This is why the movie "Barbie" struck a deep, subconscious chord with its audience. Toys like Barbie don't teach kids reasoning, or a skill; they get them addicted to the temporary dopamine hit of the Shiny New Object. So they'll grow up believing if they just own the right brand clothing, jewelry, handbags, shoes, car etc. they’ll be “happy.” Only to discover a life devoted to mindless acquisition leaves them hollow and empty. Barbie had “all the right stuff;” the house, car, outfits, accessories – EVERYTHING. But she had no relationships deeper than “Hi, Barbie!”, no bond with Ken, who’s supposed to be her boyfriend; the sand was fake, the waves, cardboard – her entire world and identity were as fake as the plastic she's made from. So in the movie, Barbieland came to symbolize the false promise of materialism – a world where having everything means nothing. In the end, Barbie realizes – and this is a metaphor – that to become a Real Person, to find what it means to be a Real Woman, she has to LEAVE Barbieland, to go out into the Real World to find a life of meaning. She was the most "desirable" Barbie of all – a toy whose body proportions no human woman could ever achieve, whose endless possessions almost no real woman could ever accumulate, because the goal line keeps moving – this year it’s THESE clothes and THOSE shoes and THAT handbag that are in fashion. Barbie made young children yearn to be what they could never be, but grow up buying, buying, buying in an attempt to achieve the unattainable. So a story about THE iconic toy that started children down this path, in which that very toy ultimately has to LEAVE that fake world to become "Real" was the ideal vehicle for this message. Barbie herself gave viewers "permission" to leave false, materialistic values behind. People who believe their significance is tied to their possessions hated the movie. But vast numbers of viewers found it to have a very freeing, liberating, encouraging message. Which just crawled out from beneath the woodwork, without beating anyone over the head. Its “point” was simply the organic result of the story; a deceptively-deep story of Self Discovery that registered just below the realm of conscious awareness. Which is why it struck such a powerful, subconscious chord with viewers.
Yes. “This year it’s THESE clothes and THOSE shoes and THAT handbag that are in fashion.” And that’s how we’ve ended up here and (guilty as charged) how we realize we’ve been chasing distractions all our life, and wasting good money in the process. Though I never played with or owned a Barbie doll, I nonetheless fell for the chase of New Shiny Objects. At 62, having purchased yet another pair of sneakers yesterday, I hope I have finally seen the light & got the message. Thank you for stating it so clearly!
Brilliant, as always, Sherry! I wrote about this here in my Dirge for Detritus:
"All that stuff used to be money.
All that money used to be time.
All that time used to be opportunity.
All that opportunity used to be energy.
All that energy used to be potential.
All that potential used to be dreams.
All those dreams used to be yours."
Now, they’ve come down from the clouds and turned into clutter."
https://www.whitenoise.email/p/a-dirge-for-detritus
This is why the movie "Barbie" struck a deep, subconscious chord with its audience. Toys like Barbie don't teach kids reasoning, or a skill; they get them addicted to the temporary dopamine hit of the Shiny New Object. So they'll grow up believing if they just own the right brand clothing, jewelry, handbags, shoes, car etc. they’ll be “happy.” Only to discover a life devoted to mindless acquisition leaves them hollow and empty. Barbie had “all the right stuff;” the house, car, outfits, accessories – EVERYTHING. But she had no relationships deeper than “Hi, Barbie!”, no bond with Ken, who’s supposed to be her boyfriend; the sand was fake, the waves, cardboard – her entire world and identity were as fake as the plastic she's made from. So in the movie, Barbieland came to symbolize the false promise of materialism – a world where having everything means nothing. In the end, Barbie realizes – and this is a metaphor – that to become a Real Person, to find what it means to be a Real Woman, she has to LEAVE Barbieland, to go out into the Real World to find a life of meaning. She was the most "desirable" Barbie of all – a toy whose body proportions no human woman could ever achieve, whose endless possessions almost no real woman could ever accumulate, because the goal line keeps moving – this year it’s THESE clothes and THOSE shoes and THAT handbag that are in fashion. Barbie made young children yearn to be what they could never be, but grow up buying, buying, buying in an attempt to achieve the unattainable. So a story about THE iconic toy that started children down this path, in which that very toy ultimately has to LEAVE that fake world to become "Real" was the ideal vehicle for this message. Barbie herself gave viewers "permission" to leave false, materialistic values behind. People who believe their significance is tied to their possessions hated the movie. But vast numbers of viewers found it to have a very freeing, liberating, encouraging message. Which just crawled out from beneath the woodwork, without beating anyone over the head. Its “point” was simply the organic result of the story; a deceptively-deep story of Self Discovery that registered just below the realm of conscious awareness. Which is why it struck such a powerful, subconscious chord with viewers.
Yes. “This year it’s THESE clothes and THOSE shoes and THAT handbag that are in fashion.” And that’s how we’ve ended up here and (guilty as charged) how we realize we’ve been chasing distractions all our life, and wasting good money in the process. Though I never played with or owned a Barbie doll, I nonetheless fell for the chase of New Shiny Objects. At 62, having purchased yet another pair of sneakers yesterday, I hope I have finally seen the light & got the message. Thank you for stating it so clearly!
An eye opener in today’s time, find your inner-self, detached from the possessions you think bring real value & fame to you.
Knowing your highest values and learning to step away from the stuff that distracts you from those values. Really good writing and thinking, Sherry.
It's been at least a decade since I last watched Spirited Away. Good excuse to see it again!
SO poignant.
Relevant. Truthful. Kind. Thank you. ❤️
your brain Sherry!!!
Brilliant piece, thank you Sherry! Resisting distractions, however insidious they be. Not easy but worth it. Thank you for explaining it so vividly.
That is reaally good
Damn this is good 👍
Brilliant!!