In Brian Johnston's essay, Realism in a Doll House, he discusses many points of realism. Although all of the themes are relevant, one in particular sticks out. Gender seems to be a major theme throughout both A Doll House and Antigone. This topic is continually evident, creating an interesting view of society for readers. Both of these dramas have strong female characters, which provides an opportune example of the discrimination that occurs.
There is a major leap between Nora and Torvald’s lifestyles, creating almost a barrier between the two. Torvald, being the man of the house, brings in all of the money and supports them through his hard work. Nora, the mother of two children and the wife to her husband has to make certain sacrifices; these …show more content…
First of all, Helmer is the man of the house who does not identify very well with his wife, who has a completely different set of morals. This fact alone caused a wall between them, causing their marriage to be doomed from the start. At the end of the play, Nora says to her husband, “In eight whole year -longer even- right from our first acquaintance, we’ve never exchanged a serious word on any serious thing… That’s the point right there: you’ve never understood me.” (Ibsen 1700) Serious conversations did not often occur between this husband and wife, thus creating yet another barrier. The underlying reason Torvald and his wife never sat down to talk seriously is simply because he felt she was too immature for it. This fact, although true, had been cultivated by Torvald himself. Without noticing, he had kept his wife from becoming her own person; which was a continued circumstance from her father who treated her in the same way. With his minor or major rules within the household, he had literally occluded his wife’s full maturation. Can you really blame Nora for wanting to leave? Although she had done something she should not have done, her actions were partially to blame for her husband’s decisions.
Antigone experiences the same moral dilemma as Nora herself. She is expected to adhere to her moral code as a woman: to care for her loved ones. Unfortunately, she encounters other duties on top of this certain “code”. She wants to give Polynices a proper burial, but is chastised for her decisions by others around
There is a major leap between Nora and Torvald’s lifestyles, creating almost a barrier between the two. Torvald, being the man of the house, brings in all of the money and supports them through his hard work. Nora, the mother of two children and the wife to her husband has to make certain sacrifices; these …show more content…
First of all, Helmer is the man of the house who does not identify very well with his wife, who has a completely different set of morals. This fact alone caused a wall between them, causing their marriage to be doomed from the start. At the end of the play, Nora says to her husband, “In eight whole year -longer even- right from our first acquaintance, we’ve never exchanged a serious word on any serious thing… That’s the point right there: you’ve never understood me.” (Ibsen 1700) Serious conversations did not often occur between this husband and wife, thus creating yet another barrier. The underlying reason Torvald and his wife never sat down to talk seriously is simply because he felt she was too immature for it. This fact, although true, had been cultivated by Torvald himself. Without noticing, he had kept his wife from becoming her own person; which was a continued circumstance from her father who treated her in the same way. With his minor or major rules within the household, he had literally occluded his wife’s full maturation. Can you really blame Nora for wanting to leave? Although she had done something she should not have done, her actions were partially to blame for her husband’s decisions.
Antigone experiences the same moral dilemma as Nora herself. She is expected to adhere to her moral code as a woman: to care for her loved ones. Unfortunately, she encounters other duties on top of this certain “code”. She wants to give Polynices a proper burial, but is chastised for her decisions by others around