"A Doll's House" Essay

Nora is introduced as a housewife who believes the true meaning of marriage revolving around obedience. She demonstrates the true definition of a respectful daughter, a faithful and obedient wife, and a dependable mother. It wasn’t unusual for Torvald to throw his weight around towards Nora. He attempts to limit her macaroon intake “Hasn’t nibbled some pastry,” (Ibsen 788) she replies, “You know I could never think of going against you” (Ibsen 788). In the eyes of Nora, he is considered a confident, powerful, and successful businessman since he is receiving a promotion as a bank manager after the New Year. Torvald’s sense of marriage can be summed up that he is the king of the castle “This is the way it should be my darling Nora. What-ever comes, you’ll see: when it really counts, I have strength and courage enough as a man to take the whole weight myself” (Ibsen 814). Torvald’s view is she is just a “doll” in his doll house. To him, it was important to stress there was no such thing as equality in their partnership, he

The main character, Nora, in Henrik Ibsen’s play “A Doll House” is a character that had been held back and repressed by the patriarchal society she existed in. Throughout the play it can be seen that most of the issues and struggles the character, Nora, faced were created and brought on by the men who were in her life. From the very beginning it is evident that Nora is as an undermined and restrained woman. Nora’s husband, Torvald, is her overseer. Torvald treats Nora like a child. He gives her nicknames like “squirrel” as if she is a little animal that only scurries about. When Nora wants money she must ask Torvald for permission to borrow some. Torvald also calls Nora a “spendthrift” as he does not trust Nora with money and believes she just wastes it on useless things. Torvald’s little nicknames for Nora seem to dehumanize her and make her seem less than her husband. When Nora suggests to Torvald to borrow money until he gets paid, Torvald responds “how like a woman! You know what I think about that. No debts! Never borrow!” (Ibsen 884) as if to indicate all women are incompetent and don’t know how to handle money. Although Nora is a victim of a destructive patriarchal society, she is also an example of what it meant to be a part of the feminist movement. Feminism is a movement and ideology that believes in the establishment of economic, political, and social equality of the sexes. At

Mrs. Linde was not as privileged as Nora was--she had to accept responsibility and work hard for her money. Mrs. Linde's acceptance of responsibility draws attention to Nora's abandonment of her father. When her father was sick, she chose to spend all of her time caring for her husband and waiting for the arrival of her child, then to find any time to go and visit him. Nora did whatever she could to raise money to go on a trip to save Torvald's life and did not think once about visiting her dying father. During the friend's conversation, it was actually Mrs. Linde that brought up her father. When Nora was discussing how difficult it was to get away and go to Italy, because she had just had her child, she failed to mention that her father had passed away during that time and could have contributed to the difficult timing. Mrs. Linde is the one who had brought up the death of Nora's father in the conversation, in which Nora replied "yes...wasn't it dreadful, I couldn't go look after him. I was expecting little Ivar any day. And then I had my poor Torvald to care for--we really didn't think he'd live. Dear, kind Papa! I never saw him again", (Ibsen, 374). Mrs. Linde's priority was taking care of her mother; Nora's priority was raising money to take her husband on a trip to care for him while completely abandoning her father. Mrs. Linde's responsible actions exaggerate Nora's irresponsibility and neglect.

Since Nora’s father was dying, she was forced to forge his signature in order to secure a loan that would eventually save her husband’s life, which only led to more problems in the future because in order for her to be able to repay the money she must lie about how she spends her household accounts and also lie about taking odd jobs to earn extra money. Also, the way Torvald treats Nora in the play depicts the way women were treated in the nineteenth century. For example, In Act I, Nora is little more than a child playing a role. She is a “doll” occupying a doll’s house, a child who has exchanged a father for a husband without changing or maturing in any way. Torvald treats his wife literally like a doll, calling her pet names and occasionally scolding her as if she were a child. His primary interests are his new job as a bank manager and his social standing. When he learns that his wife is involved in a legal problem that would embarrass him if it became known to the public, he reveals who he really is. He comes off as a hypocrite preoccupied with his own welfare. Also, Torvald says that Nora is now his property which is when Nora realizes she is much too good for him. Nora then decides to leave because they have been married for eight years and has suffered enough injustice from both her father and Torvald. Nora explains to Torvald that she has been merry, not happy, being with him. She explained to him how

In the play, Nora never leaves her house or the living room like someone controlling a doll. Nora is a doll living in her own doll house under the watch and command of Torvald. This shows how he is in control over her and it also represents her lack of freedom. The readers and audience can see this form of control when Torvald says “As for you and me, we must make no outward change in our way of life…But the

During this period, women were subjected in their gender roles and were restricted over what the patriarchal system enforced on them. Everyone was brought up believing that women had neither self-control nor self-government but that they must capitulate to the control of dominate gender. The ideology that “God created men and women different - … [and they should] remain each in their own position.” (eHow, Ibsen's Influences on Women's Rights) is present in A Doll’s House with Nora’s character, as she is seen as the ideal women during the Victorian Era, who is first dutiful as wife and mother before to her own self. Whenever Torvald gives Nora money, she spends it on her children so that they are not “shabbily dressed” (Act 1). Though she loves her children it is all the more shocking when she leaves them.

Nora serves only to entertain Torvald and does not realize Torvald sees her as nothing but a little doll to play with. Nora ironically points out: “We shall have a lovely tree—I’ll do all the things you like, Torvald, I’ll sing and dance.” Right after Nora mentions the tree, she willingly goes along with her role as a submissive female and this represents her initial characterization which will then develop to her rejection of her submissive role.

restricted to playing with the children, doing little housework, and working on her needlepoint. A problem with her responsibilities is that her most important obligation is to please Torvald, making her role similar to that of a slave. Torvald easily talks down to Nora saying things like: “…worries that you couldn’t possible help me with”, “Nora, Nora, just like a woman”, and “Mayn’t I look at my dearest treasure? At all the beauty that belongs to no one but me—that’s my very own?” as if she is considered his property.

A Doll’s House, by Henrik Ibsen, creates a peephole into the lives of a family in the Victorian Era. The play portrays a female viewpoint in a male-dominated society. The values of the society are described using the actions of a woman, Nora, who rebels against the injustices inflicted upon her gender. Women’s equality with men was not recognized by society in the late 1800’s. Rather, a woman was considered a doll, a child, and a servant. Nora’s alienation reveals society’s assumptions and values about gender.

The enforcement of specific gender roles by societal standards in 19th century married life proved to be suffocating. Women were objects to perform those duties for which their gender was thought to have been created: to remain complacent, readily accept any chore and complete it “gracefully” (Ibsen 213). Contrarily, men were the absolute monarchs over their respective homes and all that dwelled within. In Henrik Ibsen’s play, A Doll’s House, Nora is subjected to moral degradation through her familial role, the consistent patronization of her husband and her own assumed subordinance. Ibsen belittles the role of the housewife through means of stage direction, diminutive pet names and through Nora’s interaction with her morally ultimate

In the story “Doll House” Nora had been previously scolded by her husband and finally informed Torvald, “I’m saying we’ve never sat down seriously and got to the bottom of things” (936 MLM). Nora was done being treated as a child by Torvald. He shielded her from the world, like her father, and would never let her form an opinion stray from his own. He wouldn’t let her talk of the serious matters in life, from morality to simple decisions with money, that had to do with being her own person with her own mind. This led Nora to leave and find herself as Torvald would not let her just be with his grown instinct that love from a husband must have a controlling nature over the wife in the marriage, not an equality between the

In “A Doll’s House”, Torvald and Nora each have a unique role in their marriage. Torvald treats Nora as his little doll, or plaything, while Nora treats him as the man of the house who has the authority to do anything he wants. These ideas form because the society within the play does not allow much freedom for women. According to this society and culture, a women’s role is depicted by the man she is with, the female character’s all exemplify Nora’s assertion that women have to sacrifice a lot more than men. In this play, Nora, Mrs. Linde, and the maid all hold sacrificial roles depicted by the society they

In A Doll's House, Henrik Ibsen focuses on the importance of women's roles and freedom in society. Widely regarded as a feminist paean, the play features two major female characters; the most prominent of whom, Nora Helmer, shatters her position as a subservient, doll-like female when she walks out on her husband and children with a flagrant "door slam heard round the world." Nora’s evolution, though inspiring, should not overshadow another crucial woman in the play: Mrs. Kristine Linde. Both women attain freedom in a society dominated by the adherence to conservative marital roles, but do it in different ways. While Nora reaches her consciousness and slams the door on her shackling domicile, Mrs.

Torvald’s wife Nora is the center of several of the traits that classify him as a morally ambiguous character. Nora is more like a possession to Torvald than a soul mate or wife. She is like a doll to him, something that he can control and shape into what he wants. Nora is treated like a child and as if she can not function a second without him to be there to tell her what to do. Her dependency on him is extremely important to him because that is

The inferior role of Nora is extremely important to her character. Nora is oppressed by a variety of "oppressive social conventions." Ibsen in his "A Doll's House" depicts the role of women as subordinate in order to emphasize their role in society. Nora is oppressed by the manipulation from Torvald. Torvald has a very typical