A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen has been heralded as one of the great feminist masterpieces of the nineteenth century. The play centers around a strong female protagonist, Nora Helmer, and questions the role of women in society. Joan Templeton argues in her article “The Doll House Backlash: Criticism, Feminism, and Ibsen,” that the piece was not meant to be a feminist work of art, it was instead supposed to be a scrutinization of humanity as a whole. Although, Templeton uses quotes and examples to get her point across, it does not change the fact that Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a feminist play due to the specific questions about women in society that are brought up. By writing a story about a female Ibsen intentionally involves himself with
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If Ibsen did not want to write a feminist piece, or did not want his work to be perceived in such a way, then the protagonist of A Doll’s House could easily have been a man. Henrik Ibsen however concocted the wonderful character of Nora, a Norwegian housewife plagued with the struggle of fitting into society and making tough decisions for the sake of the people she so dearly loves. By choosing to go against the expectation and custom of having theatrical works centered around a male protagonist, Ibsen makes a statement: women can be the subject of an interesting work of art. Moreover, having Nora leave Torvald in order to be independent, is feministic. It was used to shock nineteenth audiences, a woman leaving her family was not normal by any means during the 1800s (Zinman). Nora needs to be her own person, because Nora is a human first and a woman second. The idea of Nora embracing the fact that she is a woman and being successful as a person is explored in the unauthorized sequel to A Doll’s House, A Doll’s House, Part 2 by Lucas Hnath. Lucas Hnath interprets the original play to be a beacon for feminism and continues the theme of feminism in his sequel. This new addition to …show more content…
Feminism by definition is the advocacy of women’s rights on the basis of equality for the sexes. Nora is clearly a symbol for the need of equality. Her treatment by Torvald is clearly wrong and is presented to the audience as a great injustice. Nora is treated as a child, despite her intelligence and growing maturity throughout the play. Torvald refuses to discuss serious issues with her and finds it necessary to control her every move. It is this behavior that causes Nora to fear Torvald. Every aspect of Nora and Torvald’s relationship revolves around Torvald. Every aspect of Nora’s life revolves around Torvald’s and his needs. Nora is so fearful of disappointing Helmer that she lies about eating macaroons, because she knows that his controlling nature will cause him to lash out at her disobedience of such a trivial rule (Ibsen). The Helmer marriage does not revolve around love, but instead focuses on control. Torvald is only concerned with having what appears to be a perfect life and maintaining his status, he will do whatever it takes to do so. From the very beginning of the play Ibsen showcases Torvald Helmer’s need to control everything. Nora is interrogated about her spending, and when she spends more than he would have Torvald condescendingly refers to Nora as a spendthrift (Ibsen). The abusive nature of the Helmer marriage is what makes the leaving of Nora justifiable . Despite
If Ibsen did not want to write a feminist piece, or did not want his work to be perceived in such a way, then the protagonist of A Doll’s House could easily have been a man. Henrik Ibsen however concocted the wonderful character of Nora, a Norwegian housewife plagued with the struggle of fitting into society and making tough decisions for the sake of the people she so dearly loves. By choosing to go against the expectation and custom of having theatrical works centered around a male protagonist, Ibsen makes a statement: women can be the subject of an interesting work of art. Moreover, having Nora leave Torvald in order to be independent, is feministic. It was used to shock nineteenth audiences, a woman leaving her family was not normal by any means during the 1800s (Zinman). Nora needs to be her own person, because Nora is a human first and a woman second. The idea of Nora embracing the fact that she is a woman and being successful as a person is explored in the unauthorized sequel to A Doll’s House, A Doll’s House, Part 2 by Lucas Hnath. Lucas Hnath interprets the original play to be a beacon for feminism and continues the theme of feminism in his sequel. This new addition to …show more content…
Feminism by definition is the advocacy of women’s rights on the basis of equality for the sexes. Nora is clearly a symbol for the need of equality. Her treatment by Torvald is clearly wrong and is presented to the audience as a great injustice. Nora is treated as a child, despite her intelligence and growing maturity throughout the play. Torvald refuses to discuss serious issues with her and finds it necessary to control her every move. It is this behavior that causes Nora to fear Torvald. Every aspect of Nora and Torvald’s relationship revolves around Torvald. Every aspect of Nora’s life revolves around Torvald’s and his needs. Nora is so fearful of disappointing Helmer that she lies about eating macaroons, because she knows that his controlling nature will cause him to lash out at her disobedience of such a trivial rule (Ibsen). The Helmer marriage does not revolve around love, but instead focuses on control. Torvald is only concerned with having what appears to be a perfect life and maintaining his status, he will do whatever it takes to do so. From the very beginning of the play Ibsen showcases Torvald Helmer’s need to control everything. Nora is interrogated about her spending, and when she spends more than he would have Torvald condescendingly refers to Nora as a spendthrift (Ibsen). The abusive nature of the Helmer marriage is what makes the leaving of Nora justifiable . Despite