The spectacular femininity of bimbos and 'Barbie'

It's Been a Minute

NPR

News Commentary, Society & Culture, News, Spirituality, Religion & Spirituality

4.6 • 8.8K Ratings

🗓️ 21 July 2023

⏱️ 39 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The Barbie movie has arrived and we seem to be reaching peak Barbie-mania. But, Barbie's brand of hyperfeminine fun has been on the rise for years — especially online among left leaning femmes who call themselves bimbos and have been giving the term a new meaning.

Host Brittany Luse and Hannah McCann, a lecturer at the University of Melbourne who specializes in critical femininity studies, explore how both Barbie and real-life bimbos are criticized for being bad role models, and yet this carefree, maximalist, feminine style may actually be a little subversive.

Transcript

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0:00.0	The heads up to listeners, this episode includes mentions of sex and sex work, and also contains
0:06.1	some vulgar language.
0:07.8	Hey y'all, you're listening to it's been a minute from NPR.
0:14.1	I'm Brittany Luce.
0:15.8	I have been waiting for this weekend for months.
0:19.5	My tickets are bought, I've laid out my pink outfit, and I'm ready to see the Barbie
0:25.1	movie.
0:26.1	Hi Barbie!
0:27.1	Hi Barbie!
0:28.1	Hi Barbie!
0:29.1	Hi Barbie!
0:29.9	Hi Barbie!
0:30.9	Hi!
0:31.9	Hi Ken!
0:33.6	And Barbie is coming at just the right time.
0:36.6	Her brand of hyper feminine fun has been on the rise for the past few years, especially
0:41.4	among some young FEMs, who call themselves Bimbo's.
0:45.2	Hi, welcome to Bimbo TikTok.
0:48.5	I'm so glad you could finally make it.
0:51.6	TikTokers like Chrissy Chopeca, who you just heard and the key to red car, are exploring
0:56.2	what it means to be a Bimbo through their online personas.
0:59.9	But they aren't just embracing the no-thoughts pretty girl stereotype, they're adding an extra
	...

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