I would also show Dr Rank to have a close bond with Nora, by saying the line “He is here. Say it” with a light tone of voice and in a whisper to portray their private joke and to use the language as a means of teasing Nora rather than forcing her to say it. The image of teasing is also used later on throughout the play when Nora says to Dr Rank “And tomorrow you’ll see how nicely I dance. You can pretend it’s all for you- Well for Torvald too” I would show Nora to be manipulative and gain sympathy for my character Dr Rank by showing how uncomfortable he feels in the situation by avoiding eye contact and fiddling with my costume.
A 19th century audience would have thought that women were supposed to be faithful to their husbands and would have been appalled at Nora’s actions, so therefore would have sided with the character of Dr Rank because he doesn’t take advantage of the situation and remains loyal to his best friend Torvald (who is married to Nora). Whereas a modern audience wouldn’t have agreed with Nora’s actions but would have maybe felt she was driven to her actions by being unhappy in her marriage. This would have accomplished my purpose of gaining sympathy for Dr Rank and also would have an impact on the audience because the scene initially makes them aware of his terminal illness before they are emotionally attached to his character to be able to form an unbiased opinion of his seemingly close relationship with Nora.
If I were able to cast an actor perfect for the part of Dr Rank he would contain the physical trait of a bit of stubble to show he wasn’t worried about his appearance because he knows his time will be up soon and has better things to focus on. The actor would have unkempt brown hair to also portray the same message that he feels his appearance is unimportant in the scheme of things and also the colour brown to portray that he isn’t at an old age and will die before he will experience all aspects of life, which would gain sympathy from both a 19th century audience and a modern audience. Lastly I would have an actor of medium height but made to look smaller by his posture of having a hunched back.
For the costume of Dr Rank, I would have a pocket watch to symbolise that time is running out and a badge to show my character’s authority and that he’s proud of his profession as a doctor. Also, to show my authority I would wear formal shirts and trousers because of what is required of my character for his profession. Most importantly I would wear a tailcoat which connotes to imagery of a ‘tail-bone’ to portray my character Dr Rank is trying to ignore his illness because he wants to continue his work for as long as he can and hide his illness from the public world. I would also have him wear a black tweed coat in the winter to show his frailty because he needs to wrap up warm.
In my character Dr Rank’s last appearance he says “Yes, yes. Dear familiar rooms.” I would walk around the rooms of the house slowly to portray that I was reminiscing upon memories in Torvald and Nora’s house, and pay close attention to every detail to represent that I was committing it to memory to hint to the audience that my death was near. This would also gain sympathy from the audience because it shows them that he spent a lot of time in this house and is emotionally attached to it.
Also When Dr Rank expresses “Why shouldn’t we enjoy every blessed thing” it shows knowledge that you should enjoy everything life has to offer before it’s too late, which hints to the audience that he is telling his friends not to make the same mistake that he did, this also links to another line that says “No-one must regret anything ever” because it almost seems like he is trying to convince himself because he regrets not experiencing everything life has to offer before he came too ill.
Lastly the line “Sleep well, Doctor” that Nora says to Dr Rank is ironic because it suggests that this is her send off for him before he dies and is submitted to death which could be viewed as an eternal sleep. A 19th century audience would be surprised to this imagery of death being like a sleep because most of society at the time would be religious and would believe in heaven. However a modern audience would be more open towards the idea of death being like an endless dream.
by
bethbabiii (student)
