A doll house by Henrik Ibsen is a modern drama whose characters fail to
understand who they really are. The theme of self-discovery can be viewed throughout
the entire play. Nora’s character plays an important role in self-discovery. She is a
dynamic character who proves at the end of the play that she accept and discovers who
the true Nora is.
The play begins with a direct emphasis on Nora and her husband (Torvald)
relationship. One can easily assume that their relationship is based on material things and
status. It appears that money is the one thing which is keeping their marriage what is
considered to be happy. Throughout the first act Torvald immediately begins referring to
his wife with childlike names. In the first opening lines he refers to Nora as “my
squirrel.” Throughout the play, Torvald continues to uses nick names such as “little song
bird”, “skylark”, “odd little one” and many more belittling names. The usage of the above
nicknames shows that Torvald feels superior to Nora. He wants to keep her small and
under him. For this reason, he continues to refer to Nora in this manner throughout the
play. Torvald and Nora’s relationship can be viewed at first as a happy and pleasant one.
At the same time one may view their relationship as that of the ordinary. Torvald does
not see Nora as an equal. He fails to realize that she is a woman and not a child. He
continues to speak to her in a childish manner because he views her for her appearance
and not for who she really is. It is clearly presented that Torvald takes his position as being superior because he feels that Nora is dependent on him. He believes she is
narrow minded and ignorant because she is a woman.
In the first act it is also indicated that money plays an important role throughout
the play. Nora proves to be an insensitive and self-centered woman when she is visited by
her old friend Mrs. Linde. Her first ignorant questions were whether Mrs. Linde husband
left her any money or children. Mrs. Linde states that she was left penniless and that she
has struggled. Nora being the self-centered person that she is begins bragging of her good
fortune and forgets to acknowledge Mrs. Linde struggles. The above scene provides a
vivid understanding of the type o...
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...actions he becomes enraged. He worries about
the effect this will have on his reputation and not on the consequences his wife may have
to face. Through the unraveling of this secret is that Nora is finally able to understand
who she is. Nora realizes that Torvald never loved her for who she was but for the things
she did. Torvald loved her because she allowed him to play and control her as if she were
real a doll. Nora begins to also understand that the love Torvald shared for her was the
same to that of her father. Everything was based on what they felt was entertaining and
not on loving Nora for who she is. The end of Act III brings Nora to a complete self-
discovery. Nora has come to understand herself and the ones around her life.
In conclusion, A Doll House is a modern drama which is derived on self-
discovery and understanding. Nora had to take a stand and do something on her own in
order to realize that she is capable of being independent. Through her actions she was
able to discovery that there is more to her life than being a passive and untrue person.
Nora was finally able to come to terms and let out her true self.
When Torvald finds out about the crime that Nora commits, he completely disregards the fact tha...
...oss lightning? To watch—poor perdu!—/With this thin helm? Mine enemy’s meanest dog,/Though he had bit me, should have stood that night/Against my fire. And wast thou fain, poor father,/To hovel thee with swine and rogues forlorn/In short and musty straw? Alack, alack!/'Tis wonder that thy life and wits at once/Had not concluded all.—He wakes. Speak to him.” (King Lear, 4, vii, 30-42). Knowingly even after how she is being treated by her father, she still shows her faithfulness.
Throughout Act one, Nora’s most noticeable characteristic is her child like personality and her inability to understand the importance of honesty. As the play opens on Christmas Eve Nora comes home with an abundance of extravagant gifts for her family. She also eats some macaroons that she secretly bought that her husband doesn’t allow her to eat. When questioned about the purchase of the dessert by her husband Torvald Helmer, she denies it. Through this act of deception we are able to see that Nora, in denying buying and eating the macaroons is more like a child to her husband. In a normal husband-wife relationship, the wife would have admitted that she did in fact eat them due to the fact that they are on an equal playing field. In this case, Nora was scared to tell him in fear that she will be punished and get in trouble. The deception allows us into Nora’s mind to see that she hasn’t yet understood that if she stand up for herself and says that she did, that with time Torvald will stop treating her like one of his children but instead like the mother and wife that she is. Throughout the first scene yo...
Nora Helmer was a delicate character and she relied on Torvald for her identity. This dependence that she had kept her from having her own personality. Yet when it is discovered that Nora only plays the part of the good typical housewife who stays at home to please her husband, it is then understandable that she is living not for herself but to please others. From early childhood Nora has always held the opinions of either her father or Torvald, hoping to please them. This mentality makes her act infantile, showing that she has no ambitions of her own. Because she had been pampered all of her life, first by her father and now by Torvald, Nora would only have to make a cute animal sound to get what she wanted from Torvald, “If your little squirrel were to ask you for something very, very, prettily” (Ibsen 34) she said.
that Nora is in every scene to show how she has adapted to living her
In both the plays, Nora and all of the sisters want to go back to
Torvald is the typical husband of the time of the play. He tries to control his wife and expect her to submit to him. He manipulates her through many different ways. First, he calls her pet names such as "little lark" (3) and "squirrel" (4) and speaks to her in a condescending tone, as if she is a child. He then tries to control her habits so he will not let her eat sweets or spend too much money. In fact, all the money she gets comes from him. He demands that she is subservient and treats her as almost a dog later on in the play. At the end, when Nora's secret is out, he lashes out at her and kicks her out of the house. When he wants her back after he realizes that he will no longer get into trouble for what she did, she does not want to come back, he finally realizes that she does not love him anymore and that his manipulation of her is over. This leaves him in a pickle because he now has to take care of his children without Nora, hardly a good position for him.
...lly good reason for favoring Nora beyond our sense of familiarity with her: she lies, she cheats, she rationalizes, she walks out on her husband and children-she is not an innocent character. But is this tendency not the wont of human nature, to excuse that which is connected to us while failing to consider there is a whole other side to the issue?
...The play demonstrates this in the following lines: Helmer: Before anything else, you’re a wife and mother. Nora: I don’t believe that any more. I believe that before anything else, I’m a human being, just as much a one as you are … or at least I’m going to turn myself into one … I want to think everything out for myself and make my own decisions. Nora must be true to herself in order to participate in society in a meaningful manner. Her relationship with her children has been marred by her relationships with her father and husband; she treats her children as dolls, and they are apt to grow up in the same manner, with the same inability to be true to themselves. By the end of the play, Nora realizes that she cannot properly fulfill her duties as a mother until she learns how to become a person first. In this sense, her abandonment of her children is an act of mercy.
This shows that Torvald is more interested in Nora physically than emotionally. He feels that it is one of Nora's main duties as his wife to physically pleasure him at his command.
Very early on in this part of the text, the reader is able to identify signs that show Torvald may not fully love Nora at this point. Torvald announced, “It is to get about now that the new manager has changed his mind at his wife’s bidding” (Ibsen 45). He is trying to say he will not listen to Nora because of what others will think. Even if people might not agree, he should still listen to his wife if he truly loved her. At the same time, Nora as begins to show she might not feel the same way about Torvald as she did before. Nora noted, “My husband must never get to know anything about this. Because she is wanting to hide something from Torvald, the reader is shown she does not fully love Torvald enough to even trust him. While it is shown that they do not feel the same way about each other, Ibsen does indicate that both Nora and Torvald do still somewhat love each other. Nora explains, “Torvald loves me; he would never for a moment hesitate to give his life for me” (Ibsen 50). This quote tells the reader directly that Torvald not only still loves Nora, but still loves her enough to give his life up for her. While their feelings towards each other have changed, they still care about one
She starts to play more attention to Torvald after Krogstad threatens to tell her secret. Nora realizes that Torvald only sees her as a child that needs his help with everything she does. As she said,” I have existed merely to perform tricks for you, Torvald. But you would have it so” (720). She comes to understand that she was merely a doll to him, and that’s all he’s ever going to want her to be. Once Krogstad reveals the secret she decides to leave Torvald when he fails to prove that he truly loves her. As she said, “when the wonderful thing did not happen; then I saw you were not the man I had thought you” (722). She wanted him to show her that he would protect her and instead he got furious at her.
Nora is a dynamic character. When the play begins Nora is viewed and presented as a playful and carefree person. She seems to be more intent on shopping for frivolous things. But, as time goes on it becomes apparent that Nora actually has a certain amount of seriousness in her decisions and actions in dealing with the debt she incurred to save Torvald’s life. Nora’s openness in her friendship with Dr. Rank changes after he professes his affections toward her. Her restraint in dealing with him shows that Nora is a mature and intelligent woman. Nora shows courage, not seen previously, by manipulating her way around Krogstad and his threats to reveal her secret. After feeling betrayed by Torvald, Nora reveals that she is leaving him. Having
...dlike mentality and needs to grow before she can raise her own children. Her defiance of Torvald, when he refuses to let her leave, reflects her epiphany that she isn't obligated to let Torvald dictate her actions. The height of Nora's realization comes when she tells Torvald that her duty to herself is as strong as her duty as a wife and mother. She now sees that she is a human being before she is a wife and mother and she owes herself to explore her personality, ambitions, and beliefs.
of the 19th century. However, her vulnerability is evident in her interaction with Torvald in