A Doll's House By Henrik Ibsen Essay

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A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen was released in the 1870’s and became a controversial play because it challenges society’s beliefs on women and marriage. Nora, the protagonist, decides that duties to herself is more important than duties to her husband and children. This idea stemmed from the trials that Nora had to face as a woman who broke the law and hid it from her husband and society. When her secret is threatened to be revealed, she becomes desperate to maintain the beautiful home and marriage that she once had. Throughout the play, Ibsen questions society’s customs of marriage and women through Nora’s character which evolves from a helpless, childish, and dependent wife, to an independent, intelligent and brave woman. In the beginning of the play, Nora is a typical, affluent wife of the 1800s. She lives in happy home, has a happy marriage, and happy children, and she always placed her husband and children before herself. When Christine, her childhood friend, comes to visit, she brags about her contentment and fortune. However, when Christine mentions her hardships and addresses Nora as a child, she …show more content…

First, she tried to comply with Krogstad’s wishes and begged Torvald to allow Krogstad to keep his job. When Torvald refused and sent the dismissal letter, Nora became frantic and warned Torvald when she said, “You don’t know what that letter can bring upon us” (Ibsen 244). Nora is worried that her relationship with Torvald will be ruined. After the letter was sent, Krogstad returns with a letter that has truth about Nora’s secret. Nora’s anxiety and depression reaches new levels because she knows that if the truth is unveiled, it will destroy Torvald’s reputation. She feels hopeless because she cannot pay off her debt without Torvald, and starts to contemplate suicide. She confesses, “ If anything elses should happen to me, anything, for instance, that might prevent my being here” (Ibsen

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