Social Conventions: The Condemnation of Norwegians
Within his play, Ghosts, Henrik Ibsen places great emphasis on the issue of social conventions that prioritize duties and obligations in the Norwegian society of 1880. During his era, 90 percent of all Norwegians belonged to the Evangelical Lutheran National Church, the Church of Norway, which yielded great influence and authority within the society (Lovoll). Throughout Ghosts, the issues faced by the Alvings are rooted in the predefined beliefs and traditions within society that have been upheld by the Church. The hypocrisy of the Church is manifested within Pastor Manders, who wrongfully oppresses the Alvings with what is deemed acceptable in accordance with the Church. His character is driven …show more content…
This is exemplified through Manders’ misconstrued perception of the ideal family structure. This is displayed through Oswald’s and Manders’ conflicting views upon the acceptance of unmarried couples who live under the same roof, as demonstrated through the subtext of this scene displaying their disagreement. In contrast to Manders, Oswald despises the conventional ideals of the Church and supports these “irregular unions” (Ibsen 87) as he acknowledges that thosemany people of the lower class are unable to afford marriages due to the high fees associated with it. He supports his point further by questioning whether the Church would rather have these unmarried men “repudiate”(87) his children and their mother. However, Pastor Manders rebukes this point and emphasizes self-restraint. His obstinate view towards such issues expresses his ignorance of human life as he overlooks the necessity for sexual relationships and romantic love. Manders’ genuine shock to Oswald’s opposition towards the perspective of the church can be seen through his reaction to Oswald’s acceptance of unmarried couples. Ibsen specifically demonstrates this through his stage …show more content…
Ironically, this building originally went from an orphanage, used to commemorate Captain Alving as an honourable husband, to a brothel revealing Captain Alving’s true nature and infidelity. Engstrand had described himself as “an angel of salvation” (119) and addressed Pastor Manders with “your reverence” (119), depicting himself as an ideal Christian. Ibsen used dramatic irony in this instance as the audience is aware that Engstrand is a corrupted man whose true motive is simply gaining financial support for his brothel.
Contrary to Manders, Mrs. Alving is a dynamic character as she develops throughout the play: she had conformed to dead beliefs within their society in Act I, but by Act II, Mrs. Alving comes to the realization that the Norwegian social norms are the cause of distress within their society. Mrs. Alving’s realization of the burden of duty and obligations allows her to free herself from conforming to the immoral notions of
Within his play, Ghosts, Henrik Ibsen places great emphasis on the issue of social conventions that prioritize duties and obligations in the Norwegian society of 1880. During his era, 90 percent of all Norwegians belonged to the Evangelical Lutheran National Church, the Church of Norway, which yielded great influence and authority within the society (Lovoll). Throughout Ghosts, the issues faced by the Alvings are rooted in the predefined beliefs and traditions within society that have been upheld by the Church. The hypocrisy of the Church is manifested within Pastor Manders, who wrongfully oppresses the Alvings with what is deemed acceptable in accordance with the Church. His character is driven …show more content…
This is exemplified through Manders’ misconstrued perception of the ideal family structure. This is displayed through Oswald’s and Manders’ conflicting views upon the acceptance of unmarried couples who live under the same roof, as demonstrated through the subtext of this scene displaying their disagreement. In contrast to Manders, Oswald despises the conventional ideals of the Church and supports these “irregular unions” (Ibsen 87) as he acknowledges that thosemany people of the lower class are unable to afford marriages due to the high fees associated with it. He supports his point further by questioning whether the Church would rather have these unmarried men “repudiate”(87) his children and their mother. However, Pastor Manders rebukes this point and emphasizes self-restraint. His obstinate view towards such issues expresses his ignorance of human life as he overlooks the necessity for sexual relationships and romantic love. Manders’ genuine shock to Oswald’s opposition towards the perspective of the church can be seen through his reaction to Oswald’s acceptance of unmarried couples. Ibsen specifically demonstrates this through his stage …show more content…
Ironically, this building originally went from an orphanage, used to commemorate Captain Alving as an honourable husband, to a brothel revealing Captain Alving’s true nature and infidelity. Engstrand had described himself as “an angel of salvation” (119) and addressed Pastor Manders with “your reverence” (119), depicting himself as an ideal Christian. Ibsen used dramatic irony in this instance as the audience is aware that Engstrand is a corrupted man whose true motive is simply gaining financial support for his brothel.
Contrary to Manders, Mrs. Alving is a dynamic character as she develops throughout the play: she had conformed to dead beliefs within their society in Act I, but by Act II, Mrs. Alving comes to the realization that the Norwegian social norms are the cause of distress within their society. Mrs. Alving’s realization of the burden of duty and obligations allows her to free herself from conforming to the immoral notions of