In the late 19th century, women were expected to be pious and pure, restrained as homebound mothers in their private sphere (Gordon 26). Hedda Gabler, a play by Henrik Ibsen, explores the concept of femininity through Hedda Tesman and Thea Elvsted, two women searching for an identity and purpose in life. In Ibsen’s modern drama, Thea serves as a foil to Hedda. Their juxtaposed external characteristics and emotional interactions portray how Thea Elvsted fits into gender norms more so than Hedda Gabler.
One significant difference between Hedda and Thea is the contrasting hair types of the two women. Hedda’s hair is depicted as average and normal, an “agreeable medium brown, but not particularly abundant” (Ibsen 7). Thea’s is sharply different,
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Similarly to her hair, Hedda is emotionally barren, devoid of maternal loving. The perfect picture of a woman in Ibsen’s time was motherly and nurturing, and once again, Hedda fails to meet Thea’s standards. Throughout the play, comments such as George Tesman mentioning Hedda has “filled out” hint at her pregnancy (9). Hedda reacts in a harsh tone, saying he “can’t see anything”, completely ignoring the implications of Tesman’s statement (9). In this manner, she rejects motherhood. From the exposition, Hedda complains about “a whole flood of sunshine”, presenting her dislike for symbols of life (8). Thea is the polar opposite, sending the Tesman's a bouquet of flowers, a symbol of vivacity and birth. This distinction between Hedda’s dislike of nature and Thea’s affinity for it represents the distinction in their motherly characteristics. Furthermore, though Thea has no children of her own and Hedda is pregnant, Eilert’s manuscript serves as a symbolic child in Ibsen’s play. Hedda doesn’t fit the caregiver archetype, saying she doesn’t “care about that” manuscript, showing no love towards Eilert’s life and blood (49). Thea conversely protects and loves the manuscript, putting in countless hours to perfect the document. Thea expresses extreme sadness when Eilert’s manuscript is thought to be lost, comparing it to the killing of “a little child” (57). Hedda is the converse, deriving …show more content…
As mentioned previously, women were to sit and look pretty like wallflowers. Though neither woman fully fits this stereotypical image, Thea exhibits more courage and character than Hedda. Thea, in her loveless marriage, was seen as mere “useful property” (17). She runs away from this situation, taking control of her life, in a path to freedom which Hedda never accomplishes. Hedda wants to “control a human destiny” but this desire displays that she has no power: neither over herself, nor over her husband (45). Stranded in a loveless marriage, Hedda marries simply because George Tesman does more than “other adorers were prepared to do” (28). While Hedda’s marriage represents a fall in class, Thea’s marriage helps her rise in status. Though Thea and Hedda face similar dilemmas in finding a marital partner, they have different levels of courage. Whereas Thea, a dynamic and three-dimensional character, takes charge of her existence, Hedda deals with her problems in a spineless manner, using jealousy and manipulation. In Eilert’s words, Thea is “so brave” (41) whereas Hedda is a “coward at heart” (40). Eilert’s opinion is especially significant since both of the women must focus their livelihoods around men, finding a purpose through the dominant sex in society. However, their dealings with men are not the only factor that depict the juxtaposed nature of their two characters. Thea has “done
Moreover, the mother faces the turning point of the whole journey when she courageously confronts her husband and finally voices out her opinion against being treated as more of a thing rather than a person. She reminds him that “[her] name… is Elizabeth” and should not be referred to as a mere “woman”, but being outrageous as he was, he yells at her to “shut [her] mouth” as she was trying to explain, and “[get his] supper”. Through the mother’s confrontation with her husband, the readers learn the importance of having the courage of speaking out what we believe is right despite of the outcome, instead of merely submitting in silence. Ultimately, numerous positive changes occurred once resolution to both the mother's external and internal conflict are addressed. Not only does “[the husband] often speaks to [the] mother as though she were more of a person and less of a thing”, but the mother also decides to “[teach] her two grandsons how to wash dishes and make
Women and men are not equal. Never have been, and it is hard to believe that they ever will be. Sexism permeates the lives of women from the day they are born. Women are either trying to fit into the “Act Like a Lady” box, they are actively resisting the same box, or sometimes both. The experience of fitting in the box and resisting the box can be observed in two plays: Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun” and Henrick Ibsen’s “A Doll House”. In Hansberry’s play, initially, Beneatha seems uncontrolled and independent, but by the end she is controlled and dependent; whereas, in Ibsen’s play Nora seems controlled and dependent at the beginning of the play, but by the end she is independent and free.
In society, there has always been a gap between men and women. Women are generally expected to be homebodies, and seen as inferior to their husbands. The man is always correct, as he is more educated, and a woman must respect the man as they provide for the woman’s life. During the Victorian Era, women were very accommodating to fit the “house wife” stereotype. Women were to be a representation of love, purity and family; abandoning this stereotype would be seen as churlish living and a depredation of family status. Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s short story "The Yellow Wallpaper" and Henry Isben’s play A Doll's House depict women in the Victorian Era who were very much menial to their husbands. Nora Helmer, the protagonist in A Doll’s House and the narrator in “The Yellow Wallpaper” both prove that living in complete inferiority to others is unhealthy as one must live for them self. However, attempts to obtain such desired freedom during the Victorian Era only end in complications.
The first theme present in the horrific and heart wrenching story is the subordinate position of women within marriage. “The Yellow Wallpaper” begins with the narrator’s wish that her house were haunted like those in which “frightened heroines suffer Gothic horrors” (DeLamotte 5). However, this wish is in essence to empower herself. The narrator is already afraid of her husband and is suffering mentally and emotionally. She desperately wishes for an escape “through fantasy, into a symbolic version of her own plight: a version in which she would have a measure of distance and control” (DeLamotte 6). Throughout the text, Gilman reveals to the reader that during the time in which the story was written, men acquired the working role while women were accustomed to working within the boundaries of their “woman sphere”. This gender division meritoriously kept women in a childlike state of obliviousness and prevented them from reaching any scholastic or professional goals. John, the narrator’s husband, establishes a treatment for his wife through the assumption of his own superior wisdom and maturity. This narrow minded thinking leads him to patronize and control his wife, all in the name of “helping her”. The narrator soon begins to feel suffocated as she is “physically and emotionally trapped by her husband” (Korb). The narrator has zero control in the smallest details of her life and is consequently forced to retreat into her fantasies...
...rian housewife in the time period. This is one of the reasons Hedda resents her so much. Hedda wishes to have the rights of the men in her time period, yet she envies Thea’s feminine persona. This is why Hedda shows her courageous personality when associating with Thea. Similar to Hedda’s conversations with Tesman, Hedda uses the same overpowering demeanor when talking with Thea. Hedda shows her courage in order to exert her dominance over thea as well as showing her hate for thea having control over loveborg. To Hedda having dominance over Thea, mean she has dominance over loveborg as well. Hedda shows her dominance over thea whith the wuote, “Now I am burning your child, Thea!—Burning it, curly- locks!” Hedda refers to the book that thea and loveborg had written together as her baby. Thea had put so much of her time and thoughts into her work and Hedda knew that
Ibsen created an environment for women to question the society they lived in. Nora and Hedda, two feminists living in a masculine household bereft of happiness, desired to evade their unhappy life at home under the guidance of a man. Eventually, both women escaped from their husband’s grasp, but Hedda resorted to suicide in order to leave. Nora agreed with Lois Wyse by showing her strengths with pride to everybody, while Hedda hid her strengths like a coward by killing herself. Ibsen used numerous literary elements and techniques to enhance his writing and to help characterize the two protagonists.
Hedda married Tesman, an academic student who supposed to have a potential success, not because she loves him, but just because as she said “It was a great deal more than any of my other admirers were offering”. In this quote she is showing her real feelings meaning that she never loves him and she just married him because he was the best option among the
In the beginning of the written story the author reveals Hester to be a cold-hearted mother. "She had bonny children, yet she felt they had been thrust upon her, and she could not love them"(75). In public she is thought of as the perfect mother, but in private she and her children know her true feelings. "Everyone else said of her: 'She is such a good mother. She adores her children.' Only she herself, and her children themselves, knew it was not so. They read it in each other's eyes"(75). Heste...
Hedda is a product of the nineteenth century, when women were ordained to become either proper old maids (like George's aunts) or modest housekeepers (like Mrs. Elvsted), however Hedda is an anomaly. She has been raised by a dominating father and rebels against his leadership at the same time she revels in his power. General Gabler taught Hedda to ride and shoot, which symbolizes the origin of her attraction with the violent and the romantic, Hedda's intense preoccupation with pistols, her desire to have control over the fate of another individual and take part in the public life of men, her rejection of family life shown in her at times mal...
In The Yellow Wallpaper, the wallpaper is that which separates Jane from her latent desires for agency and equality in her relationship with her husband. Through a close reading of the final two pages of Charlotte Perkins Stetson’s short story, one can examine the relationship that Jane has with the woman in the wallpaper, who is representative of Jane’s inner self, and the relationship between Jane and her husband John. This examination is key to understanding the way that power dynamics manifest themselves in the narrative and how they impact Jane’s quest for agency.
Also, the paper will discuss how ignoring oneself and one’s desires is self-destructive, as seen throughout the story as the woman’s condition worsens while she is in isolation, in the room with the yellow wallpaper, and at the same time as her thoughts are being oppressed by her husband and brother. In the story, the narrator is forced to tell her story through a secret correspondence with the reader since her husband forbids her to write and would “meet [her] with heavy opposition” should he find her doing so (390). The woman’s secret correspondence with the reader is yet another example of the limited viewpoint, for no one else is ever around to comment or give their thoughts on what is occurring. The limited perspective the reader sees through her narration plays an essential role in helping the reader understand the theme by showing the woman’s place in the world. At the time the story was written, women were looked down upon as being subservient beings compared to men....
Many women in modern society make life altering decisions on a daily basis. Women today have prestigious and powerful careers unlike in earlier eras. It is more common for women to be full time employees than homemakers. In 1879, when Henrik Ibsen wrote A Doll's House, there was great controversy over the out come of the play. Nora’s walking out on her husband and children was appalling to many audiences centuries ago. Divorce was unspoken, and a very uncommon occurrence. As years go by, society’s opinions on family situations change. No longer do women have a “housewife” reputation to live by and there are all types of family situations. After many years of emotional neglect, and overwhelming control, Nora finds herself leaving her family. Today, it could be said that Nora’s decision is very rational and well overdue.
Hedda was raised a lady of the upper class, and as such she regards her beauty with high esteem. This is, in part, the reason she vehemently denies the pregnancy for so long. A pregnancy will force her to gain weight and lose her lovely womanly figure. Hedda has grown accustomed to her many admirers; therefore, Hedda is ...
Firstly, Hedda is shown as a very uncaring person towards the people around her. She shows that with many different actions such as when she burns the manuscript she acts as if she hasn’t done anything wrong. Tesman says “Burn’t! Burn’t Eilert’s manuscript!” Hedda says “Don’t scream so. The servant might hear you” Tesman says “Burnt! Why, good God-! No, no, no!
Ibsen, Henrik. Hedda Gabler. The Norton Introduction to Literature. Trans. Michael Meyer. Third Edition. New York: Norton, 1981. 1443-1507.