B1 In the story A Doll’s House, Henrik Ibsen returns to one of his most vital ideas: the social misunderstanding/lie of the duty of the female. Nora Helmer is a devoted wife to her husband and children. She also goes out of her way to try and help her husband Torvald Helmer in any way that she can. However, once Krogstad (a bank teller whom Nora is indebted to) comes in the picture, he causes some major conflict between Nora and Torvald. From this major conflict, it is shown that throughout the entirety of the story Nora has been trapped by the conventions and mentality of her society. It is repetitively shown throughout the novel that Nora has no financial freedom. For example, when the time comes where Torvald is in need of an operation for a sickness that he’d developed, because Nora has no hidden stash-of-cash that she can go to in case of “rainy days” like this, she must sign a loan if she hopes to save her husband. However, because of the fact that Nora is a woman, she can’t sign a loan without a male accompanying her. This being, Nora is pushed to perform illegalities such as forging signatures on a loan. Whether it be as extreme a situation as needing money to move her husband to another area so that he may get better medical care or as small as buying her favorite candy from the store, she is constantly in need of someone who is financially secure to buy these things for her. Furthermore, another important factor that hinders Nora from having financial freedom is the fact that she has no job skills. “Employability skills are general skills that are needed to get most jobs, but they also help you to stay in a job and work your way to the top.” Because Nora has no experience on what/how to do a particular job, it wouldn’t... ... middle of paper ... ... Nora found her own religion earlier on in the novel, it’s likely that majority of the issues presented would not have occurred. Also, if Nora were to conduct a relationship with a higher power, a sense of faith would have also most likely been instilled in her. From this faith, she could have the power to believe in herself more than she believes in others. After conducting a belief in a higher power, Nora could then begin to restructure her life. From this, an important starting point would be her values. Nora would have to figure out what and who should be seen as important and unimportant in her life. After considering changes in her values, Nora would then have to move on to reconstructing her understanding of finances. How long it would take to pay certain things off, how much things would ultimately cost her, and if she could afford the service/object or not.
Throughout the play we never get to know who the real Nora is and what her true personality consists of. Nora also realizes that she does not know who she is, and decides to leave her life. She comments that she needs to discover who she is separate from her husband, children and more importantly society. Nora feels she is not respected, and she is a “doll” to her husband.
In Act I, it seems evident that Nora does not understand the actual value of money but she has an infatuation with luxuries such as expensive Christmas gifts and she justifies this by buying less expensive clothes, which she has confided in Mrs. Linde, her friend. Helmer, immediately labels his wife as a “little spendthrift” (Ibsen, 660). She seems to think that money can be easily borrowed and paid back.
Whereas for Nora is trapped in her own predicament and circumstances. She has no power or equality in society, or even in her own marriage and household. She has a financial obligation, the back loan she did behind her husband’s back. To obtain the loan she had forged her father’s signature on the IOU. Nora claims that she can’t claim her own life or live her own life so long as she remains married to her husband. She goes on to say how she feels all her life she’s been played with like a
In the entire play, Nora is in fact THE one and only real one imprisoned. She has no rights to do anything; she is “a bird in a cage';. Kristine gives the exact figure of Nora by saying: “ A wife cannot borrow without her husband’ s consent';. She is also imprisoned by law because of her forged signature and is therefore “aggressed'; by Krogstad, the man who lent her the money in the first place. She has been convinced that males are kings of the society she lives in. She even tells Kristine about this idea: “ A man can straighten out these things so much better than a woman';. She cannot afford or obtain anything herself, she has to ask her husband and get his permission to buy everything: “ Your squirrel will scamper about and do all her tricks, if you’ ll be nice and do what she asks.'; Her liberty is non-existent, Helmer is comparable to a prison guard, he thinks that he owns her: “… all the beauty that belongs to no one but me, that’ s my very own';. Helmer is the “prison guard'; and “the prison'; is the apartment she lives in.
Unwilling to accept her supposed role in society, Nora wanted to figure out whether women should live under the guidance of men or if they should make decisions based on their own knowledge. Nora could not tolerate abiding by the rules of her male-dominated society. It took much fortitude for Nora to rebel against the views of the majority of people, and to reflect on the information she got herself instead of letting it be determined by another.
...ome from different worlds, yet they still share the same type of sadness and pain in their everyday lives. What Nora does is considered courageous in that time in history, where women were not treated as equals and were always looked down on and ignored. Women speaking out and taking matters into their own hands was unheard of and often risky. They want to be independent so they do what they believe is necessary to accomplish and reach their goals, so that they can once again be happy for eternity.
Nora is the beloved, adored wife of Torvald Helmer. He is well respected, and has just received a promotion to the bank manager. Torvald also obtains high moral standards but he is very controlling and materialistic. During the first scene the couple is discussing the issue of borrowing money. Torvald says to Nora "…you know what I think about that. No debts! Never borrow! Something of freedom’s lost-and something of beauty, too- from a home that’s founded on borrowings and debt. We’ve made a brave stand up to now, the two of us, and we’ll go right on like that the little way we have to."
Nora 's character is a little bit complicated. she is a representative of women in her time and shows how women were thought to be a content with the luxuries of modern society without worrying about men 's outside world. However, Nora proves that this idea is entirely wrong. Nora is not a spendthrift as all people think specially her husband. on the contrary, she has a business awareness and she is mature
Even though it might seem that without Krogstad’s extortion plan, Nora would have never developed her need for an identity but she has shown signs for a new identity well before Krogstad tried to extort Nora for his job back. In the beginning of the play, Nora is already seen to be defying Torvald’s wishes by eating some macaroons. Not only that but when Torvald reminds Nora about last Christmas and how Nora “locked [herself] up every evening, till way past midnight, making flowers for the Christmas tree” (1.125-127). Nora told Torvald that she “wasn’t bored at all” (1.129). This small act of defiance towards Torvald might seem like nothing special but it is a subtle hint that Nora no longer wants to be Torvald’s plaything. Another instance of defiance happens right after, when Nora discuss her loan with Mrs. Linde. Nora was extremely ecstatic when she brought up her loan of Four thousand, eight hundred kroner. She even describes the loan as something she is “proud and happy about” (1.316). Not only was Torvald’s wish of having no debt defied by Nora’s own action but she has a sense of pride and believes that her actions were justified without any input from Torvald. Nora taking out the loan was her first step in approaching maturity and independence and it instilled in Nora’s mind a need for an identity different from Torvald’s. Krogstad’s extortion plot probably sped
From the start of the play, we see that Nora’s entire focus is on money. “Won’t it be lovely to have stacks of money and not a care in the world” (703), Nora asks Mrs. Linde. Almost every conversation she has in the play is related to money in some way or another. When Torvald, her husband, asks her what she wants for Christmas, she tells him, “You could give me money, Torvald. . . . Then I could hang the bills in pretty glit paper on the Christmas tree. Wouldn’t that be fun” (699)? Her carefree way of handling money exasperates her husband. He wants to make her happy, but he isn’t able to give her what he doesn’t have. He doesn’t know about the loan, at first, and, to him and the audience, it appears that she is just throwing her money away hopelessly.
When confronted by Krogstad, who tells her it is against the law to sign someone else's signature, she responds, "This I refuse to believe. " A daughter hasn't a right to protect her dying father from anxiety and care? A wife hasn't a right to save her husband's life. I don't know much about laws, but I'm sure that somewhere in the books these things are allowed. " Nora simply does not understand the ways of the world, and the final realization that she is in real danger of risking hers and her husband's reputation, and worse, makes her snap out of the childish dream she had been living. & nbsp; Kristine, Nora's childhood friend, is the wisdom and support Nora needs to grow up.
After asking his wife if she understands what she has done Nora answers “[Looking squarely at him, her face hardening] Yes. I am beginning to understand everything” (835). This statement might be the key phrase of Nora’s realization. The double- meaning implies Nora’s understanding of the actual situation as well as her awareness that her marriage, even though it conforms with social expectations, is far from perfect. She now doubts the depth of her love for Torvald and becomes calm with comprehension as she begins to recognize the truth about her marriage. While she expects compassion for her sacrifice, she is none given. Instead of sacrificing anything to help Nora out of her predicament, Torvald is only worried about himself and appearances. It becomes very clear, after the second letter from Krogstad arrives, that her well-being always comes second “I’m saved. Nora, I’m saved! You too, of course” (836). Throughout the conversation with Torvald, Nora finally realizes, she needs to rearrange her life and priorities to be happy. This implies independence and self-awareness. While Nora finally understands the situation, she is in and what she needs to do but Torvald defines her new attitudes as madness “You’re ill, Nora; you’re feverish; I almost think you’re out of your mind” (840). “However, the characterization has been tied to the fact that she is breaking taboos or challenging conventions” (Langås 160). Torvald is still stuck in his fantasy world of how a wife should talk and act per his standard and the society he stands for. “Nora still has no way of knowing that she is not endangering her children with her presence and in the end, she feels impelled to leave, and her decision is less an act of defiance against her husband and society than an attempt to save the lives of her children” (Brooks
Nora is a dynamic character. When the play begins Nora is viewed and presented as a playful and carefree person. She seems to be more intent on shopping for frivolous things. But, as time goes on it becomes apparent that Nora actually has a certain amount of seriousness in her decisions and actions in dealing with the debt she incurred to save Torvald’s life. Nora’s openness in her friendship with Dr. Rank changes after he professes his affections toward her. Her restraint in dealing with him shows that Nora is a mature and intelligent woman. Nora shows courage, not seen previously, by manipulating her way around Krogstad and his threats to reveal her secret. After feeling betrayed by Torvald, Nora reveals that she is leaving him. Having
(Mrs. Linde and Nora) express their feelings of pride and fulfillment in helping their significant others by sacrificing themselves. Nora’s character is made more obvious to us by Mrs. Linde’s actions. Not only did Nora open her mouth about saving her husband‘s life, but she did it with the utmost pride. Claiming to have raised all the money herself she soaks in her self-importance. In Act 1, Nora seems to thrive on the pride she gets from borrowing the money. I suppose that she is feeling useful for a change.
...dlike mentality and needs to grow before she can raise her own children. Her defiance of Torvald, when he refuses to let her leave, reflects her epiphany that she isn't obligated to let Torvald dictate her actions. The height of Nora's realization comes when she tells Torvald that her duty to herself is as strong as her duty as a wife and mother. She now sees that she is a human being before she is a wife and mother and she owes herself to explore her personality, ambitions, and beliefs.