A Doll's House By Henrik Ibsen

“Feminism isn’t about making women stronger. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength” (Pugachevsky). G.D. Anderson, the modern feminist who stated this quote, and Nora Helmer from Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House share similar views regarding the strength of women: it is overshadowed by the world’s inability to recognize it. In his revolutionary play A Doll’s House, playwright Henrik Ibsen exceeds his years by breaching the controversial subject of women’s rights. Protagonist Nora Helmer is submissive to her husband Torvald and complies with everything he says. However, Nora has been keeping a secret from Torvald and only after revealing it does she find the strength to walk away from her toxic relationship

For example, a woman should have respected her husband and his decisions and known that he would guide her through life’s trials. Because of this, when Nora attempts to present her argument and Torvald closes his ears, believing just as much as society does that she is not capable of making decisions, she simply embraces it, saying, “Whatever you do is always right” (Ibsen 64). She gives up her fight, showing that society holds Nora back from taking full advantage of her mental strength and competence. What if she has a valid argument? What if saving Krogstad’s job later benefits the bank? Torvald never has the opportunity to discover the answer to these questions because he is too consumed with what the world thinks is right and

It demonstrates that at the time of this play, women needed to be healthy and not indulge in simple pleasures such as sweets. However, Nora wants those macaroons. Why does she need to “count her calories”? Who does she need to impress? Is she not already married? Unfortunately, her husband and his peers all believe she should still present herself in a manner that suits their desires, even if that means she has to relinquish the right to her favorite delicacy (Ibsen 7). This evidence is consistent with the fact that women were expected to make certain sacrifices in order to please social standards. Nora, although she conceals it from the world, is not one of those women. She refuses to sacrifice her macaroons with as much passion as she refuses to sacrifice her dignity, and if that is not strong, I do not know what