A Dolls house Language

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A Dolls house Language

For this particular part of my A level drama coursework I have been studying as well as closely analysing the language spoken within the play “A Dolls House”, written by Henrik Ibsen back in the 19th century. But many children and students are still reading this well known play, now in this modern day and age, with most if not all of them probably enjoying it. For this coursework I will be mainly looking at the following:

  • Sub-text
  • The dialect
  • The usage of questions
  • Poetic or finely tuned idiom
  • The natural/unnatural speech
  • The employ of metaphors or symbolism
  • The convolution/simplicity of the language
  • Sentence lengths, pauses and vocabulary used
  • Any use of characteristics, phrases or specific words in general
  • As well as any other lingo linked with the language in the play or used in the play itself.

Ever since reading the text in my own time I have, in many of my past lessons been discussing, acting and re-reading parts of the play as well as researching many other aspects to the play. By doing this I discovered things like the play was firstly written in Norwegian and then translated into many languages along with many more complex things. Back in lessons I was doing tasks that specifically looked at the language in the play. For example before rein acting a scene from the play the whole class gathered in a circle to do a warm up exercise which evolved around the line; “What did you do to die today at a minute or two to two, a thing distinctly hard to say but a harder thing to do”. I had to say this line in many different accents and characters including a posh upper class character like Nora and Torvold Helmer from the play. The language used in the play not only creates the feel of the 19th century but it also reflects the way the characters are. It does this as the 19th century old English is very formal showing there middle to higher class and well educated. The language also shows the society that the characters live in and is significant as it reveals their inner thoughts, feelings relationships and situations. In one particular part of the play Torvold says:

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“You can’t deny it, little Nora now can you? It’s a sweet little songbird but it gets through a terrible amount of money you wouldn’t believe how much it costs a man when he’s got a little songbird like you”

This rather poetic and metaphoric line compares Nora to a songbird which is petit and shows she can be sweet, innocent and chirpy. It also echo’s how Torvold belittles Nora and treats her like a child, which in them days was the done thing; men overpowering women and controlling the relationship in addition to this it perhaps shows how ...

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