Caudron's "Befriending Barbie

Caudron attends a Barbie convention where she meets so many Barbie enthusiasts. She begins the essay by describing Debbie and her fingernails. I think Caudron focuses so much on this woman’s description because she is so different from her. Debbie is so enthusiastic about her job/hobbie and it is obvious that she is honest when giving Caudron so much information. Although Caudron does admit that these type of things easily bore her and it is difficult for her to understand what all the excitement is about. Debbie tells her that there are other things which she and her colleagues collect and I think this allows us to see that they are not necessarily fanatics of one thing, but collect what they love even if one has no relation to the other. It made me think of how I view Barbie and what many things I collect. I think the things that people often collect have something to say about their personality even if it is very diverse.

The part of this essay which I enjoyed the most was her description of the convention and the many people who attended it. It is on the first paragraph of pg. 63 where Caudron describes that years theme and how so many people were dressed in psychedelic clothing. That sounds like a lot of fun. Another thing that was surprising for Caudron was the immense variety of Barbies and the theme each Barbie represented according to her time. With so many descriptions Caudron begins to appreciate what the dolls represent and confesses she begins to change her initial views. She includes so much humor in the essay and I don’t think she was making fun of the people at the convention and how much they enjoyed what might seem like just a doll. Through that humor I think that she is telling us so much more because of her initial responses upon hearing conversations of excitement over a doll having SPF 30 sun block or the one with the big boobs. It even surprised me to know that a doll could cost more than $15,000 and that people go to great lengths to acquire them. But I think it helps to think of our own hobbies or love for material things and it makes sense to not think of the price when you truly love what you are buying.

I like that at the end of her paper she is so much more understanding of why these people do this and that within their hobbies and conventions they also seek to help others who are in need. There is such a change in Caudron that she even says, ""I’m feeling left out." Its after seeing the interactions and strong friendships that she begins to wonder about her group of friends and if any of them come close to what the Barbie friendships are like. It becomes obvious that the convention is not only about admiring a plastic doll, but it has caused so many people to experience and develop as adults.