During Nora’s conversation with Mrs Linde about Dr Rank, Ibsen once again suggests ideas which are then planted into the audience’s minds. In particular, although Nora never mentions asking Dr Rank for money to pay off Krogstad during this conversation, it is delicately implied so that when she does, in fact, ask Dr Rank for a “very great service”, it is not a surprise for the audience: rather, it clears the way for the greater shock of Rank’s declaration of love.
Torvald’s entrance and his subsequent discussion with Nora is very similar to that at the end of Act One, except here it is clear that Nora is growing more and more desperate, which is reflected not only in her arguments against the dismissal of Krogstad, but also her wild compliance with and exaggeration of Torvald’s pet names for her (e.g. “I’d turn myself into a little fairy and dance for you in the moonlight, Torvald.”), showing that she is sensing her ever-imminent fall from grace in his eyes and her desire to protect his love for her.
The dialogue between husband and wife concerning Torvald’s real reason for dismissing Krogstad is significant and foreshadows his reaction to Nora’s crime. Ibsen clearly shows Torvald’s desire to protect his reputation and ego by referring to himself in the third person as “the new vice-president”, highlighting his overblown sense of self-importance. Torvald’s wish to protect himself from external mockery and criticism, which Nora so rightly describes as “petty” clearly foreshadows the end of the play, whether Nora is aware of it or not. However, Ibsen also begins to introduce Nora’s uncertainty about Torvald’s reaction when he declares he will “bear the burden for us both…when the real crisis comes”, leaving both the audience and Nora completely unsure about his final reaction when all is eventually revealed.
It is significant that the relationship between Nora and Rank provides a stark contrast to that between Nora and Torvald. Nora herself begins to show a surprisingly clear insight into her own heart when she tells Rank that she feels “the same about Torvald as I did about Papa”, once again foreshadowing the end of Act Three. Rank and Torvald offer interesting comparisons in how they treat Nora: while Torvald is patronising and patriarchal, Rank is as light-hearted as she is, allowing her to scold him and flirt with him as a distraction from his illness. The relatively short dialogue after Rank confesses his love for Nora once again emphasises her selfishness and her total absorption in the crisis surrounding her, when she condemns it as “horrid” and “unnecessary” simply because he cannot lend her the money now, as it would be fulfilling Christine’s prophecy. Ibsen’s use of symbolism here, such as when Nora asks, “Aren’t you ashamed of yourself, now that the lamp’s been lit?”, is altogether contrived and self-conscious. However, it allows the audience to see that Nora is becoming more and more aware of how fallible her own situation is, which is an important development in her character.
Krogstad’s final conversation with Nora and the events that follow serve to increase the pace of the play and of Nora’s downfall. The letter in the letter-box is the pivotal factor influencing both Nora’s behaviour and the events of Act Three, both understated and hugely significant in its potency. The tarantella is more than a distraction: it is a reflection of Nora’s dangerously desperate frame of mind. At the end of the Act, Nora says “Thirty-one hours to live.” but it is been made clear that she hasn’t the courage for suicide. Therefore, it can be assumed that Nora is referring to the end of the life she has been leading: at this point, it is clear that Nora is still hoping for the “miracle” of Torvald’s forgiveness and self-sacrifice, meaning that if he rejects her, she feels she will surely die, again increasing the ambiguity and uncertainty of the ending