Mud Flap Girl on Teen Talk Barbie<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Everyone knows I\u2019m not into clothes, but
\nyou go to the mall, girlfriend; knock yourself
\nuptown, little Ms. Bad Influence. What
\nelse can you do when you\u2019re pulled from the shelf<\/p>\n
for expressing yourself. Here\u2019s what I think:
\nmath class is supposed to be tough. Take that
\nto any best selling, self-helping shrink:
\nshe\u2019ll say your stellar scores on the GMAT<\/p>\n
and your supreme self-esteem can be traced
\nto childhood success at difficult tasks.
\nSo when Jane\u2019s math anxiety gets placed
\non your plastic ass, remind them you passed\u2014<\/p>\n
and then pulled off a string of successes
\nin more careers than Skipper has dresses.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
_________________
\nAccording to a New York Times article published October 21, 1992, Mattel\u2019s Teen Talk Barbie was widely criticized by a national women’s group for saying “math class is tough.” The Barbie remained in stores, but the computer chip that randomly selected four phrases for each doll thereafter picked from 269 selections, not 270.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Nicole Hardy\u2019s<\/a> memoir, Confessions of a Latter-Day Virgin<\/em><\/a> is forthcoming through Hyperion\/Voice in 2013. Her work has appeared in the New York Times<\/a> as well as many literary journals. She\u2019s the author of a poetry collection and a chapbook:This Blonde<\/em>,<\/a> and Mud Flap Girl’s XX Guide to Facial Profiling.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Mud Flap Girl on Teen Talk Barbie Everyone knows I\u2019m not into clothes, but you go to the mall, girlfriend; knock yourself uptown, little Ms. Bad Influence. What else can you do when you\u2019re pulled from the shelf for … Continue reading