The Significance of Money In Controlling The Fate Of The Female Characters in A Dolls House and The House of Bernarda Alba

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World Literature Assignment

Qi Zhe Wang  (002162-106)

Title:

The Significance of Money In Controlling The Fate Of The Female Characters in “A Doll’s House” and “The House of Bernarda Alba”

Money is closely tied with wealth and the stature in society from many different cultures. It is to no surprise that the significance of money is best demonstrated in plays of social realisms, such as “A Doll’s House” and “The House of Bernarda Alba”. Although money often symbolizes a person’s class in the society in the field of literature, but in particular it is also a symbol of independence. The two playwrights have interpreted this idea of money in a similar fashion, where the female characters of both plays are trapped by a lack of wealth. Nora was withheld from her role of a woman because of her debt to Krogstad. Alternatively, Adela was not entitled to marry Pepe el Romano because she did not inherit any money from her deceased stepfather. Therefore, by analyzing the significance of money, we can gain insights into how it symbolizes the conflicts or character developments in the plot. This paper will compare the ways in which money is used for the above purposes in both plays.

Money and property ownership were perceived as symbols of liberty and independence from the beginning of civilization. Early in the play “A Doll's House”, we are shown the contrast in the female characters of Nora and Adela, who are all trapped by a lack of wealth. In the play “A Doll’s House”, Nora was withheld from her role of a woman and she is perceived as merely a “doll” in the first act: she was happy with her life and acted like a child around her husband, Torvald.

She continues smiling in quite glee as she takes off her walking things. Then she takes from her pocket a bag of macaroons and eats one or two.

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It is exactly this notion that distinguishes Nora from Adela in “The House of Bernarda Alba”. Nora is a “round” character that transformed from a “doll” to an independent woman throughout the play. Alternatively, Adela is a “flat” character that did not go through any changes. This differentiation will eventually lead to different outcomes in the course of their lives for both of these characters.

In “A Doll’s House”, Money is treated like the source of conflict as the functions to the plot. Torvald is portrayed as the man of the house and the dominant character, who have manipulated Nora ...

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