Explaining the Misunderstanding of Ken's Masculinity as Patriarchy in the Barbie Movie

Barbie (2023) is a film that combines comedy and fantasy. This film was directed by Greta Gerwig and became very popular in its time, alongside Oppenheimer, which was released in the same year. This film basically tells the story of Barbie and Ken's life in Barbieland, a place where Barbie has full control in their government, while Ken is only considered as a complement. This inequality encourages the Kens to take over Barbieland and apply the concept of masculinity.

Masculinity itself is a social concept where emotional gender roles are distinct, where men should be assertive, tough, and focused on material success, while women should show empathy, caring, and focused on the quality of life.

Many people misunderstand that masculinity is the same as patriarchy, which is closely related to toxic masculinity. Furthermore, in a patriarchal system, men must always be strong no matter what the conditions, must be superior to women in order to strengthen their position as the main power holders in various aspects of life, such as politics, economics, and family. This patriarchal system is often seen negatively because men always dominate aspects of life, marginalizing women and labeling them as inferior.

However, masculinity is not a tool to give privileges to men, but rather a social concept that differentiates gender roles based on societal norms and expectations. Unlike patriarchy, which is a social system to maintain male dominance, masculinity focuses more on the expression of characteristics that are considered masculine, which can vary depending on culture. In other words, masculinity can exist in a healthier form, without the need for male dominance over women.

Just like what happened in the Barbie movie, many people misinterpret the help given by the Kens to Barbie as patriarchy. In fact, what they do is a form of concern driven by sincerity and solidarity. In the scene 'Deprogramming Barbies,' Barbie takes advantage of the Kens' desire to be superior by pretending to be terrible in various things such as technology and sports.  But when we looked further, the Kens were the ones who were treated inferior all this time. So when they were in power, they acted like a child, trying to defend it by showing that the Kens were also have rights to rule. This explaining that the Kens did not fully understand the system they were implementing. They were just replicating what Barbie had done to them before. This suspicion is supported by the fact that the Kens did not grow up as a power holder in a patriarchal system. Rather, he was the one who complemented Barbies in Barbieland.

The sentence "Let me show you," which the Kens repeatedly used to help the Barbies, shows their sincerity that they only want to help. Even the gestures they made showed delicate in every way they treated the Barbies. In fact, it was considered a form of power satisfactory, considered as a form of patriarchy. The misunderstanding of masculinity as patriarchy in the Barbie film is one small example of how the concept of gender is often viewed narrowly. This reminds us that masculinity can exist without domination, and patriarchy is not the only way to express it. Additionally, to understand how this scene shows masculine identity, you can watch it directly on YouTube.

An Intercultural Communication analysis by Ghina Dewi Rachmawati, Havenue Grace Swasti Sekarningtyas, and Fiel.