When we consider the toys young girls love to play with, we often imagine baby-dolls, play kitchen sets, make-up, and the iconic Barbie Doll. Young girls have casually played with these toys for generations, but we have never considered that these toys may be detrimental to the lives and happiness of young girls as they mature. Marge Piercy speaks strongly in her poem, “Barbie Doll,” where she addresses negative social expectations compelling women to be well-trained, attractive homemakers. Unfortunately, unescapable social pressures and consistent criticism often push women beyond their emotional capacities. A Barbie Doll is an iconic toy that many young girls play with, adore, and aspire to be like when they are older. Barbie has perfect hair, a skinny body and lives in a perfect world. Realistically however, she is impractical, disproportionally sized, and lives in a fantasy world. Regardless of reality, young girls portray Barbie as a flawless and attractive icon living their dream. Nevertheless, a Barbie doll is merely a toy and Marge Piercy hints that just as young girls control Barbie in their playtime, society is controlling all women as if they are toys themselves. In general, the standards, stereotypes, and expectations that have progressed over time negatively control the lives of women. In “Barbie Doll,” Marge Piercy expands on a young woman’s life from birth through the short, yet painful years of her early adulthood demonstrating damaging social pressures on women. The main character “was born as usual” with no apparent flaws or abnormalities (line 1). However, as soon as she was born, social expectations associated with her gender began forcibly organizing her life. She was soon “presented dolls that did pee-pee and miniature GE stoves and irons” (2-3). As a general population, we assume that all young girls adore feminine gifts such as baby dolls, Easy-Bake Ovens, irons and other toys that resemble the traditional work of women. We assume young girls want to take after their mothers, so we give them the necessary training material to do so without thinking twice about it. Marge Piercy uses soft, innocent words such as “pee-pee” to portray a sense of innocence because as consumers, we do not know what negative impact our purchases will have on the youth. Not only does society prepare young girls for housework, but also embeds in their minds that they must be aware of their appearance at all times. For instance, another gift young girls typically receive is “we