The Place of Women in Society in Henrik Ibsen's Play Hedda Gabler

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Recommended: Role of woman in the 19th century

In the 19th Century, there arose a widespread question concerning the place of the women in the society. It led to increasing complaints, and debates for women to have a say in the political, economical and social arena. The debate was what was referred to as women question which struggled to define the position of women in the society. The debate was divided into whether the women should have a greater political, economic and social opportunities or whether the women belonged in their home as family caretakers.
The debate about the place of women in the society became a major focus in the social, political and economic arena because of the numerous changes experienced in the European society. This change was mainly brought about by the industrial revolution and the development of capitalism. This led to an increase in women’s labor opportunities in the vast growing industries, but they were often employed for less pay as compared to the male counterparts. The increasing development in women’s labor in the industries started to challenge the traditional notion that the women belonged to the house and that they were economically inferior. Additionally, the opening up of the education sector to increase the educational opportunities of the women led to some pursuing higher education amidst opposition.
Moreover, due to legal and social prohibitions, traditionally established, and scientific theories depicting the women as mentally or physically weak, posed great challenges to the economic, social or political advancement of women in the society. This was evidence because of the numerous challenged the educated women faced while practicing their profession. These challenges made the women team up to champion for their freedom and...

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... free themselves from the notion of the Old Woman the more they find out that it was more difficult that they thought. This made many of them very desperate with life, and some even concluded that the earlier traditional concepts were better.

In conclusion, Ibsen does not portray Hedda Gabler for the purpose of critiquing the concept of the New Woman rather he offers a critique of the opposition against it. A support for the New Woman concept by even the males would lead to a harmonious transition from the Old Woman. With this male support, the men will earn respect and prevent the drastic actions taken be women to gain recognition and the end result will be an Old Woman inside a New Woman. This is because the males will continue dominating after engulfing the freedom-craving woman who has been silenced after the males show support instead of opposition

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