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ลำดับตอนที่ #55 : How does 'Curvy Barbie' compare with an average woman?
Say
the word "Barbie" and you'll probably picture a thin doll with
make-up, a mane of
straight blonde hair and garish
clothes.
Now toymakers Mattel
have released three new body shapes. Original Barbie is being joined by Curvy
Barbie, Tall Barbie and Petite Barbie. The latest Fashionistas line also
features a wide range of skin tones reflecting many different ethnicities.
With children's body
image firmly on the agenda,
the new dolls' arrival has been met by a broadly positive response. But how reflective are these dolls of
young women in Britain and America?
Mattel says it
doesn't have a scale that would give Barbie's full-size dimensions. But there
is "playscale" - a ratio of 1:6 that governs the size of many toys.
If you accept that as a ratio for Barbie then you can multiply all her
dimensions by six to find the real-world size.
Like the first ever
Barbie, Curvy Barbie is 11in (27.9cm) tall. Multiply by six and you find Barbie
would be 5ft 6in. That's taller than the average UK woman at 5ft 3inand
slightly more than the average US woman at just under
5ft 4in.
Real-life
Barbie has often been credited as being 5ft 9in, but this may come from
measuring the doll in its typical high-heeled shoes before scaling up. To
simply take Barbie as 5ft 9in would produce a ratio of 6.35 and different
measurements.
So what dress size
would scaled-up Curvy Barbie be?
You can use the
Marks and Spencer's size guide to give a sense of which dress size would
fit each Barbie. Curvy Barbie's measurements for this exercise were done using
thread which was then measured, so there is a small margin for error.
The
M&S guidelines include approximate waist and hip measurements. M&S
doesn't go below a size 6, but you can estimate the lower sizes by looking at
the difference between the larger sizes. A UK dress size is generally two dress
sizes larger than its US equivalent, so a UK size 10 would be a US size 6.
The 1:6 calculations
reveal that Curvy Barbie would have a UK size 6/8 waist (63cm or 24.8in) and
size 8 hips (91.2cm or 35.9in). Her waist-to-height ratio, which is considered
by many a more accurate health
measurement than
Body Mass Index (BMI), is 0.38 - slim indeed.
She is far slimmer
than the average 16-24-year-old woman in the UK. The average British woman of
this age is 164.5cm (5ft 5in) and has a waist measuring 79.5cm (31.3in),
according to the 2012 Health Survey of England.
Those figures on the M&S scale would equate to a dress size 14.
But Curvy Barbie has
been praised by commentators as a marked improvement. By the same
scaling, if original Barbie were a real woman she would have a size 2 waist
(54cm) and size 2 hips (78cm). It's possible to imagine her having difficulty
standing upright.
"The
introduction of a new range of Barbies is a welcome move, and a positive step
towards improving diversity of toys," says Jemima Olchawski, of the
Fawcett Society.
But
while Curvy Barbie is closer to reality, Tall and Petite Barbie do not fare so well when scaled
up to real size. Tall Barbie would be 5ft 11in (180cm) tall, with a size 4
waist (56.4cm) and size 2 hips (78cm). Petite Barbie would be 4ft 11in (158.7cm)
tall with a size 2 waist (52.8cm) and size 0 hips (72cm).
However,
were Mattel required to accurately reflect the average British and American
woman across all ages, the dolls would be overweight or obese.
The average British
woman, at 5ft 3in (161.9cm) with a waist of 87.6cm (34.5in), is classed as
overweight using the waist-to-height ratio. The average American woman,
at 5ft 4in (162.1cm) with a waist of 95.3cm (37.5in) is classed as obese.
Mattel
argues Barbie shouldn't be expected to represent average proportions in the first
place. "Barbie is a doll. She is not meant to reflect a real woman's
body," says Sarah Allen from Mattel UK. "The purpose of introducing
three new bodies into the range is variety and differentiation. When you look
at the dolls collectively you can see the range in relationship between the
dolls. "
However,
psychologist Helga Dittmar, from Sussex University, says this is missing the
point. "To say 'Barbie isn't supposed to be realistic' is side-stepping the issue.
If there is evidence that the doll does harm, if intended or not, then that is
extremely worrisome."
Dittmar conducted
research in 2006, which found that children aged between five-and-a-half and
seven-and-a-half years old, were less satisfied with their own body shape after
reading a book featuring pictures of the original Barbie. Those who read the same
story without the images were not affected.
"The
girls said they wanted a thinner body shape than they had. They had lower
body-esteems after seeing pictures of Barbie," Dittmar says. "If we
show an effect with a single exposure
study it stands to reason that the impact increases as time moves on."
But
she adds: "It's encouraging that Barbie is now coming in different body
shapes, it's a step in the right direction."
Lenore Wright, from
Baylor University, Texas, conducted a study in 2003 that explored the role of
Barbie. She found Barbie's shape didn't really matter to children - her
function was more important.
"Barbie
offers children a safe and creative arena for modelling and formulating their
own images of what is beautiful."
However, she
believes children today may have a changing relationship with their dolls.
"[There
has been] an increase in body consciousness, and it's possible this is being
projected on to the doll. Mattel focus groups found many of the young girls
called the Curvy Barbie 'fat'," she says.
"But
I still think for most children the dolls acts as a prop."
Wright
adds that Mattel's new line has been criticised by some feminist scholars for reinforcing an old
stereotype - that women are defined by their bodies.
All four of the
Barbies have a waist measurement that is close to 70% of their hip measurement.
Studies have suggested that men find women more attractivewhen
they have a 0.7 waist to hip ratio, whatever their weight.
Time
and sales will tell if Barbie's latest transition is a success. If it is, it
opens up the possibility of further changes in the future.
"It's
good at least something has been done," Dittmar says, "but why can't
we have a well-proportioned body?"
the long, thick hair that grows along the top of a horse's neckor around the face and neck of a lion
thick, long hair on a person's head
Garish (adj.)
agenda (n.)
a list of matters to be discussed at a meeting
a list of aims or possible future achievements
fare(n.)
the money that you pay for a journey in a vehicle such as a bus or train
someone who pays to be driven somewhere in a taxi
(v.)
to succeed or be treated in the stated way:
obese (adj.)
extremely fat in a way that is dangerous for health:
proportion (n.)
used in a number of phrases to mean importance and seriousness:
the number or amount of a group or part of something when compared to the whole
the number, amount, or level of one thing when compared to another
·
(SIZE)
the correct or most attractive relationship between the size of
different parts of the same thing or between one thing and another:
proportions [plural]
the size, shape, or level of something:
side-stepping
to step to the side in order to avoid something, especiallybeing hitto avoid talking about a subject, especially by starting to talkabout something else:
worrisome
(adj.)
exposure (n.)
the fact of experiencing something or being affectedby it because of
being in a particular situation or place:
·
(ATTENTION)
the fact of
an event or information being often discussedin newspapers and on the television, etc.
·
(DIRECTION)
the direction in which something faces:
reinforce
(v.)
to make something stronger
If
something reinforces an idea or opinion, it provides more proof or support for it and makes it seem true
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