Mark McGwire’s
biceps measure "only" about 20 inches.
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The "Ruby" Ad Campaign
In
1998, The Body Shop debuted its self-esteem campaign,
featuring the generously proportioned doll named "Ruby."
Her rubenesque figure graced windows in The Body Shop
windows in the UK that year, along with the slogan, "There
are 3 billion women who don't look like supermodels and only
8 who do." She went on to appear in stores in Australia,
Asia, and the United States. Ruby was a fun idea, but she
carried a serious message. She was intended to challenge stereotypes
of beauty and counter the pervasive influence of the cosmetics
industry.
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Mattel,
the makers of Barbie, sued
The Body Shop for this ad.
(Click the image for an enlarged view) |
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In
the United States, the toy company Mattel demanded that The
Body Shop pull the images of Ruby from American shop windows.
Then, in Hong Kong, posters of Ruby were banned on the Mass
Transit Railway because authorities said she would offend
passengers. Of course, the much more seriously offensive images
of silicone-enhanced blondes in other ads were permitted to
stay on the trains.
Statistics
on Barbie & Action Figure sizes from the Student
Nutrition Action Committee at UCLA
Batman graphic from ABCNEWS.com
Info on the Ruby Ad Campaign from AnitaRoddick.com
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