Doll House

Doll House

Introduction

The character of Nora in the play; “A Doll's House” by Henrik Ibsen, can be characterized as a passive and lacking an in-depth personality. As the novel develops the character of Nora gains notable complexity. She spends most of her life in a dream world, where she protects herself from the realities of the world. When she faced an emotional dilemma, she begins to realize the implications of her actions. She spent most of her life as a free spirited individual, who is apathetic to the repercussions of her actions. She did not tackle life in a serious manner, which resulted in several dilemmas for her. She imagined the world to be a perfect place, where she had a satisfied married life.

Discussion

Nora's character in the First Act

In the first act, Nora's character lacks any form of depth or complexity. She is like a child living in a dream house, with a man she believes to be the perfect husband. She lacks the basic understanding of reality and continues to make decisions without adequately assessing the repercussions (see appendix # 1). In the beginning, she returns home after conducting an extravagant Christmas shopping excursion. Her child like qualities can be assessed by her actions, where she secretly purchases sweets and then goes on to lie to her condescending husband. This act also displays Nora's ability to lie without a considerable amount of discomfort.

In the relationship between Nora and her husband Torvald, he has complete authority over her life. He does not treat Nora as an equal, and persistently scolds and corrects(see appendix# 2). Nora lacks any form of authority, where she lives her life as per the instructions of her husband. Nora does not seem to mind the obedience, as she believes Torvald is an honorable man (see appendix# 3). She even hides the fact that she took a loan from the lawyer Mr. Nils Krogstad, to pay for his medical requirements when he fell ill. She decides to pay off the debt secretly, as she doesn't want to burden her husband. She trades in her independence and equality, for coaxing favors from her husband and leading a cosmetic lifestyle. She was a completely dependent and materialistic person (see appendix# 4).

The Second Act

In the middle of the play, Nora's character is not significantly changed (see appendix# 5). She is still the child like materialistic person like before, but now she has to defend her ideal life from certain challenges. The lawyer persistently black mail her to secure his job and get a promotion, through her husband. Krogstad threatens that he will reveal the secret of the loan and the fact that she forged the signature to everyone, which will eventually embarrass her husband (see appenxi# 6). Her whole lifestyle is challenged, and she experiences emotional trauma. She cannot bear the fact that her husband will have to face humiliation due to her actions. Even though; she took the loan to help him, and she had intended to ...