Representation of Women in Barbie (2023) Film: A Multimodal Gender Discourse Analysis

Abstract

This study examined the representation of women in the Barbie (2023) film through a multimodal gender discourse analysis integrating linguistic and visual modes. A descriptive qualitative design was employed, focusing on transcribed utterances and selected visual figures featuring the film’s central female characters, Stereotypical Barbie and Gloria. Guided by Lakoff’s (1975) women’s language theory and Kress and van Leeuwen’s (2006) visual grammar, the analysis revealed that nine out of ten linguistic features appeared in the data, with hedges and intensifiers occurring most frequently, indicating patterns of emotional expressivity associated with traditional femininity. Furthermore, visual findings showed a dominant use of offer images, eye-level shots, and moderate social distance, fostering audience connection and relatability. At the same time, modality shifts between Barbie Land and the Real World reflected ideological contrasts between idealization and realism. Critically, the study highlights how these multimodal resources both align with and complicate post-feminist discourses by portraying women as expressive and empowered yet still shaped by prevailing gender expectations. The findings contribute to broader debates in multimodality, film studies, and media literacy by illustrating how cinematic techniques shape the public’s reading of femininity and offering analytical tools for understanding gendered meaning-making in contemporary media.