A Doll's House Feminist Essay

A Doll’s House is a three act play written in 1879, and is considered the first feminist play. Nora, the main character, is labeled by Torvald, her husband, as a naïve housewife, but little does Torvald know that Nora is keeping a secret from him. Years ago, Nora forged her father’s signature to get a loan to save Torvald’s life. Now Torvald works at a bank, and he wants to fire Krogstad, an employee. Krogstad knows about Nora’s forgery, so he blackmails Nora into trying to get Torvald to keep Krogstad’s job. This is a time when men ruled the roost, and woman had very little say. Feminism is the coming together of humanity to put an end to the inequality of women. Throughout the play, Torvald asserts that he is in charge of the household, and that he will provide Nora with her identity. However, Nora indirectly and directly stands up to Torvald, which makes Nora the most powerful …show more content…
This is a feminist move of power because she is thinking for herself. She knows that this will go against what her father and Torvald believe. She decides that breaking the law is more important to save Torvald’s life. Torvald’s health is at risk and he could die. She made a decision to save him. This is honorable. She is standing up to authority. She never planned on taking the money and never paying it back, she paid back all the money she owed. This is respectable and shows that Nora is not a one-dimensional character. Nora is a wife that cares about her husband’s life, not just what her husband says. She puts her beliefs and Torvald’s life over Torvald’s beliefs. Torvald thinks breaking the law is dishonorable. He does not see that the end justifies the means. Torvald suffers from over conformity of society. Nora proves her strength, because she thinks for herself, and not what the law deems as right. She was not harming anyone, and she had every intention of paying back her owes. Nora is Torvald’s