English: Back cover of Barbie booklet about how to...
English: Dave Kerman (with Barbie dolls) performin...
Flor RojaSociological/ Economic Determinist Criticism of "Barbie Q", by Sandra Cisneros What does it mean to be rich? Is it not possible for a person to be wealthy without having a penny to their name? Most of us, including myself, in the middle to lower class population of the world like to believe in the idea that wealth is somewhat connected to money. After reading the short story "Barbie-Q" by Sandra Cisneros I believe that many more will change their prospective in regards to this idea. After all what is more simple than the concept that when two little girls with old odd dolls receive two new wonderful dolls that they become more wealthy. But is it that wealth that makes them happier? With that in mind is the America dream the idea of wealth or happiness? The propose of this paper is to give a sociological/ economic determinist criticism over "Barbie-Q" by Sandra Cisneros.
Cisneros' economic condition in Barbie-Q is that she and her sister are part of family that live in poverty. Cisneros explains this when she is describing to us what their Barbie dolls looked like. She states that "Yours is the one with the mean eyes and ponytail" (Cisneros 414) "Mine is the one with the bubble hair" (Cisneros 414) "But that is all we could afford" (Cisneros 414). She and her sister know that their Barbie dolls are not the greatest dolls value wise, but they do realize that those dolls are the best that their family can afford and they make the best out of what they can get. The sisters go as far as making their Barbie dolls elegant "dress invented from a old sock where we cut holes in" (Cisneros 414).
The economic condition of the sisters changes throughout this piece of...