Change, Innovation And Creationism In A Doll's House By Henrik Ibsen

At the beginning of the 19th century, one may not have said it was to be a century full of creation and good fortune. From China to Spain, empires were collapsing left and right (McKenzie 144). However, many other empires were making a grand rise to power (McKenzie 144). This change in power set the overall mood for the rest of the 19th century. Change, innovation, and risk were occurring worldwide. People began to think more broadly, more “out-of-the-box.” As people began to disperse and expand more and more, cultures collided and the desire to discover greatened (McKenzie 145). Risk-takers all over the world stepped up to create a revolution of discovery and innovation. Brave miners voyaged to California from all over the world in hopes to find an abundance of wealth (McKenzie 204). Engineers were constantly trying to create more efficient means of transportation (McKenzie 205). Theatres evolved and changed to suit a more relatable style. One play that began this movement was A Doll’s House, written by Henrik Ibsen. Ibsen’s unrestrained views on cultural issues were apparent in this controversial play. This emergence of independence, creation, and realism, all seen in A Doll’s House, made it safe to say the 19th century was unlike any before.

A huge highlight of the 19th century was the discovery of gold. In 1848, James W. Marshall discovered gold in Coloma, California (McKenzie 204). That year gold production rose from 10-million sterling to 35-million sterling (McKenzie 204). Population size in California began to grow rapidly, along with the rest of the world (McKenzie 144). As areas became more populated, people became more motivated to travel (McKenzie 208). In order to meet the needs of these new adventurous desires, me...

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... to theatre culture. Just like the new inventions of the time period, this was exciting but also caused many people to speculate and proceed with caution. Ibsen's main theme of "struggling for integrity" (Brockett 473) completely related to the world's state at that time. After being reigned over for so long by generations of empires and dynasties, people were beginning to take risks and think for themselves. They began to go out and live lives they dreamed of. Nora's search for herself can be compared to everyone's real-life search to discover not only themselves, but also more about their world and the possibilities that it held. This search did not terminate at the end of the 19th century. It continues on today as history continues to change, new cultures are created, and people begin to take a risk to find who they truly are and what they truly want out of life.