Peer review

Alshanbari 1

A Doll’s House

A Doll’s House play was written by Henrick Ibsen in 1828. The main theme of the drama is feminism, which was denied by Henrick Ibsen several times as being his intention of writing. It showed the prevalent tradition of the Victorian era of the male domination. The role of a female was only to look-after the domestic affairs of a house. The European transition from an agricultural society to an industrial society is also evident in the play when the characters are repeatedly found discussing their financial matters.

The Plot opens in a well-furnished room. The main characters of the play are Torvald and Nora Helmer. The time is the approaching Christmas. Nora arrives home after shopping for the Christmas. It seems that Nora is quite extravagant in spending money in her shopping. The rebellious nature at the part of the play is shown when Nora is eating macaroon cautiously hiding from her husband. Torvald appears romantic—playing trifles with Nora. She is made an object of a child-like love from her husband. At the very start of the play, Torvald is found calling Nora by the names like squirrel, lark, usually preceded by a prefix “little” (Ibsen, P1).

The character of Torvald is authoritative, fastidious and quasi-scrupulous. In the first part of the play he appears as sacrificing, loving and considerate. But as the play progresses and almost all the characters of the play switch their positions from bad to good or from good to bad, the character of Torvald also observes its migration from being kind and considerate to being hypocritical and selfish. His love dashes to the ground when the forgery of signature by Nora is exposed before him. "What a horrible awakening! All these eight years—she who was my joy and pride—a hypocrite, a liar—worse, worse—a criminal!" (Ibsen, P236). Torvald shows no tolerance at all to Nora who actually perpetrated the act of forgery to save the life of Torvald himself. Then a sense of hypocrisy prevails when Torvald finds another letter from Krogstad and he becomes benign to Nora.

Nora on the other hand is quite compassionate and devoted to her house, her husband and her children. The unscrupulous act of forgery, the sole reason of her fear and panic, was also done only to save her house (Ibsen, P413). By forging her father’s signature, she was able to take her husband to a warmer destination in Italy. Despite knowing that Torvald was abhorrent towards her act of forgery, her fears are not owing to save herself, but to save her children and their own conjugal love. Till the very closing of the play, her utmost try is to save their relation. She, upon the advice of her close friend, Mrs. Linde, tries to postpone the revelation by letter through her different act. In the third play, she dresses up nicely, dances and plays tarantella before her husband. She asks Helmer to delay the opening of the letter until the party lasts.

Mrs. Linde, as she is another female character of the play, shows some similar characteristics as does Nora. She, by the similar token, is devoted to the cause of her home. She too sacrifices her love with Krogstad to marry a wealthier person to sustain her family (Ibsen, PP136-137). Even after the death of her husband she is found struggling to find some job so that she can support her mother and her younger brother.

Krogstad is a negative character of the play. He is opportunistic and cunning in his disposition. He was the cause of fears of Nora. He had the document that bore the forged signature by Nora. He plays opportunism when he asks Nora the explanation about his expulsion from the job. He demands Nora not just the reinstatement on the job, but also an enhanced duty. But this demand is categorically rejected by Torvald as being contrary to his repute in his bank (Ibsen, P113). But at the end, his character takes turn when Mrs. Linde expresses her long-suppressed love for her.

Almost all the characters in the play are marked by a transformation in their characters (Sparknotes.com). Nora, who is initially a house-wife, kind and delicate ultimately turns emancipated of the entire domestic obligation and estranges her ways from her husband Torvald and her children. Torvald, who in the beginning, love Nora as a child, appears quite stringent when he finds out about the forgery. Krogstad makes his appearance as a cruel, cunning person turns into a kind person near the end of the story. Mrs. Linde, who is a good fellow of Nora, ultimately retracts her supporting hand from the Nora’s pitiable condition and lets the disclosure, be made before Torvald about Nora’s forgery.

Feminism is the major theme of the story, although Ibsen has denied it at many juncture not to have taken it up deliberately. From the start of the story Mrs. Linde is a representative of feministic characteristics. She visits her friends, Nora in order to find some job through Torvald in the bank. She previously sacrificed her love to sustain her family—her younger brother and her mother. Near the end, Nora also is infused with the spirit of a feministic woman, when she announces the abandoning of her home and her children for the better.

The inner conflict elongates all along the story. This inner conflict finds its abode in the character of Nora. Initially, she is a sensitive, delicate woman, having her house to be her entire universe. But the later events incite the conflict in her person. The intimidations of Krogstad infuse a spirit of restlessness in her soul. She clutches the every straw in order to save her home to get destroyed. She holds her house to be her foremost priority above all other relations. Despite of incitements of the character by Torvald about Nora’s father, she never responds angrily (Ibsen, P109). All the same her sacrifices and her compromises, she finds no concession from Torvald. When it comes to Torvalds’s own self, he disapproves the action of Nora badly all due to his own reputation. When he finds another letter from Krogstad having the contract that neutralizes the mistake of Nora, he is again ready to find the middle to re-conciliate with Nora. But this was more than enough for Nora up till now. She renounces all claims from her family and goes away leaving everything behind.

The symbolism was another aspect of the play. The time shown in the drama is that of Christmas. It is obviously a time of festivities immediately followed by New Year, which symbolizes the change. Nora buys the Christmas tree in the first part of the play, which adorns the house. This Christmas tree adds to the beautification of the house, the same that is done by Nora.

Bibliography

1. Henrik, Ibsen. A Dolls House. Tustin: Xist Publishing, 2015. Print.

2. Sparknotes.com,. "Sparknotes: A Doll’S House: Themes, Motifs & Symbols". N.p., 2016. Web. 1 Mar. 2016.

3. Shmoop,. "A Doll's House Themes". N.p., 2016. Web. 2 Mar. 2016.