Man's Opinion about Women

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There are many influences that affect a man’s opinion about women. Influences such as personal experiences, rumors, and the women in a man’s life help form his opinion of a woman. Henrik Ibsen and Oscar Wilde are two playwrights who reflected their beliefs about women in their plays. Ibsen and Wilde both believe that society shunned women, unfairly forcing them into a submissive role, under the control of men.

On March 20, 1828, Henrik Johan Ibsen was born in Skien, Norway (Merriman Ibsen 1) and had four biological siblings (Meyer 13) His parents went from wealthy to poor at his age of six (Meyer 13). Ibsen was rumored to be a illegitimate child, possibly conceived before his mother married (Meyer 15). “Bankruptcy and illegitimacy recur specter like throughout his work” (Meyer 16) Ibsen went to college at Christiania (Oslo) and was the editor of the school newspaper (Merriman Ibsen 1). While in his twenties he directed many successful drama plays in Norway (Merriman Ibsen 1). After moving to Germany in 1858, Ibsen Married Suzannah Thoreson and together had one son (Merriman Ibsen 1). Many of Ibsen’s plays have thoughts or actions of suicide. “It has been said that Ibsen himself suffered from depression and at times contemplated suicide. Social breakdown, stereotypes, class struggle and issues of morality dominate his characters (Merriman Ibsen 1).

On October 16, 1854, Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was born in Dublin, Ireland (Merriman Wilde 1). Wilde had two biological siblings and his mother was a poet who influenced him (Merriman Wilde 1). His father was a facial surgeon, philanthropist, and a knight (Merriman Wilde 1). Wilde was home schooled for about ten years before leaving for Trinity College in Dublin for thre...

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... make people think. In A Doll’s House and The Master Builder, Ibsen shows two magnificent examples of a husband who fails to love his wife well. The weak love they display leads to a downfall in both situations.

Henrik Ibsen and Oscar Wilde both presented ideas to the Victorian society that challenged the ways of society at that time. These ideas were presented by the characters’ actions and decisions that were uncharacteristic of women at the time. This brought about much controversy. If the plays had been written in today’s world the ideas would not have been so controversial because what they challenge is now occurs more frequently. Women now have dominating roles in today’s society and can make their own decisions without a male overriding them. In this way, Ibsen and Wilde influenced society because society changed in the ways that they thought it should.

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