KATIE HOWSERDYLAN STOFFER

AMANDA SHILPEY JESS THURMANNICOLE MANN

A Doll’s House

Henrik Ibsen

Born March 20, 1828 His plays were considered scandalous in

much of society at the time. When he wrote his plays, Victorian values of

family life and propriety were still very much the norm, and any challenge to them considered immoral and outrageous.

Ibsen's work examined the realities that lay behind many a facade, which the society of the time did not want to see.

He was born into a relatively well-to-do family in the small port town of Skien, Norway, which was primarily noted for shipping timber.

Shortly after his birth, however, his family's fortunes took a significant turn for the worse.

His mother turned to religion for help, while his father declined into a severe depression, his characters often mirrored his parents state.

Ibsen left home, became an apprentice druggist at fifteen, and began writing plays.

His first play, Catilina, was published when he was only 20 (in 1848) , but was not performed.

His first play to see production was The Burial Mound in 1850, but it did not receive much attention.

His first play to see production was The Burial Mound in 1850, but it did not receive much attention.

Still, Ibsen was determined to be a playwright, even though he was not to write again for several years.

He spent the next several years employed at the Norwegian Theater, where he was involved in the production of more than 145 plays as a writer, director, and producer.

He returned to Oslo in 1857, where he lived in extreme poverty Through the poverty, he managed to marry in 1859. He became very disappointed with life in Norway, and left for Italy in 1864. His next two plays, Brand (1865) and Peer Gynt (1867), was to bring him the critical acclaim he

sought, along with a measure of financial success. His next series of plays are often considered his Golden Age becoming the center of dramatic

controversy across Europe. His next play, A Doll's House (1879), was a scathing criticism of the traditional roles of men and

women in Victorian marriage. He has his protagonist, Nora, acting behind her husband’s back. Her role in the marriage was that

of a doll, her house a "Doll's House“. Her husband Torvald refers to her incessantly as his little "starling" and his "squirrel". She was not even permitted a key to the mailbox. When she is blackmailed due to committing a crime in order to save her husband's life, forging her

father's name on a note, her husband declares that he will put her away. His only concern is his own reputation, despite the love for him which motivated her to it.

His next play Ghosts, pushed that already shocked crowds even more. Probably Ibsen's most performed play is Hedda Gabler (1890), the

leading female role being regarded as one of the most challenging and rewarding for an actress even in the present day.

There are many similarities between Hedda and the character of Nora in A Doll's House.

Ibsen had completely rewritten the rules of drama with a realism which was to be adopted by Chekhov and others, and which we see in the theater to this day.

Finally, Ibsen returned to Norway in 1891, but it was in many ways not the Norway he had left.

Indeed, he had played a major role in the changes that had happened across society.

The Victorian Age was on its last chances, slowly being replaced by the rise of Modernism not only in the theater, but across public life.

With a steady career behind him, the likes of which few authors or playwrights ever see, Ibsen died at 78 in Oslo in 1906.

Victorian Social Conventions

In the Victorian Era it was illegal to marry your dead wife’s sister

Women were expected to marry within their social class

The man controls on financial mattersWomen weren’t formally educated thus they

relied on the marriage of someone who could provide

Victorian women could not divorce as easily as a man for adultery, because females were expected to be the loyal to their “care takers”

Social Drama

The content and context of this genre of drama contends with social relationships, on many levels, and the conflicts and contrasts that characters and personalities enter.

This applies to A Doll’s House because the play looks at the relationship between Torvald and Nora, and how their ideas and beliefs conflict with one another, although they don’t show this outwardly.

Act I Discussion Questions

How does Torvald treat Nora?How does Nora react to the treatment her husband gives

her? (i.e. pet names, rules, etc.)In what ways does Nora represent the society she lives in

and its views of women?How does Nora react to seeing Christine again?Why does Christine come to visit Nora?How do Nora and Christine interact?What is the secret that Nora tells Christine?How does this secret go against the norms of society?How does Nora react to the arrival of Krog?What does Krog accuse Nora of doing when they are talking

about the bond?

Act III Discussion Questions

What kind of relationship did Mrs.Linde and Krogstad have?

Why does Mrs.Linde want Torvald to know Nora’s secret?Why did Mrs.Linde propose instead of Krogstad?Does Nora like her dress?Why doesn’t Nora just tell her husband the truth?Why does Nora get made when Torvald tells her his

feelings?Is Nora okay with her husband calling her friend a

‘frightful bore’?Does Torvald really love his wife?What does Rank do when he leaves the Helmer’s home?Why didn’t Nora take her children?What does Torvald mean when he said “the most

wonderful thing of all”?

Bibliography

Ibsen, Henrik. A Doll's House. New York: Dover Publications, 1992. Print.

Ziegenfuss, Jen. "Marriage in the Victorian Era." Marriage in the Victorian Era. University of Florida. Web.

"Film Glossary: Social Drama." AllMovie. Web. <http://www.allmovie.com/glossary/term/social drama>.