Much to the shock and delight of my anti-Barbie doll, feminist, queer heart, 'Barbie' offers many of the same critiques on masculinity that feminist cultural critic bell hooks offered us, writes noorxnoman.
The feminist blockbuster with its record-breakingopening weekend — a cultural phenomenon even before it had been released, thanks to its near-unhinged levels of marketing — offers us a humorous, and very pink, critique on the patriarchy and the performativity of gender. It adeptly and accessibly explores the crisis that is masculinity. It is not so much that there is a crisis of masculinity as it is that masculinity is itself a crisis.
Ken’s vengefulness, which masks his rage, shame, and insecurities, is largely a byproduct of Barbie’s lack of sexual-romantic interest in him. Ken is the prototypical patriarchal man, who is raised to believe his identity and worth are explicitly tied to his sexuality and ability to sexually dominate women. “[T]he underlying message boys receive about sexual acts is that they will be destroyed if they are not in control, exercising power,” hooks reflects.
In the final scene of “Barbie” — after the Barbie dolls’ successful uprising — Ken completely unravels, to original Barbie , spiraling into an existential crisis when he is denied everything he believes defines him and his manhood. Chiefly, this includes Barbie’s sexual-romantic interest, his ability to dominate others, and his attachment to capitalism . In other words, he believes his value is defined by the things he can achieve, rather than who he is.
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