A Doll's House Deception

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Recommended: Themes in a dolls house

In Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, there are a variety of themes prevalent throughout the play. The three most prevalent and primary themes would be the idea of appearance and reality, deception, and honor. These themes help Nora find who she truly is, and eventually builds up to her leaving Torvald. Together, these themes define the society that not only Nora and Torvald live in but also the society that we live in today. In A Doll’s House, Ibsen strayed away from the traditional five part or act play and instead wrote a play with only three acts. In Ibsen’s play, the dialogue is a reflection of the era as opposed to the Shakespearean English which was much more formal. Over the course of A Doll’s House, appearances prove to be misleading …show more content…

Nora practices deception to save Torvald’s life using money gained from a loan for which she forged her father’s name. She continues her daily deceptions while paying back the money. She deceives on large things, such as the loan, and trivial things, such as the macaroons. Dr. Rank practices deception in maintaining his friendship with Torvald with his main motive being his secret love for Nora. Torvald practices deception with Nora, acting like a loving husband when putting values of honor and pride ahead of her. Each occurrence of deception is motivated by different feelings or purposes. Nora’s initial deception was motivated by her husband’s illness with her purpose to save his life. Her continued deceptions are motivated by her need to repay the loan and the taste of independence and freedom that the whole incident opened for her. Dr. Rank’s deception is motivated by honor. It is dishonorable to love your friend’s wife. Nora is also a motivator for Dr. Rank. He has a double motivation: to be loyal to Torvald and to be near Nora. Torvald’s deception is motivated by a character flaw that values honor and pride over human and family relationships. His purpose is to have a lovely wife and a lovely life with all the appearances of propriety, moderation, and pride that he values. His main flaw is what eventually ruins any chance of him having his purpose. His value of honor and pride over human and family relationships …show more content…

Still today, honor is highly regarded and important. The idea of appearance and reality is prevalent throughout our society whether someone is driving a fancy car, wearing an expensive watch, or buying luxurious things that they know that they cannot afford, but purchase anyways to boost their appearance. Deception is the third theme that is prevalent in our society today. Companies are constantly trying to promote their products by altering appearances with the help of photoshop or makeup. Makeup is used very frequently to hide imperfections or make a person look different then they look

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