everything else he had told her before was forgotten. It is very cold of him to go from one thing to another, hence it cannot possibly be believed
that his feelings are true for Nora. People do not love a person one moment, and then deny them it, or vise versa. Nora's reason for leaving, as she
explains, is that she feels he doesn't love her: Nora: "You've never loved me, you've only found it pleasant to be in love with me." As well as her
taking no part in family decisions or even her own, as she and Helmer have never sat down to have a serious discussion, in the past eight years,
until now. She is his doll , and has no say in her own future, let alone her owner's (Helmer). Another aspect, included in the book's theme, is
sexism, an attitude which stereotypes people according to gender. In forgiving Nora, Helmer makes various comments characterised as sexist.
Firstly, he tells Nora: Helmer: "...It was just you hadn't the experience to realise what you were doing." Here he is referring to the crime she
committed of forging her father's signature, to obtain the loan from Krogstad. This simple sentence shows Helmer's lack of confidence in Nora's
decisions, he appears to be treating her as a child. He speaks of her inexperience, when in reality she is an adult, who has lived long enough to
distinguish right from wrong. The manner in which he forgives her is as though he believes she did not know what she was getting into, like a child
who plays with matches without foreseeing the consequences. Still, he goes on to say: Helmer: "...I shouldn't be a proper man if your feminine
helplessness didn't make you twice as attractive to me." Alone in itself this sentence has a lot to say for Helmer's opinion on a man's and woman's
place in society. In saying "proper man" means he has guidelines by which a man should act, and the part of "feminine helplessness demonstrates he
believes all women to be helpless. His finding her attractive due to this can be explained by the typical sexist desire to be superior to his partner.
Although the example of sexism is very strong in this extract, throughout the book it is not as obvious, and there are other factors of the theme
which are more prominent. One of these is Nora's infant behaviour, which Helmer seems to fuel with his attitude towards her: Helmer: "...Ah, you
don't know what a real mans heart is like, Nora.....I'll be both your will and your conscience." This sort of control that Helmer is exerting over
Nora would be like that of a father's over his daughter. Nora recognises this, and further on she compares Helmer with her father, and reaches the
conclusion that they both treat her the same. Furthermore, Helmer scolds her: Helmer: "...Why, what's this? Not in bed?" I remember my own
father telling me this in similar words, when I was younger and was out of bed after my bed-time. Unfortunately, Nora, an adult, is still living
through the same. Finally, the title "A Doll's House" suggest the situation Nora is living in, as she describes the to Helmer at one point. She is the
doll that was previously owned by her father, but now she is married to Helmer and he controls her. The metaphore is obviously between Nora
and a doll, but Henrik also portays this image through the scenery. The house is what Helmer provides for Nora and her children, like someone
would for their dolls.
