A Dolls House Essay

Submitted By naz585

Words: 399

Pages: 2

Open Document

Throughout our history as human beings men and women were always distinguished as men being the superior and women being inferior. One of the major themes of the play A Doll’s House by Ibsen were the roles of men and women, how they act in society. This portrayed through the characters Torvald, the husband and Nora, the wife. Two major examples in act one supports this theme. First example is the way Torvald calls Nora. The second example is when Nora takes out a loan. These examples show theme the role of men and women and how they behave during that time of the play.
The way Torvald is calling Nora displays the role of men and women. In the start of act one, we see that Torvald constantly calls Nora with names other than her own, like squirrel, skylark, and spendthrift. These names in Torvald’s eyes represent Nora and her behavior. Nora does not show any negative reaction to any of these names. This shows that Torvald is the dominant and superior one and that Nora is the inferior one.
A second example is when Nora secretly takes out a loan which displays the role of women. During act one, we find out that Nora secretly takes out a loan to “save her husband’s life”. The loan was so that Nora and Torvald were able travel and have a vacation. Nora had to commit forgery to get this loan because at that time period women were not able to take out loans on their own. Nora needs to keep this a secret because Torvald will not accept the fact that he was saved by his own wife

The Doll House

of their relationship in the story is “There was nothing to answer. Isabel was bossy, but she always right, and Lottie and Kezia knew too well the powers that went with being the oldest.” Isabel was in charge of everything including who saw the doll house and when, while Lottie and Kezia were kind of in the background of things. This is very different from the Kelvey sisters who come from a poor family but have a very close bond. These two sisters are so close that their relationship is described…

Words 625 - Pages 3

A Doll House Sacrifice

sacrificing their own happiness for the joy of the one you love is by far the truest type of love. Nevertheless, limitless sacrifices and compromises in a romantic relationship are usually the trigger of disastrous relationships. Both Ibsen's play, A Doll House, and the film ''The Reader'' demonstrate that if a relationship need unconditional sacrifices and compromises to maintain, it appears to exist solidly…

Words 944 - Pages 4

Essay on A Dolls House

the late 1800s, the traditional family was depicted as a working father, stay-at-home mother, and children. Many ideas of the nuclear family still define the role of family in society today, but it is not as structured as it was back then. “A Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen portrays how society and culture influence an individual’s sense of identity and come to understand themselves and their place in the world. Nora, the main character, is a mother and a wife and is largely influenced by the people and…

Words 900 - Pages 4

Doll House Essay

and you go on with your normal life. That is exactly what Nora Helmer does in the play, A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen. For most of her marriage, Nora has been pretending to be someone she’s not. She conforms to Torvald’s beliefs because she doesn’t want him to stop loving her. At the end of the play, Nora realizes that all she is, is a doll in his house and questions whether Torvald really loves her or not. In the beginning of the story, Nora seems happy…

Words 507 - Pages 3

A DOLLS HOUSE Essay

Christine Bernal Dr Ryan World Drama 12 Dec 2014 A Doll’s House; Appearance vs. Reality, Selfishness Henrik Ibsen, considered by many to be the father of modern prose drama, while living in Italy in 1879, Ibsen published his masterpiece, A Doll’s House. In A Doll’s House, Ibsen uses the themes and structures of classical tragedy while writing a play about every day, unexceptional people. Nora borrows money from Krogstad while Torvald is in danger of dying, but forges her father’s signature. Krogstad…

Words 802 - Pages 4

A Doll House Essay

It is Christmas Eve. Nora Helmer enters the house with packages and a Christmas tree. She pays the porter double what she owes him and eats some macaroons. Her husband, Torvald Helmer, comes out of his study and addresses Nora with tenderness and authority, calling her his “skylark” and his “squirrel.” Nora tells Torvald that she wants to show him what she has bought, and Torvald teases her for being a spendthrift. Nora replies that she and Torvald can afford to be extravagant, since Torvald’s new…

Words 1065 - Pages 5

A Dolls House Essay

March 2014 Character Analysis: Nora Helmer At first the protagonist, Nora, seems a little bit off. When her husband, Torvald, calls her things like his "little squirrel," "featherhead," she doesn't seem to mind. In fact she seems to not mind it or just be into it. When Torvald first calls her a spendthrift, we're pressured to agree. So far, we've seen her give the porter a good tip, come in with tons of Christmas presents, and not take into account the idea of debt. Soon, though, we see that Nora…

Words 423 - Pages 2

a dolls house Essays

father. Before my sixteenth birthday I had the world at my hands and hard times didn’t exist at least not that I had seen. I did my best with what I was given and never feared to let my parents down it wasn’t an option. Failure did not exist in my house when I was growing up and I’ve always been taught to take everything as a blessing. My greatest concern was, when were my parents going to let me drive my new car and how i'd spend my next pay check. I was sixteen young, free and ready to drive…

Words 960 - Pages 4

A Doll ' s House Essay

A Doll House Built for the Future Ibsen's A Doll House or A Doll's House is a play regarded as highly radical for its time. It sparked a great deal of controversy and critizism. A number of people refused to be involved with it's production, some threatened to take matters into their own hands and rewrite the ending themselves. Though it was met with incredible critizism in its time, A Doll House has survived until today where it is still widely produced and since been translated into numerous languages…

Words 1965 - Pages 8

Analysis of "A Dolls House" Essay

emphasizing what a certain historical event, personage, or situation enables the playwright to communicate. Discuss what effect the playwright's transformation of historical reality has on an audience. Henrik Ibsen's widely regarded work, A Doll's House, was first introduced in 1879 as a theatrical presentation of human rights. Today, Ibsen's work remains as such, although often conveyed as more focused on women's rights. The Norwegian playwright's vision of a seemingly common home is quickly translated…

Words 1125 - Pages 5