From the first days of its existence, Barbie began to be perceived as a sociocultural phenomenon. Her toy world reflects such problems of real society as emancipation, family relationships, sexual norms, career, political correctness and many others. During heated debates, supporters and opponents of the doll, without noticing it themselves, created an entire mythology of Barbie. The book explores not only the history of the doll itself, but also the peculiarities of its perception by society. Linor Goralik shows how, over forty-odd years, Barbie has essentially become a mirror of Western civilization. This is the first time such a complete and thorough study of the Barbie phenomenon has been published in Russian.