Honesty And Dishonesty In 'A Doll's House'

It’s a common idea that the strongest basis of a relationship, whether between family members, friends, or romantic partners, is honesty. Honesty builds trust and communication, which can help both sides understand each other, as well as helping these relationships through tough times. When relationships have no honesty or trust they often become very unhealthy. Such is the case with the relationship with Torvald and Nora. The themes of manipulation and dishonesty are pervasive throughout A Doll’s House, as these are the foundation of their relationship, rather than honesty and trust. Every pivotal point in the story comes from some kind of dishonesty, and the conflict is based on dishonesty as well. From the very beginning of the play, Nora

Though Nora believed that her “miracle” was too much to ask of her husband, she saw it as the last chance to regroup after years of deceit and a lack of communication. However, after an intensely negative reaction from Torvald, she begins to realize the role both of them played in this manipulation, with Nora putting on an act and lying in her actions and Torvald encouraging this by “rewarding” her for doing so. Though she lived well, she did not live happily like this. “Nora:..’Now when I look back, it seems as if I’d lived here like a beggar-just from hand to mouth. I’ve lived by doing tricks for you, Torvald. But that’s the way you wanted it’...Helmer: ‘Nora, how unfair and ungrateful you are! Haven’t you been happy here?’ Nora: ’No, never. I thought so-but I never have.’ Helmer: ‘Not-not happy!’ Nora: ‘No, only lighthearted...I thought it was fun when you played with me, just as they thought it fun when I played with them. That’s been our marriage, Torvald.’” (Ibsen 1016). Realizing that she can’t be in a marriage in which she can’t speak or behave honestly with her husband, Nora decides to leave. The “miracle” falling through only proved to Nora what she already believed, that her marriage was built of falsities rather than it being a true marriage where it was worth working through the issues rather than jumping ship when things become serious. This is what leads

Time and time again, characters like Nora and Torvald show how dishonesty leads to unhealthy relationships.Because their marriage was formed on a basis of lies and fake behavior, once this falls apart revealing the truth, the marriage falls apart. Had Nora and Torvald been able to communicate honestly, they likely would be in a much different situation. These themes, therefore, ended up shaping the entire book, from the background of their relationship to the conflict to the