"The dramatically active question of the last act is whether the "wonderful thing" will happen or not. The scene in which Nora realizes that it won't is one of the great scenes in modern drama, not only in precipitating the same mordant speeches" (Bloom, 32). Nora rapidly discovers that she cannot save Torvald and sadly leaves him as she knows that she needs change in her life and that she needs to do it with or without Torvald, as he does not deserve to join her as long as he does not understand what the most important values in life are.
In contrast to Nora, Torvald is exactly what society wants him to be: an individual who acknowledges the importance of material values and who considers his self-interest to be more important than anything. This character's personality is shaped by traditions and he is largely unable to understand concepts that are in disagreement with what he learned during his life. Not only did life teach him to be merciless in regard to his peers, but it also influenced him in believing that he should trust no one. Moreover, he developed a strong sense a prejudice during his life, this trait being most obvious at the moment when he discovers Nora's crime, as he claims that "I ought to have suspected that something of the sort would happen" (Ibsen, 253). Torvald is not very different from a robot, as he plans each of his actions and knows what to expect from life. However, as Johnston clarifies, Torvald does actually acknowledge the meaning of feelings, but wants everyone around him to like him and is determined to do everything in his power in order to upgrade his social status. Torvald's behavior is generally determined by society's rules and he is unwilling to break these respective legislations, regardless of the circumstances.
Not only is Torvald...
He feels that Nora's freedom is not a reality since she couldn't possibly just leave her house and establish her own identity without money. "Nora needs money -- to put it more elegantly, it is economics which matters in the end. Freedom is certainly not something that can be bought for money. But it can be lost through lack of money." (Found in Schwarez) In short, whatever were the reasons
Nora's life has been made economically easy by her husband, but that subordination is what takes the ease out of her life of comfort. Torvald is the dominant partner in their marriage. Without his consent, she cannot make major decisions, like make a loan, without her husband's permission. "Frankenstein" is also about parental and filial obligation and relationship. Dr. Victor Frankenstein is the creator and father of the monster,
Instead of needing his help and protection, Torvald finds out that it was only Nora's role playing and really she was capable of working and doing deceptive things. Torvald's response to the letter shows that he has very little self-awareness and really thought that the "role-plays" were reality. 5. Torvald believes that marriage and family are important, and that the man or husband is in control. Torvald thinks that men
" Ibsen demanded justice and freedom for every human being and wrote a Doll House to inspire society to individualism and free them from suppression." (http://www.helium.com/items/1121047-henrik-ibsen-dolls-house). In the play, the family exists in the way society defines it -- a husband, a wife, children and a home; but in reality it is just a collection of strangers living in the same house. For Nora the crisis of blackmail and her husband
113). Through all these events, Torvald demonstrates that he does not see Nora clearly. He is blind to her strengths and exaggerates her weaknesses, and sees her only as someone to entertain and enhance his image in the eyes of others. HOW NORA RELATES to TORVALD While clearly Torvald sees Nora as an entertaining child who must be guided, Nora's conversations with her friend Mrs. Linde show that to some extent, Torvald
Ibsen's Nora Although it is difficult to know exactly how audiences watching Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House felt about the content of the play when it was first performed, it is difficult for us reading or watching it in the 21st century to see it as anything but a strongly feminist statement. What is especially striking about the powerful feminism of the play - other than the year in which it was
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