Marriage Roles In A Doll's House By Henrik Ibsen

In modern society, it is believed that a marriage is now more equal than before because of the increase in opportunities that women have in modern times. Women now have more economic freedom and are not just confined to the house. Women can get jobs and can discuss their problems openly in society. In addition, they are not confined to just one role in society and are allowed to choose whether they want to go down the path of motherhood. In the nineteenth century, marriage roles had been perceived as unequal because of how constricted a woman was in the eyes of society. At that time, women did not have monetary freedom, which meant that they did not have power in their lives. Therefore, women were only expected to bear children since they did not have the necessary power to desire a different life. They did not have the choice of …show more content…
When Torvald says this to Nora, he is not giving Nora the option of becoming something other than a mother or a wife. Torvald believes that Nora cannot be something other than those two options while he has the power to explore his options. This shows the imbalance within the marriage because Torvald does not need to give his all to his family while Nora is being forced to do this. Another example of patriarchal power is when Torvald states how Nora does not consider what people will say if she were to leave her home. This is another example of patriarchal power because of how it is believed that a woman 's place is at home, which is a social norm. It shows the imbalanced marriage because Nora’s actions are being defined by a society that is ruled by men. If a man were to leave his wife and family, most would not think much of this because it would be perceived as acceptable and normal if it were to happen. However, a woman leaving her family is deemed bad and wrong because it “undermined and threatened the stability of society”