Alienation in The Metamorphosis and A Doll's House

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How is alienation/isolation portrayed through Nora Helmer in A Doll’s House and Gregor Samsa in The Metamorphosis?

Although ‘The Metamorphosis’ is a novella and A Doll’s House is a play, the protagonists of the story both portray the theme of isolation whether it is physical or emotional. Nora Helmer and Gregor Samsa undergo alienation within their families and society and the difference in their setting’s time emphasizes on how characters still remain isolated and oppressed by society’s expectations, which influence relationships within the family.

 

Both these characters are alienated within their own family and society as a whole. Nora is seen as a source of entertainment around the house and for performances like the Tarantella and is treated as a child by her husband and Mrs. Linde (especially when she sits down on a foot stool before Mrs. Linda as a child would) due to her illusory happy appearance. Nora was dominated within the household by her father, and later by Torvald, which forced her to hide her true feelings leading to her inner problems. She also worried about the consequences of her loan and how it would affect her loved ones, as she would always try to please rather than follow the status quo; she risked her reputation’s status for family.

While Nora has the role of being at home, Gregor is always busy working and travelling having no stable relationships with many people in his life, including his own family who he would only see during Christmas or rarely at dinners. He also tends to please the family and worries about their reputation within society when the manager comes in to their house wondering why Gregor was absent from the office. Gregor’s state is much more tragic as when he transforms he is seen as burden to the family although through life he was dominated by his father and his wants that Gregor himself didn’t necessarily like (“That's all I'd have to try with my boss; I'd be fired on the spot. Anyway, who knows if that wouldn't be a very good thing for me. If I didn't hold back for my parents' sake, I would have quit long ago”). Both these characters are willing to sacrifice themselves in order to provide a better life for their loved ones in terms of reputation and set roles.

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Gregor and Nora have set roles in society; Nora a mother and loyal wife like women in the 1870s and Gregor the family’s caretaker. Nora played her role well until Helmer revealed his true side where he was faced with a challenge to protect Nora but was more worried about himself than anyone else. And Gregor fulfilled his role until he was physically incapable of doing so any longer and lost the will to live any longer.  Nora was oppressed, yet cared for with affection by her family and Gregor seemed to have an important role in the family ...

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