Mrs. Linde - Nora’s childhood friend. Kristine Linde is a practical, down-to-earth woman, and her sensible worldview highlights Nora’s somewhat childlike outlook on life. Mrs. Linde’s account of her life of poverty underscores the privileged nature of the life that Nora leads. Also, we learn that Mrs. Linde took responsibility for her sick parent, whereas Nora abandoned her father when he was ill.
Dr. Rank - Torvald’s best friend. Dr. Rank stands out as the one character in the play who is by and large unconcerned with what others think of him. He is also notable for his stoic acceptance of his fate. Unlike Torvald and Nora, Dr. Rank admits to the diseased nature (literally, in his case) of his life. For the most part, he avoids talking to Torvald about his imminent death out of respect for Torvald’s distaste for ugliness.
Bob, Emmy, and Ivar - Nora and Torvald’s three small children. In her brief interaction with her children, Nora shows herself to be a loving mother. When she later refuses to spend time with her children because she fears she may morally corrupt them, Nora acts on her belief that the quality of parenting strongly influences a child’s development.
Anne-Marie - The Helmers’ nanny. Though Ibsen doesn’t fully develop her character, Anne-Marie seems to be a kindly woman who has genuine affection for Nora. She had to give up her own daughter in order to take the nursing job offered by Nora’s father. Thus, she shares with Nora and Mrs. Linde the act of sacrificing her own happiness out of economic necessity.
Nora’s father - Though Nora’s father is dead before the action of the play begins, the characters refer to him throughout the play. Though she clearly loves and admires her father, Nora also comes to blame him for contributing to her subservient position in life.
Sexuality & Women Position
In the extract from the “Walby´s Perspective”, I´ve selected one period or shift in which patriarchal power is described, which is considered to have begun during the 20th century and continues as we approach its close. Two main factors have contributed to this movement: The relative success of the feminist movement in decreasing the domestic (private) subordination of women and the demand of contemporary capitalism for cheap labour.
Walby argues that after the early stages of the industrial revolution, women were mainly excluded from the public sphere and that patriarchy was predominantly private in form. The early twentieth century saw women begin to change this situation.
Private and public patriachy− I distinguish between two forms of patriarchy: public & private patriarchy. They actually differ on a variety of concepts; Private Patriarchy is based upon household production, with a patriarch controlling women individually and directly in the relatively private sphere of the home. Public patriarchy is based on structures other than the household, although this may still be a significant patriarchal site. Rather, institutions conventionally regarded as part of the public domain are central in the maintenance of patriarchy. So in private patriarchy, there is an existing man in position of husband or father, who acts as a direct oppressor and beneficiary, individually and directly of the subordination of women.
Nora and Women Position
When Nora enters her house, she takes a packet of macaroons from her pocket and eats one or two and then silently goes to where her husband is working and listens roguishly. This shows us that Nora is child like for she is spying on her husband and secretly listening to him, as he is unaware on what she is doing, personally I think she is hearing out for something she believes he does not want her to hear or know. The husband, Mr. Torvald Helmer suddenly calls out “Is that my little lark twittering out there?” He then continues to say, “Is it my little squirrel bustling about?” The use of pet names such as little lark and squirrel suggest that he treats her like his personal pet, and the fact Nora replies confidently shows that she enjoys being called by these child like names. Also we can notice, that Nora has to hide the fact that she´ve brought sweets, beacuse if his husband notices this, she would be grounded. This reflect the position in which she is
Symbols in A Doll´s House
On the first scene we can find different areas in which actions will be focused, as the sofa, the piano or the table, which becomes the place in which Nora faces Helmer squarely on Act 3 to insist on an adult conversation. A lamp provides stage focus for it. The lamp also perhaps signifies Nora´s wish for clarity, And we may feel that the sober conversations mirrors the one Ibsen is conducting with his audience.
Comparing A Doll´s House and The Uncle Vania indirect criticism of society
A play serves as the author's tool for critiquing society. One rarely encounters the ability to transcend accepted social beliefs. Both of these plays reflect controversial issues that the audience can relate to because they interact in the same situations every day. Though, we can observe, how both Ibsen and Chekov did have a sense of realism at the time of writing theatre. As late nineteenth century playwrights point out the flaws of mankind they also provide an answer to the controversy. Unknowingly the hero or heroine solves the problem at the end of the play and indirectly sends a message to the audience on how to solve their own problem. Like a solution to their lives.
Henrik Ibsen and Anton Chekov both provide unique analysis on issues their culture never thought as wrong. In the play A Doll's House Ibsen tackles women's rights as a matter of importance being neglected. In his play he acknowledges the fact that in nineteenth century European life the role of the women was to stay home, raise the children, and attend to her husband. Chekov illustrates the role of a dysfunctional family and how its members are affected. Both of the aforementioned problems are solved through the playwrights' recommendations and the actions of the characters. In the plays A Doll's House and Uncle Vanya the authors use realism to present a problem and solution to controversial societal issues.
While both plays mainly concentrate on the negative aspects of culture, there are positive facets explored by the playwrights. In A Doll's House Henrik Ibsen focuses on the lack of power and authority given to women, but through Nora we also see the strength and willpower masked by her husband Torvald. To save her husband's life Nora secretly forges her father's signature and receives a loan to finance a trip to the sea. Nora's naivety of the law puts her in a situation that questions her morality and dedication. Nora is not aware that under the law she is a criminal. She believes that her forgery is justified through her motive. She is not a criminal like Krogstad because his crime was simply a moral failing and not for the good of his family. A morally unjustified crime is the only type of crime. Nora's believes that her love for her husband is what propelled her to sign her father's name and pass it off as his own. Nora's motive is to save her husband's life and keeping it secret is to save him from pain and humiliation. If he knew, it would hurt his "manly independence" (p. 22) and upset Nora and Torvald's "mutual relations" (p.22). Nora knows that without forging her father's signature she would not be able to save her husband. Nora uses her wit to find a way to be able to overcome the shackles placed on her by society and get enough money to save Torvald's life.
In Uncle Vanya Chekov ends the play with Sonya and Uncle Vanya returning to their normal lifestyle and forgetting about the upset Serebryakov and Elena's presence creates. Sonya protests that she and her uncle "will bear patiently bear the trials fate sends" (Chekov p. 230) and "work for others" (p. 230). Sonya sacrifices her own happiness for that of her father and stepmother. Sonya exudes every positive trait that society contains. She sacrifices her life to work for her father without questioning his motives for leaving. She dedicates herself to her family and overlooks their flaws to help them. Sonya, Uncle Vanya, and Nora's make sacrifices for the love of their family members and do so without questions.
The sacrifices made by the positive characters are far outweighed by the actions of their counterparts. Torvald sees Nora's only role as being the subservient and loving wife. He refers to Nora as "my little squirrel" (Ibsen p.12), "song-bird" (p. 33) or "skylark" (p. 40). To him, she is only a possession. Torvald calls Nora by pet-names and speaks down to her because he thinks that she is not intelligent and that she can not think on her own. Whenever she begins to voice an opinion Torvald quickly drops the pet-names and insults her as a women. When Nora asks if he can reinstate Krogstad at the bank he claims that she only asks because she fears that he will suffer the same fate as her father. Nora realizes that living with Torvald prevents her from being a real person. He treats her as a doll because that is what he wants. He does not want a wife who will challenge him with her own thoughts and actions. The final confrontation between the couple involves more oppression by Torvald, but by this time Nora has realized the situation he wishes to maintain. Torvald calls her "childish" (p. 70) and "ungrateful" (p. 68) even though she saved his life. Nora expected Torvald to be grateful to her, when this does not happen she decides that the only way to fix the situation is to leave him and her children and find herself independently. Nora wants Torvald to take the blame for the forgery and realize that how he treats her is not the way a husband should treat his wife. When he doesn't take the blame she knows that independence is the only answer and so she leaves. The oppression of women caused many women to believe that their duty in life was only to be a wife. Ibsen provides a narrative on one woman's plight to find her purpose in life.
In Uncle Vanya the wrong that is committed is not directed toward one character, but two. Serebryakov dumps the burden of his lifestyle onto his daughter and brother-in-law. Only at the end of Serebryakov's and Elena's stay at the family estate is it realized that everyone is miserable. Elena who has been married into this family is the only person who at once comprehends her unhappiness. Sonya tells her stepmother that she is "so happy" (Chekov p. 201). Sonya has yet to grasp that her father only leaves her at the estate to help make money so he can finance his expensive lifestyle. Serebryakov is concerned with his position in society. He marries a young and beautiful woman and tries to move ahead in life using money. He ignores emotions, even the misery that he feels. In the late nineteenth century rank was determined by who one married and how much money one's family had. Serebryakov exemplifies this lifestyle by only trying to move ahead in society to the point of sacrificing anything to get to the to top, even his daughter. These two families point out societies flawed traditions and the subsequent effect upon these people.
In presenting these problems the authors end their plays with a solution to the characters' unhappiness. Ibsen was the first author in Europe to tackle the issue of women's place in the world and label it as wrong. Nora's realization of Torvald's part in her misery allows her to leave him. She does not fully blame Torvald for her unhappiness, but she knows that she can't be happy with him. Her expectation of "the most wonderful thing" (Ibsen p. 72) leaves her with the knowledge that Torvald will never change. Nora becomes cognizant of the mistreatment she has endured, and consequently leaves to become someone different. Ibsen encourages women to make a change by taking action and not to watch their life pass by unfulfillingly. Nora becomes a role model for change.
Chekov on the other hand does not solve his characters' problem in Uncle Vanya. He ends the play where it began, without resolution. Sonya and Uncle Vanya take on the burden of running the estate for Serebryakov without reimbursement while he lives abroad and enjoys the riches of life. Uncle Vanya cries while Sonya talks about how hard they will work for her father and expect nothing in return. Unlike Nora, Sonya accepts her life and does not make any change. She does not even try to change the family in which she was born . She believes that if she does what is asked of her she will be rewarded in afterlife. Chekov lets Sonya further entrench herself in the problem. The audience knows from Uncle Vanya's tears that Sonya's decision is not the right one.
In A Doll's House and Uncle Vanya the audience gathers a picture of what it was like to live in the late eighteen hundreds. This picture is not a positive one. More wrongs are committed against the characters of these plays than any sort of reward for the hardships they endure. These plays reflect an accurate representation of the society that existed when they were written. Nora and Sonya find that they are trapped in a world that they do not belong in. Nora finds a way out and Sonya waits for a new world to come along and rescue her. Society oppressed both families by masking the truth of their lives for so long. Chekov and Ibsen contribute to the solution by providing their plays as examples of why Europe was wrong.
Introduction of “The Uncle Vanya”