In A Doll House by Ibsen, the main character Nora begins to realize she has been trapped mentally and emotionally by the European ideals of women in society. In the beginning of the play, Nora and her husband Torvald have been “staring in various idealist scenarios of female sacrifice and male rescue” (257 Moi). From the outside perspective, the Helmers live a perfect life with Nora, a diligent wife and mother, and Torvald a working father who is about to become a manager of a bank. Underneath the surface of their marriage, it is filled with lies and secrets. Nora is secretly trying to pay a debt back to a co-worker of Torvald and forges a signature in the process. She fails to tell her husband about this loan because she does not want to hurt …show more content…
Nora is caught off guard by his disapproval because she thought Torvald would stick to his ideals as a male and rescue her from this situation. She realizes that she has been trapped acting as the ideal mother and wife. Thinking that this was the ideal way of living, she neglected her duties as a human being and begins to question what she thought was once significant. These ideals in society have been holding her back from leading a significant life. Nora comes to the realization that she is not capable of being a mother and wife because she needs to discover for herself what her morals and values are in life. She tells Torvald, “I have duties equally shared…Duties to myself…I believe that, before all else. I’m a human being, no less than you—or anyway, I ought to try to become one” (111 Ibsen). Her duties go beyond the duties to her children and husband. Nora discovers that the answer to living a life that is significant is by freeing herself from her female ideal roles in society and taking responsibility for herself as a woman. Nora tells her husband, “I’m freeing you from being responsible” (114 Ibsen) because she needs to be responsible of herself and take ownership of her own
Linde is an example of a woman acting predatory with her jealously and advancing herself as the motive for her actions. When Nora and Mrs. Linde are catching up on each other’s lives, Mrs. Linde tells Nora of the hardship in her life and says, “No one to work for, and yet you’re always having to snap up your opportunities. You have to live; and so you grow selfish” (Ibsen 2192). This emphasizes the nature of predatoriness in this society that is necessary to live within it. Mrs. Linde mentions that she has struggled to find work and garners Nora’s sympathy to then follow up and ask Nora if Torvald could possibly find her a job. Through Mrs. Linde, Ibsen illustrates this type of subtle predatoriness that is commonly used to advance oneself in his society. When Krogstad tells Mrs. Linde about his letter to Torvald, instead of stopping Torvald from getting the letter, and finding out Nora’s secret, she says, “Helmer’s got to learn everything; this dreadful secret has to be aired; those two have come have to come to a full understanding; all these lies and evasions can’t go on” (Ibsen 2222). Mrs. Linde gets exactly what she wants, a life similar to Nora’s with Krogstad, without having to cause any damage, but demonstrates predatory nature through acting with the intention to hurt Nora due to the jealousy she felt for Nora’s life. Ibsen suggests that many women want to get married and live the life of a life of a perfect housewife, but do not succeed in this, like Mrs.
Throughout her life Nora had spent her time pleasing the men around her, first her father and then Torvald. As the reality erupted that her marriage to Torvald was loveless and not salvageable, she ignored Torvald's demand that she not leave him. He even made attempts to sway her decision by insinuating they could go on in the house as brother and sister. Her need to be a valued human in society had prevailed over the dependent, frail, creature that once belonged to Torvald. She set out to find her independence in spite of the limitations that society had placed on women. Her displeasure had burned a path beyond her little, secure world and the burden of being a plaything was lifted.
Unwilling to accept her supposed role in society, Nora wanted to figure out whether women should live under the guidance of men or if they should make decisions based on their own knowledge. Nora could not tolerate abiding by the rules of her male-dominated society. It took much fortitude for Nora to rebel against the views of the majority of people, and to reflect on the information she got herself instead of letting it be determined by another.
The manner in which Torvald talks down to his wife and the apparent. unopposed acceptance of this by his wife, is evidence that, at least. Initially, power firmly rests in the grip of Nora’s husband. Nora’s language is full of indefinite, qualitative statements, demonstrated. especially when talking about Torvald's salary, however, when Torvald speaks.
...le that Nora expects and the miracle that actually happens are entirely different. Nora dreams of the day that her husband will sympathize with her and cease to be the dominating figure with the "upper hand" in their relationship. She expects him to understand her struggles with the law and to be willing to take some of the blame himself. However, when he reacts to Krogstad's letter by exhibiting more dominance and control than ever before, Nora becomes more aware of her own individual needs as a woman in society. She understands that in order to be free, she must develop her own view of the world, by setting herself apart from the control and determinism that males have over her life. Therefore, Nora's decision to leave her husband and family is ironic because it proves to be the "miracle" she is waiting for, rather than the one she originally expected. Nora becomes a feminist heroine in the play by showing what women can achieve, but rarely attempt. The determinism that many men force on their women partners in society (in forms of control, dominance, and power) restricts the women's ability to strengthen as individuals, and gain their own self-determinism.
Those of you who have just read A Doll's House for the first time will, I suspect, have little trouble forming an initial sense of what it is about, and, if past experience is any guide, many of you will quickly reach a consensus that the major thrust of this play has something to do with gender relations in modern society and offers us, in the actions of the heroine, a vision of the need for a new-found freedom for women (or a woman) amid a suffocating society governed wholly by unsympathetic and insensitive men.
Nora was expected to be an obedient wife who follows all the rules expected of her. In a Doll’s house by Henrik Ibsen, Nora slowly starts to become less dependent on men and more independent and self-reliant on herself. Nora
At the same time, Nora lies because of Torvald’s perception of gender roles--his inability to accept the help from his wife’s “whims and fancies.”. Despite the juxtaposition between Nora and Mrs. Linde, they both have a common experience of sacrifice and they both embrace their independent role to help people they love. Mrs. Linde’s influence causes Nora’s conformity to her community to fall, as she discovers her lack of purpose of life. Later on, when Krogstad threatens to reveal the extent of Nora’s crimes of forgery in the case that Nora does not influence Torvald to not dismiss him, she begins to build up guilt and fear due to her wrongdoings. She is proud of making one of the few independent actions in her lifetime, but fears the denunciation of society, and especially Torvald.
Throughout A Doll’s House, Henrik Ibsen illustrates through an intriguing story how a once infantile-like woman gains independence and a life of her own. Ibsen creates a naturalistic drama that demonstrates how on the outside Nora and Torvald seam to have it all, but in reality their life together is empty. Instead of meaningful discussions, Torvald uses degrading pet names and meaningless talk to relate to Nora. Continuing to treat Nora like a pampered yet unimportant pet, Torvald thoroughly demonstrates how men of his era treat women as insignificant items to be possessed and shown off. While the Helmer household may have the appearance of being sociably acceptable, the marriage of Torvald and Nora was falling apart because of the lack of identity, love, and communication.
Nora has been a doll all of her life, fortunately, she has an awakening that kindles her passion for freedom. Torvald restricts her freedom. Torvald adorns Nora to his wishes and desires and basically strips Nora of her identity. Nora wants a happy marriage; hence, she appeases Torvald. When she is being blackmailed, she believes that Torvald will be her savior. However, Torvald’s selfish reaction to the news is Nora’s auspicious awakening. She knows that her marriage is a sham and that she does not know who she is. Nora leaves Torvald so that she can have the liberty to gain knowledge of the world and herself. Nora’s awakening has provided her with the freedom to fulfill her life.
Women are expected to fulfil the role of ‘angel of the house’ which expects a woman to perform a submissive role by standing by her husband and staying faithful whatever he does, Nora survives in her relationship with Torvald by deliberately taking a submissive role. Yet there is a double standard regarding the expectations of men. Men are the dominant figures in any male-female relationship particularly marriage expecting their wife to obey their decisions and their will. By conforming to these roles both man and woman can be sure of securing a respected position in society.
Patriarchy's socialization of women into servicing creatures is the major accusation in Nora's painful account to Torvald of how first her father, and then he, used her for their amusement. . . how she had no right to think for herself, only the duty to accept their opinions. Excluded from meaning anything, Nora has never been subject, only object. (Templeton 142).
Henrik Ibsen paints a sad picture of the sacrificial role of women throughout all social economical classes in his play “A Doll House”. The story is set in the late 19th century and all minor female characters had to overcome adversity to the expense of love, family and self-realization, in order to lead a comfortable life. While the main female protagonist Nora struggles with her increasingly troubled marriage, she soon realizes, she needs to change her life to be happy as the play climaxes. Her journey to self-discovery is achieved by the threat of her past crime and her oppressing husband, Torvald and the society he represents. The minor female characters exemplifying Nora’s ultimate sacrifice.
“There can be no freedom or beauty about a home life that depends on borrowing and debt,” (4) Torvald says to his wife, Nora. This is ironic because Nora Helmer has no freedom. In “A Doll’s House,” Henrik Ibsen’s characters struggle to strive for what is right, both in a sense of their own feelings and morally. The play is Nora’s journey to find herself to obtain her own freedom. The first act offers a composition of Nora’s life, the second a situation, and the third is her decision to leave.
A contrasting difference in the characters, are shown not in the characters themselves, but the role that they play in their marriages. These women have different relationships with their husbands. Torvald and Nora have a relationship where there is no equality. To Torvald Nora is an object. Hence, she plays the submissive role in a society where the lady plays the passive role. Her most important obligation is to please Torvald, making her role similar to a slave. He too considers himself superior to her.