IN BETWEEN BARBIELAND AND ‘THE REAL WORLD’

By Andrea Guachalla

The release of Barbie, the movie, on July 21st has sparked a wide array of opinions and controversies, going from conservatives like Ben Shapiro who absolutely hated every bit of the movie, to people like Michael Knowles and Brett Cooper (both Shapiro’s co-workers from The Daily Wire) actually loving it.

I personally land somewhere in between and into the category of “I am confusion”. (Yes, that’s intentionally misspelled). Which I believe has been the reaction of many people because, let’s face it, it’s almost impossible to tell if the movie actually promotes feminism or seeks to show how ridiculous it is in a satirical manner.

I’m slowly coming to the conclusion that the movie not only seeks to portray the absurdity of feminism but also (perhaps accidentally) that there is a better way, an in between Barbieland and ‘The Real World’, which is portrayed as an strictly patriarchal society in the movie. Now, before I go on to explain why it is my belief that there is more to the Barbie movie than just a silly comedy, let me explain how Barbie’s world looks like.

Spoiler alert: if you still haven’t watched the movie, I’ll basically spoil the ending for you.

In the movie there is Barbieland, a world where everything is plastic and pink and fake. And is also a world where women rule in every single space and men (the Kens) exist to please the women (the barbies). In this world there is no death nor suffering, only fun and a shallow perfection. At least for the Barbies. And the Kens are absolutely useless, effeminate and ridiculous.

Aside from Barbieland, there is what is called ‘The Real World’, that is supposed to portray the actual world we live in. The Real World is the exact opposite of Barbieland in the movie. For starters people are mortal and real, and the world is filled with suffering and death. This world is ruled by men and women exist only to please men. There you go the feminist dose of the movie. Roll you eyes and let’s go on.

Though there are things I disagree with in the way ‘The Real World’ is represented if the case is that the director was attempting to be factually accurate in her portrayal of the western society, I still believe there are many things worthy of being reflected upon especially given the huge success the movie has had and the conversations it’s sparked.

Here are some of the things I believe the movie did well:

Feminism and Men

First, the movie accurately portrays what men are like under the influence and/or dominion of feminism and matriarchy. Spoiler alert: they are not men at all. In Barbieland, the Kens are effeminate, useless, worthless and nothing short of ridiculous. They have no purpose nor meaning. Does that sound anything like real life to you? Have any of you seen what feminism is doing to men nowadays? Feminism is sadly turning men into passive and malleable beings with no goals in mind.

The complaint of many women nowadays, no matter how much of a feminist they are, it’s that men are not chivalrous, and strong (emotionally or physically) anymore. Added to that, they care less and less for fulfilling their God-given role of being leaders, protectors and providers, because… Why bother? Feminism has brainwashed women into believing they need no men because they can be their own protectors, and are totally capable of working long and tiring hours, while they also raise children and lead their families.

Women are prompted to act like men, therefore society needs no men, therefore why be a man?

A “Patriarchal” World?

My second point goes to the way the ‘real world’ is represented. Though the script is written in a way that presupposes our society is intrinsically sexist and misogynist, and the only victims of this are women, there is one thing I believe the movie did well: depict how miserable the new generations are when they are indoctrinated with feminism, environmentalism, and anti-capitalism through the school system and elsewhere. And not only that, it also shows how insufferable, entitled, and ignorant they truly are.

If that’s not a critique against indoctrination I don’t know what is.

When Barbie finally meets the teen girl who she thinks is her owner, the girl and her classmates slander Barbie for being a fascist and a capitalist. Who ends up in a bad light in this scenario is not Barbie for being a “fascist” but the teen girls for being brats.

Added to that, the movie goes on to show that in the ‘real world’, though it is a general belief that men are in charge of everything, and rule over women, the true and more competent leader behind the Barbie doll business is a woman, Ruth Handler, the actual creator of Barbie. Perhaps accidentally they show that there is no basis for claiming it is only men who are in positions of power. Kind of adding to that point, when Ken gets to know the ‘real world’ and goes around trying to be hired in various positions he encounters only that he needs to be highly educated and qualified to get a job. He won’t get hired for any job just for being a man, not even for lower wage jobs.

True Happiness is Found in Traditional Gender Roles

My last point is that the plot of the movie reaches a place where everyone is happy, and that is when, and only when, men and women alike are fulfilling their traditional gender roles.

After Ken visits ‘The Real World’ and learns about the patriarchy his inherent thirst for respect and leadership bursts thus he decides to put his own version of a patriarchy in place in Barbieland. Which he does with no problem and seemingly no resistance, even though he is supposed to be an incompetent and foolish man. Well… Putting that plot hole aside, the thing is that for a matter of minutes in the movie everyone seems to be happy.

Men are respected by the women, they act manly and pursue their barbies romantically (did I mention each Barbie has a Ken?). In exchange, the Barbies are happy serving the Kens, they are feminine, let the men lead, and are happy to be pursued by them. Then comes Barbie with the feminist narrative to brainwash all other Barbies and ruin the party. But there you go! Matriarchy was making men miserable and effeminate, while making women be overfocused on academic achievements and idolize comfort. It’s only when the Kens act like actual men that women have the freedom of being well… true women.

That begs the question about the true political leanings of Greta Gerwig, one of the directors of the movie. Though she claims to be a feminist and a progressive, she doesn’t seem to be one given how well she depicted the absurdities of feminism in the movie. Moreover, there are a couple of productions that she directed that give a hint to her true beliefs regarding the role of women, men and religion in society. We can see that in her movie Lady Bird where a teenage girl from Sacramento escapes her catholic background to go to university only to find that the world is disgusting. Another production of her is Little Women, where the role of women as mothers and wives is uplifted.

That you can interpret her movies either way, of being liberal or conservative, is true. But isn’t that enough to think that we have a secret conservative in Hollywood? Whereas movies from Marvel, Disney and Netflix openly celebrate gender ideology, transgenderism, sexual promiscuity, and promote critical race theory, Greta’s movies are so ambiguous it is hard to draw an absolute conclusion. Does she hate marriage and motherhood or celebrate them? The latter seems more plausible. Does she promote transgenderism or criticizes it? Again, even if the movie had a transgender character (doctor Barbie), the movie itself develops under the premise that there are two, and only two genders, and Barbie ends up celebrating the fact that she is biologically a woman.

Then what is it? Perhaps we’ll know if she ever dares speak her mind on these issues honestly. For now it would seem that she’s achieving to shift the conversation from praising feminism to criticizing it. It almost seems Hollywood is discovering there is something in between feminism and chauvinism, and that it is worthy to be explored and discussed. But what is that ‘in between’?

God’s Way is the Right Way

When I was doing research on the Barbie movie for a podcast that was released weeks ago I found an interview where Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig are explaining how the movie was produced and the message they want to send with it. The most interesting thing Margot says in it is that Barbie goes “beyond” feminism. The claim seems to argue that Barbie is not a feminist nor a misogynist but… Something else. Something better. She is just… a woman who celebrates the fact that she is one.

I respect Margot Robbie so much as an actress that it is hard for me to believe that she would still claim she is a feminist while making that sort of claim. Does she ignore feminism despises femininity, motherhood, marriage and men? In the interview she also argues that feminism is simply believing men and women are equal, which is not true. That is Christianity. Feminism believes women are superior to men and deserve more rights than them, we only need to see the issue of abortion as an example. Who has the right to kill an innocent being? Women, not men.

Whether a happy accident or an intentional effort, the truth is that Barbie accomplishes to promote a non-liberal approach to gender roles at the very least. As seen in the movie and also in the society we live in, we know that women are academically able to have great achievements, protect themselves, be completely independent from other humans, live to work, and be leaders in various scenarios. And men can be dependant, obliging, and put aside any sort of academic goals they have for the sake of pursuing their Barbies. BUT, that doesn’t mean that it is right, nor that subverting and/or perverting gender roles will have good outcomes long-term.

Nothing good will come from despising the Creator, and the roles he has given to his creation. God has created men to be leaders, protectors, and providers, and he has created women to be suitable helpers, nurturers, home-makers. and child-bearers. And that is a good thing. We are blessed when we each fulfill our God-given roles, first of all because we give glory to God by doing so, but also because it is good for society, the church and our families.

By the grace of God we are completely free within the boundaries of what God commands in Scripture. When men are MEN, women are free to be women. When women are WOMEN, men are free to be men. We are free when we embrace the fact that God didn’t design us to compete with each other, but rather to complement each other. And that is the right and only way, that is the in between Barbieland and ‘The Real World’.