The Doll 's House By Henry Ibsen And The Glass Menagerie

Societal appearance and acceptance is an utmost characteristic an average individual tends to underestimate. It may seem as if individual morals go against the social appearance, but in value, individuals perceive a need for an appearance to convey a sense of belonging. Within two diverse yet similarly realist drama's, A Doll’s House and Death of a Salesman societal appearance’s stands above all else. Henrick Ibsen's A Doll's House embarks on the gender fitting and domesticity of the Victorian Era at its worse as Nora Helmer's unrealistic marriage falls within her grasps, leading to rebellion. Arthur Miller, on the other hand, sets forth the "tragedy of the common man" through the tragic hero of Willy Loman and the “American Dream” in

The play A Doll’s House (Henrik Ibsen) is centered around the lives of the antagonist, Torvald Helmer and his wife Nora Helmer. Torvald is deemed as the antagonist based on the belief that he is a power hungry misogynist whilst his wife naturally becomes the protagonist, as her husband does not treat her as an equal. The entire play itself is submerged in the issue of individual versus society. Women and men during the Victorian Era were known to have two separate callings known as separate spheres. The idea of separate spheres is based on the ‘natural’ characteristics of men and women. It is said that women are weaker and more moral thus they are more suited for the domestic sphere whilst men were to be the breadwinner and labour all day.” Ibsen uses interpellation in his play to allow for an even deeper insight and understanding of Torvald Helmer’s life. Interpellation is an ideology/philosophical ideal that has two forms: Repressive State Apparatuses and Ideological State Apparatuses. Repressive State Apparatus deals with persons being subject to ideologies or certain principles solely because it is seemingly the norm whilst

Men and women have established roles by society that can be deemed sexist. In Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, role of gender is portrayed in a family setting. Nora have been controlled first by her father and then by her husband, lacking authority or control in the household. The author portrays Nora and Torvald’s relationship as a father-daughter relationship. Torvald treats Nora as if she was a child, like a doll. Nora feels imprisoned in a doll’s house. Portraying sexist society where women are looked more down upon than men, Ibsen engages Nora in a household where little authority is given to her. The readers can see that love is orchestrated to favor the dominance of men; however, Nora grows as a character, being able to voice her own opinion and relates her own action. Gender roles are established by society, but human independence breaks the gender stereotypes and defaulted roles. In Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, the sexism can be overcome through self-awareness and motivation.

In A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, there are three major references in the play that explain Ibsen’s thoughts on both gender and societal roles for when of the past and present; these three references are to dolls, to animals such as skylarks and squirrels, and to children. Nearing the end of the story, Nora reveals that she feels similarly towards Torvald as she did to her father: “But our home has been nothing but a playroom. I have been your doll wife, just as at home I was Papa’s doll child; and here the children have been my dolls” (67) Ibsen’s reference to Nora being a doll demonstrates the limited lives of women during this time; it shows that women weren’t meant to have their own lives; a man should control them in order to survive. Throughout the play, Torvald continuously refers to Nora as his “little squirrel” or his “little skylark” (2). Ibsen uses these references to symbolize the inferiority of women and superiority of men during the 19th century. Similarly, Torvald as refers to Nora as being like a child, also pointing to the fact that societal roles during that time meant that women were seen as helpless without the guidance of a man.

Women should be treated in a humane way. They are to be taught at a young age how to deal with responsibility, knowing their duties as well as their own personal rights. As wives they thrive to be trustworthy, and as mothers they must be ideal. However, to return the favor, husbands should treat their wives with respect and admiration if they truly love them. Yet in times of dismay and disappointment, women plot to escape-escape from the foolish, mocking asides and the unlistened opinions. When women delve into these secret affairs, they know just what path they are headed down, and what could be the ultimate consequence. In A Doll’s House, by Henrik Ibsen, Nora is desperate to break free of her husband’s ties, to become the marionette, instead of the puppeteer. Nora chooses to hide secret letters from her husband, in order to pay off her debt, and fly her way to “freedom.”

In today 's society, many women are in a situation similar to Nora 's. Although many people have accepted women as being equal, there are still those in modern America who are doing their best to suppress the feminist revolution. Torvald is an example of men who are only interested in their appearance and the amount of control they have over a person.  These our the men that are holding society down by not caring about the feelings of others.  But Torvald is not the only guilty party.  Nora, although very submissive, is also very manipulative.  She makes Torvald think he is much smarter and stronger, but in reality, she thinks herself to be quite crafty as far as getting what she wants.  However, when the door is slammed, Torvald is no longer exposed to Nora 's manipulative nature.  He then comes to the realization of what true love and equality are, and that they cannot be achieved with people like Nora and himself together.  When everyone finally views males and females as equals, and when neither men nor women overuse their power of gender that society gives them, is when true

As we are humans we love the repeated events of life. As evidenced in our most loved literature and shows. The great everlasting mask of what is really behind everything or what really is there. Continuously asking why again, again, and again, never satisfied. Nora from A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen provides one of the favorite themes linking her to the Showgirls of Las Vegas, the stuffed animals that roamed the land in the past, and Edna from The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Illusion is what seems to binds people but, is the illusion reality or fantasy or both?

As a woman, a mother and a wife, Nora Helmer did technically fulfill her duties towards her family and the society. She diligently fulfilled all her obligations for a time being but at one point stopped and thought about what she wanted. As a woman, Nora was the perfect girl. To society, she acted as if she was the most modest and diligent wife there was and in truth, she was for a time being. The gender roles had changed only after her marriage. Nora Helmer had been treated as a doll for too long and eventually realized it herself. Once this realization came, she left the household and went on to become independent. This is where the switching of gender roles came in. The idea that Nora had more power is opposite to what Eagly and Steffen believes a stereotypical woman is –" Women are more likely than men to hold positions of lower status and authority " (735). The context of Nora as a character is very feminist due to the fact that she subverts all the traditional notions of what a woman as a wife and a mother should be. Before she left her family, she was depicted as an obedient and loving wife but at the near end of the play, both these qualities were reversed. She became the mother who had left her children and her husband to be able to educate herself. She became selfish and independent which is the reason why she was able to switch gender roles and be like similar to the traditional characteristics of

The timeless writing A Doll’s House, by Henrik Ibsen is a controversial Realist Drama that provides a raw insight on how the equality of gender roles for women during the late 1800s was impacted by Women’s Rights Movement’s and women’s desire to break the stereotypes. A Doll’s House is a play that serves as a window allowing the audience to witness the artificial mold of this society’s expectations being broken by a female character. Set in a time where women were not quite liberal or capable in society’s eyes, A Doll’s House accurately portrays a topic that is applicable and being discussed in the 21st century. This play effectively uses Realist style writing, with themes portraying conflicting individual and social duties in this era and sheds light on the social expectations that a woman was forced to face then and that women often face today.

“There is beauty in truth, even if it 's painful. Those who lie, twist life so that it looks tasty to the lazy, brilliant to the ignorant, and powerful to the weak. But lies only strengthen our defects. They don 't teach anything, help anything, fix anything or cure anything. Nor do they develop one 's character, one 's mind, one 's heart or one 's soul.” (José N. Harris). Nora Helmer’s choice to lie and deceive is inappropriate and wrong for women to do to her husband during this time period; it ruins her relationship, marriage, and motherhood. Due to Nora’s past decisions she is the one who destroys her life and future because she lies and deceives, however due to Nora lying and deceiving it did ruin her relations, yet it let her begin to search for self to gain personal freedom, she no longer wants to be oppressed and living for others. Throughout the play A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, Ibsen employs foreshadowing, indirect characterization, and symbols to reveal the larger theme that one 's choice to lie and deceive can destroy future relations between others.

Primarily, Nora is portrayed as being rebellious, which is typically described as a more masculine trait. The play revolves around Nora’s revelry, as it shows

Attitude of Torvald and behavior of Nora leading to the downfall in the play A Dolls house by Henrik Ibsen

In Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, the play focused greatly on the relationships of people, and the marriage ideals of the time. The family of Nora and Torvald Helmer is a very typical family of the time, following all the norms and lifestyles. When Torvald was sick, and was advised by doctors to move to the south of the country, Nora took in her hands the fate of her husband, by getting a loan from an untrustworthy man from her husband’s bank, Krogstad, without telling Torvald. The drama of the play focused on the revealing of the loan’s secret Nora was hiding from Torvald. The family dynamics that is represented in the play demonstrates very poor communication skills between them, and a very ideal of a 19th century relationship. The family dynamics of Nora and Torvald Helmer reveals that all issues arise from a dishonest relationship. In the beginning of the play, Nora was misleading Torvald in regards to her grand spending of money. In addition, Nora behind her husband’s back decided to receive a loan that could ruin her family. Lastly, Nora’s dishonesty and carelessness ruined the family and broke them apart. With the play ending in the departure of Nora from her family, it proved to the viewers/ readers of the play that the family dynamics should be based on trust and honesty.

Set in late 19th century Norway, Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House parallels the societal standards of the time, a patriarchal society. This resulting framework reinforces a strict social stratum that seeks to marginalize women and develop the rapport of superior to inferior. The drama presents an archetypical housewife named Nora Helmer who grows dissatisfied and disillusioned with her patronizing husband, Torvald. Content with the status quo of the time, Torvald embraces the schema of the “man’s role” in a marriage - interacting with Nora as her father would; his accomplishment of such an ideal is qualified through the quantifiable. Through indirect characterization, the theme of appearance v. reality, and a motif of beauty, Ibsen portrays

In the modern drama, A Doll’s House, Norwegian author, Henrik Ibsen, place emphasis on the societal expectations, and the character’s response to them. He uses Torvald, and Nora, along with Krogstad, and Kristine, both as couples and as individuals to help showcase this through literary devices. Ibsen’s use of juxtaposition both between the couples, and between the individuals highlight societal norms emphasis on gender roles and appearances in order to show that only social outcast can overcome societal rules to achieve true happiness.