In a finding that will astonish many parents, academics at Bath University concluded that girls attack their Barbie dolls as a symbol of their rejection of the consumer society. "Barbie provoked rejection, hatred and violence," said Dr Agnes Nairn, who led the research for the university's school of management.
This study is fascinating because I too torturned and mutilated Barbie as a youngster. To be more specific, I pierced her ears with a ball point pen, drew eyeshadow on her with Magic Marker, gave her a Susan Powter haircut, bent her legs behind her head and poked a hole in her mouth and tried to push a tiny cigarette into it. Maybe I was rejecting Barbie because, well, I was starting to get pissed at how gorgeous and perky Barbie was and how lame and stoopid I was. But look at me! I turned out just fine. :)
