The immensely popular “Barbie” movie has been praised for both celebrating and critiquing femininity. As a mother and media scholar, I see it through a more focused perspective: at its heart, the film explores the relationships between mothers and daughters.
The story follows “Stereotypical Barbie,” portrayed by Margot Robbie, who starts malfunctioning: her feet go flat, and she becomes fixated on the concept of death. She leaves her flawless, plastic existence to mend the connection between the real world and Barbieland. During her journey, she realizes that the real world is nothing like her girl-power haven, where Barbies hold all influential roles and Kens are mere accessories.
At its core, the movie delves into the complexities of motherhood – a role often overlooked, despite the contrasting cultural expectations and the real sacrifices mothers make. The film humorously, yet chillingly, comments on the nature of motherhood.
“Since the beginning of time,” says unseen narrator Helen Mirren with irony in the film’s opening line, “since the first little girl ever existed, there have been dolls.” Film lovers will recognize this as an homage to Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Girls in old-fashioned dresses play “house” with dolls in a primitive setting, looking bored and disinterested. These dolls only allow girls to pretend to be mothers, which Mirren suggests is fun “for a while.” She sarcastically adds, “Ask your mother.” Mirren implies that the allure of motherhood eventually turns into unwanted drudgery, a point driven home when the girls encounter their first Barbie, who inspires them to abandon their mundane baby dolls. Barbie, a doll of a young, beautiful woman, urges kids to leave behind the boredom of motherhood for the glamour of Barbieland, where Barbies live ideal lives, embodying perfect femininity and endless possibilities.
This portrayal of motherhood as thankless and unenjoyable echoes mid-20th-century feminist critiques of childcare and housework, which not only confined women to the home but demanded repetitive tasks that stifled their aspirations and talents.
In her 1949 book “The Second Sex,” French philosopher Simone de Beauvoir stated that women needed to reject the notion of motherhood as the ultimate feminine achievement to empower themselves. American writer Betty Friedan later reiterated this view in her 1963 book “The Feminine Mystique,” criticizing the “happy housewife heroine” image that claimed fulfillment from being solely a wife and mother. Barbie’s creation in 1959, while preceding the women’s movement of the 1960s and 1970s, also aimed to help girls envision their adult selves beyond motherhood.
However, many women find joy in being mothers, and motherhood plays a crucial role in society. Feminist poet Adrienne Rich, in her 1976 book “Of Woman Born,” differentiated between the rewarding relationship with children and the patriarchal institution of motherhood that controls women. Sociologist Patricia Hill Collins introduced the term “motherwork” in the mid-1990s to emphasize the experiences of women of color and working-class mothers, who often lack the resources to prioritize their ambitions over caring for their families.
For these mothers, the survival of their children is not guaranteed. Instead of being tedious and oppressive, motherwork can be a vital labor of love and empowerment.
In “Barbie,” the relationship between Gloria, played by America Ferrera, and her daughter Sasha, played by Ariana Greenblatt, embodies these contradictions. Barbie, after a vision suggests someone’s sadness is causing her glitches, initially thinks Sasha’s tween angst is the cause. But she discovers it’s Gloria’s loneliness and nostalgia for playing Barbies with her daughter that have broken the barrier between reality and fantasy. Their adventure with Barbie, including escaping the Mattel executives and returning to Barbieland to save it from the Kens, mends their relationship. Gloria rediscovers the joy in motherhood, and Sasha sees her mother as a complete person with her own complexities, not just a figure to rebel against.
Gloria’s significant monologue describes “the cognitive dissonance required to be a woman under patriarchy.” Struggling with her deep love for her child and the fear of failing as a mother, she knows all too well how this dissonance affects women. Scholar Jacqueline Rose, in her 2018 book “Mothers: An Essay on Love and Cruelty,” argues that motherhood is tied to citizenship and nationhood, often making mothers scapegoats for societal failures.
“Barbie” rejects the idea that mothers are to blame for their children’s errors. Through the character of Ruth Handler, played by Rhea Perlman, the film offers another view. Handler helps Barbie understand what becoming human means. She symbolically lets go of her creation, encouraging Barbie to find her own path, explaining that mothers pave the way for their children without holding them back.
“Barbie” invites viewers to challenge its own themes and messages while presenting different views on motherhood. It acknowledges that being a mother is tough, sometimes thankless, but it can also be rewarding and empowering. Motherhood involves a balance of leading and following, holding on, and letting go.