A Dolls House and Maria
Cand. No: 0220 076 Bryan Vaz January 14, 2005 IB English HL World Literature 1 Word Count: 1,133 In A Doll's House and Medea, both Ibsen and Euripides employ a female protagonist, who is married to an important man in society. In their respective societies, the husbands are considered to have the most amount of power in the relationship. This influences the situations that the protagonist is placed in, and the outcome of the situations affects the audience's attitude toward the protagonist. The power and the position in society that the husband has in society is related to audience's perception of the protagonist. At the beginning of the play, Torvald was just promoted to the manager of the bank. The job places him at a position of power in society as the overseer of a financial body. Torvald illustrates his power to Nora by saying, "I have got the authority from the retiring manager to undertake the necessary changes in the staff and in the rearrangement of work" (Ibsen 26). Through Torvald's description, the audience can see that Torvald has the power to change the fortunes of those under him, including Krogstad. In this respect Torvald holds power over Krogstad, thus placing Krogstad in less powerful bracket. However, this relationship of power is augmented when Krogstad has proof that Nora committed a crime. This affects Nora negatively because she is not only
Henrik Ibsen's 'A Doll's House' - review
A play serves as the author's tool for critiquing society. It is rare that a person encounters the ability to rise above accepted social beliefs. Some plays help to reflect controversial issues that the audience can relate to because they interact in the same situations every day. Henrik Ibsen was a Norwegian writer who was known for his critical view upon society. 'A Doll's House' was written in the late 19th Century, this era and its traits are echoed in his play in many ways. Ibsen provides unique analysis and reflection on issues his culture never thought as wrong. In the play he tackles women's rights as a matter of importance being neglected, acknowledging the fact that in 19th Century European life the role of the women to stay home, raise the children, and attend to her husband was unfair. Ibsen shows us this in 'A Doll's House' constantly when Nora is being dominated and controlled by Helmer. Nora is called a number of names by Helmer throughout the play. These include "little songbird", "squirrel", "lark", "little featherhead", "little skylark", "little person", and "little woman". Helmer seems to be particularly consistent about using the modifier "little" before the names he calls Nora. These are all usually followed by the possessive "my", signalling Helmer's belief that Nora belongs only to him. Analysing this type of language you could say that not only is it
Consider the relationship between the use of theatrical space and thematic development in Ibsen's A Doll's House.
Consider the relationship between the use of theatrical space and thematic development in Ibsen's A Doll's House The prominent theme in A Doll's House is that of male supremacy and the subsequent suppression of women's participation in society, particular to the nineteenth century and early twentieth century. In conveying the prevalence of Nora's constraints and the restrictions placed upon her, Ibsen uses subtle visual nuances of space within the setting to compliment and emphasise the idea of imprisonment and limitation. One of the most evident of these being the idea of the set on stage acting as a realist representation of a house, symbolic of the doll's house that Nora, the metaphorical doll, inhabits. This structural division of space into the interior and the exterior of the house carries with it social and cultural implications. Gender roles are spatially defined in relation to the inside and the outside of the house. Traditionally it is the woman who makes the house into a home, her home, while the world of commerce, war, travel, the world outside, is a man's world. Seeing the within and the without in terms of the outdoors and the indoors immediately transforms the theatrical space into a gender-charged environment, naturally fitted for acting out the drama of man and woman, Nora and Torvald. Similarly, in developing the plot of the play Ibsen crafts certain
What Is The Role Of Boredom In The Characterisation Of
Hana Fahim World Literature Essay What Is The Role Of Boredom In The Characterisation Of Hedda Gabler And Therese Raquin? Henrik Ibsen wrote the play Hedda Gabler about a woman who marries out of convenience a man she does not love and literally bores herself to death, she takes her own life at the end of the play. Therese Raquin is a novel by Emile Zola about a woman who along with her lover kills her husband, in order for them to be together, but the guilt of the murder causes them to commit a joined suicide. Both works take place in the late 19th century. In this essay I will discuss these two characters, Hedda Gabler and Therese Raquin, and the effect boredom has on them and on the decisions they make. The first thing Ibsen and Zola do to build up Therese and Hedda's boredom was by the setting. Zola filled Therese's childhood with disease, over protectiveness and loneliness, she was "brought up in the clammy heat of a sick-room" 1. Even when they moved to Paris she was stuck in the tiny apartment above the haberdashery, "she's bored to death in that shop" 2. Zola describes it as "dark, low and cramped" 3. Therese had to endure the claustrophobic boredom of petty life in the backstreet Paris haberdashery. Furthermore, Zola introduced the Thursday gatherings. The "Thursday evenings were a torture to her" 4 and "Therese played with a lack of interest" 5. In its' guests
hedda gabler
Drama has no single definition and does not have a common meaning that can be applied to the wide range of texts, plays, acts, and various others that can be called drama. However, drama is "by far the most economical means of expression" (Esslin, 1976). The subjects expressed in drama are extensive and diverse and can be declared dramatically or subtly. A common and almost essential subject matter expressed in drama is the representation of social issues. Drama can be manipulated and used as a powerful political weapon; as propaganda. Indeed, during periods such as war, cinema and theatre were used commonly as a form of propaganda in order to gain the attention and support of the public. Perhaps then, drama's representation of social issues differs from that of propaganda only in the way drama is used. Propaganda's representation of social issues is often limited because of it being censored, controlled, in the hands of mainly the government. Its purpose is to persuade and convince a targeted audience of a central idea. Nonetheless, it can reflect social issues such as poverty, war, famine, or perhaps equality, democracy, peace. In Ibsen's play Hedda Gabler, Ibsen is able to use this piece of drama as a tool to comment on social values and issues; these issues being about women and their place in a 'double-standard society'. His message is subtle but strong. While this piece
Plot Overview of A Doll's House.
Plot Overview A Doll's House opens on Christmas Eve. Nora Torvald enters her well-furnished living room-the setting of the entire play-carrying several packages. Torvald Helmer, Nora's husband, comes out of his study when he hears her arrive. He greets her playfully and affectionately, but then chides her for spending so much money on Christmas gifts. Their conversation reveals that for many years the Torvalds have had to be careful with money, but that Torvald has recently obtained a new position at the bank where he works that will afford them a more comfortable lifestyle. Ellen, the maid, announces that the Torvalds' dear friend Dr. Rank has come to visit. At the same time, another visitor has arrived, this one unknown. To Nora's great surprise, Kristine Linda, a former school friend, comes into the room. The two have not seen each other for years, but Nora mentions having read that Mrs. Linde's husband passed away a few years earlier. Mrs. Linda tells Nora that when her husband died, she was left with no money and no children. Nora replies by telling Mrs. Linda about her first year of marriage to Torvald. She explains that they were very poor and that both had to work long hours. Torvald became sick, she adds, and the couple had to travel to Italy so that Torvald could recover. Nora inquires further about Mrs. Linda's life, and Mrs. Linda explains that for years she
Question: Compare and contrast the characters of Nora and Ms Linde. What do we learn of the Norwegian society through their inter-actions?
A Doll's House Practice Exam Question Question: Compare and contrast the characters of Nora and Ms Linde. What do we learn of the Norwegian society through their inter-actions? Throughout the piece "A Doll's House", the writer Henrik Ibsen challenges the hypocrisy of the 19th century Norwegian society. At the time, Norway was a patriotically society meaning male are the dominate race. Women on the other hand were expected to play by the society's expectations and men had the right to treat them as "little song birds" or "little children". In this play, there is a strong contrast between the actions Mrs. Linde and Nora, at the end of the play, the two women basically swoop position or roles as Mrs. Linde goes back with Krogstad and enjoys a romantic relationship with him whilst Nora leaves Torvald for her own ambitions and goals. Both of their actions were for "freedom", and that is the thing that connected the two to "needing each other". From the two women's interactions we learn that women had to stand up to the system and make sacrifices if they wanted an improvement in life, throughout this essay, I will explain and explore how and why it is done in the case of the frictional characters in A Doll's House. In the beginning of the play Nora is presented as a beautiful young wife of a banker and a mother of the bourgeois family. She takes pride in dressing up elegantly and
Analysis of Act 3 For most of the play, we see Torvald delighting in Nora's dependence upon him but not in his control
Analysis of Act 3 For most of the play, we see Torvald delighting in Nora's dependence upon him but not in his control over her, but as the play progresses the side of Torvald we see is more pushover than dictator. In the scene following the party, Torvald's enjoyment of his control over Nora takes on a darker tone. He treats her like his possession, like the young girl he first acquired years ago. Contributing to the feeling of control that Torvald is exercising over Nora is that the evening has been of Torvald's design-he dresses Nora in a costume of his choosing and coaches her to dance the tarantella in the manner that he finds "desirable." The hollowness of Torvald's promises to save Nora shows how little he appreciates her sacrifice. Nora expects compassion from Torvald after he finds out about her predicament, especially since, after learning of Dr. Rank's imminent death, Torvald confesses that he fantasizes about risking his life to save Nora's. Once given the opportunity, however, Torvald shows no intention of sacrificing anything for Nora, thinking only of himself and of appearances. Ultimately, Torvald's selfishness becomes apparent in his lack of concern about his wife's fate, despite the fact that she committed a crime to save his life. He panics upon learning of Nora's crime, not because he cares about what will happen to her but because he worries that his
Hedda GablerSet Design ProjectThe staging implications of a production Firstly, I will look at the given circumstances of Hedda Gabler. This will inform me of what things I must
Elizabeth Bergman Theatre Studies Hedda Gabler Set Design Project The staging implications of a production Firstly, I will look at the given circumstances of Hedda Gabler. This will inform me of what things I must have in my set design, things that the Ibsen wanted in his production. The given circumstances can be split into six separate groups; geographical location, date and time, timescale, economic environment and political environment. By looking at each, I can ensure precise detail. Geographical Location This section describes what geographical location is, and how researching it will aid me in this set design project. In this section I will also explain the significance of the locations. Geographical location is the place where the play is set, such as the country, town, house type or room. The location of the play was never mentioned by Ibsen but the assumption of the location is leads us to believe that it would be Norway and its capital, Kristiania (now known as Oslo). The life in which Hedda lives is only feasible if she were to live in the fashionable and expensive part of Kristiania, Drammensvejen. "A possible source of inspiration for this beautiful villa, with its view towards the fjord, may have been the property owned by Thomas Heftye, a wealthy banker who was an acquaintance of Ibsen and
Character Comparison of 'Antigone' from Antigone and 'Nora' from A Doll's House
Character Comparison of 'Antigone' from Antigone and 'Nora' from A Doll's House. My essay is about the two major female characters from 'Antigone' and 'A Doll's House'. I will compare and discuss the similarities of the two characters. 'A Doll's House is a Norwegian play set in 1877 which is written by Henrik Ibsen. 'Antigone' is a Greek play written by Sophocles in 441 B.C. Both plays are very similar in concept and style in the sense that there are a small number of characters and there is only one scene i.e. the living room in 'A Doll's House' and the palace in 'Antigone'. It is only in 'Antigone' where the scene changes at the end of the play. Another important thing to note about the play is how the story is told to the audience. In 'Antigone' the tragedy is known to the audience in the beginning of the play, but the suspense of the play is brought by the revelation of events that lead to the death of Antigone. In 'A Doll's House' the story is carefully explored giving us reasons for Nora's action. We are only told towards the end of the play the real tragedy of Nora's actions. The purpose of my essay is to compare and discuss the similarities of the two main female characters in 'Antigone' and 'A Doll's House'. I will discuss Nora's character first. The play is set in the 1800s in Norway. Nora is a typical woman living in a male dominated society where the rights of