Barbie in Red

Barbie in Red

Listen to some of the synonyms for red:  scarlet, claret, burgundy, vermilion, carmine, crimson, maroon, garnet, russet, cerise.  

And listen to the names of the substances used to produce the colour red:  cinnabar, cochineal, fuchsine, ruddle, madder, annatto, realgar, red lead.

And think about the colour red, vibrant, alive and imbued with the concept of the strength of muscle and blood.  It is associated with freedom in Jenny Joseph’s poem Warning, the siren song of  the feisty Red Hat Society.   We see red when we are angry.  We blush red when we are embarrassed.  Women paint their nails and lips red to attract the attention of men.

Red beacons, red warning signals, red sky at night, red as a beet, roses are red, red is the colour of my true love’s hair.  Scarlet O’Hara, Will Scarlet, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Red-Headed League and of course,  red-haired Anne of Green Gables were all part of my youthful reading.  

I have a red car.  It is old and faded now but the colour blinded me when I went to the dealership to pick it up.  The next day, I drove it to work and got my first and only speeding ticket.  I know the police officer pulled me over because of  the screaming red paint.

Red demands your attention and Barbie revels in it.