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Hedda has a complex urge to dominate and undermine all others around her in order for her to achieve some sort of self-gratification. The entitlement, dominance, and complexity of Hedda Gabler reveal an unfamiliar female character that pushes the male and female relationship in theater beyond the comfort zone of eighteen hundreds playwriting. Eighteen hundred’s literature and playwriting often featured the docile housewife, there to serve her male counterpart as well as be for the most part a secondary character to the overall story. The female character usually is timid and comforting to the people in her home. The first turn that Ibsen takes on this role with his character Hedda Gabler is that Hedda is neither timid nor comforting; Hedda separates herself by being snide and condescending to the people around her. Women have their “place” in the home and in society during that time and Hedda crosses that line with her careless speech and rude attitude. The first time the audience gets a glimpse of this condescending behavior is when Hedda first enters the drawing room. After some light
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Hedda’s rudeness breaks through the cultural barrier of the compliant and friendly housewife that many plays and literature featured. Hedda also marks a female character who posses a level of intelligence which is superior to many of the other characters in the play. This intelligence may be a bit more subtle than Mr. Tesman’s book smart knowledge yet she is able to undermine him as well as other characters throughout the play. The roles of women were often one-dimensional in plays and literature during that time period so making Hedda Gabler a complex and deep character with a thorough and undefined thinking process differentiates her from many of the traditional female roles. Overall, Henrik Ibsen challenged the female role with the creation of the character Hedda Gabler and as a result created one of the finest works of art in the history of
Hedda’s rudeness breaks through the cultural barrier of the compliant and friendly housewife that many plays and literature featured. Hedda also marks a female character who posses a level of intelligence which is superior to many of the other characters in the play. This intelligence may be a bit more subtle than Mr. Tesman’s book smart knowledge yet she is able to undermine him as well as other characters throughout the play. The roles of women were often one-dimensional in plays and literature during that time period so making Hedda Gabler a complex and deep character with a thorough and undefined thinking process differentiates her from many of the traditional female roles. Overall, Henrik Ibsen challenged the female role with the creation of the character Hedda Gabler and as a result created one of the finest works of art in the history of