Nora was just having a nightmare and Rolf had to take her outside since other people were where they were sleeping. She was very nervous since she wasn’t expecting it to be so unpleasant and she defiantly wasn’t used to not having much or absolutely no laws for people to
Nora states to Tolvald Helmer “ Our home has been nothing but a playroom. I have been your doll-wife, just as at home I was papa’s doll-child; and here the children have been my dolls”(Ibsen 279). The realization of never being viewed as a person with feelings and ambitions, propels Nora to finally take a step towards her independence.
Nora Helmer is the chief woman in story of the play. Still a young woman, she is married to Torvald Helmer and has three boys and girls. At the plays start, she is happy and carefree, got worked up about Christmas and her married men nearby given higher position. Although she is put stop to by the fact that the other characters 1 have belief she is one using money waste-fully, she does not seem to really mind, and happily plays in company with Torvalds person specially loved names for her, which cover skylark, songbird tree rat, and pet. Torvald also regularly says something about to her and gives attention to her as a very young person, for example, by not letting her from taking food macaroons, something she does anyway despite her promises
Likewise, Nora appears to alter her identity and pretends to be an empathetic woman in front of Mrs.Linde. This statement finds support in Nora’s
Through eating of harmless macaroons, Nora decides to keep secret from Torvald to make him feel that his orders are being followed .As she is restricted to eat macaroons because Torvald thinks by eating macaroons ,she will gain weight and destroy her teeth as well as her perfect figure .Being forbidden ,she still keeps eating macaroons and hides it from Torvald .In act one ,page number 4,the quote” She takes a packet of macaroons from her pocket and eats one or two; then goes cautiously to her husband’s door and listens” shows her anxiety level and her need to continue lying about eating the macaroons by reason of disgrace .She has to sneak the macaroons .It is a hidden contentment that she is masking from her husband .It seems like she is playing a role of a child in their household .She isn’t ready to get away with the fact that
Torvald tells her that Nora has a duty as a mother and a wife but Nora tells him that “she is an individual”, showing that she is finally putting herself on par with Torvald, and no longer allowing Torvald to control her, but instead she is trying to gain independence and liberation from social norms in order to break free from the “Doll’s House.” She tells him that she must leave him, because “for eight years [she’d] been living with a stranger”, emphasising how there was never any proper communication and mutual understanding between them, and hence no proper marriage, as she didn’t actually know what his true character was like up until that night, as she was convinced all along that Torvald would be the man to take everything upon
A single family income has always made budgets tight and being a wife and mother leaves little opportunity for earnings, in fact Nora did tricks and begged her husband for what little money he gave her. While many critics condemn Torvald’s treatment of Nora, in reality he was no different from any other man during this time period. When their finances were minimal he did whatever it took to take care of his family, working day and night almost to the point of death. For that reason, Nora showed her love for Torvald by securing a loan in order to take a trip to Italy for his treatment and recovery. In doing so, Nora needed to work odd jobs to repay the loan while keeping it a secret from her husband.
“You blind, foolish woman!” (Ibsen 58). Torvald calls Nora foolish for choosing to not be controlled by him and going out to reclaim her identity and start a new life. Nora finally finds the courage and strength to free herself. She figures out that she was simply transferred from her father’s hands into Torvald’s.
At the beginning of their marriage Nora did everything on her power to save his husband health including going against her husband beliefs by lying about how she obtained a large amount of money (money that she told her husband that was borrowed from her father and not by doing business with Krogstad) Nora told Mrs. Linde that she has been using her allowance to pay the debt. She was looking forward to New Year, because she will have paid off her debt completely and then will be “free” to fulfill her responsibilities as a wife and mother without impediment. At this point we can notice the fact that Nora doesn’t feel “free” and realizes in her wife and mother
Upon Torvald’s discovery of Nora’s loan and forgery, he is enraged. Torvald acts not out of love for Nora, but out of disgust as he proclaims that she must be kept away from the children. He also declares that although their marriage is tarnished, they must keep up the appearance for the sake of his reputation. In this moment, Nora questions the love she thought there was in their marriage. She questions how Torvald can so easily alienate her from himself after eight years of marriage.
She is forced to hide her sweets from him because she knows that he will disapprove and chide her on her eating habits, “Helmer. When did my squirrel come home? Nora. Just now. (Puts the bag of macaroons into her pocket and wipes her mouth.)
It is mentioned in act 3 (pg.) when Nora says, “I’ve been your wife-doll here just as at home I was Papa’s doll-child.” She states that she was always objectified by her father and husband she was never being treated as a human being. There were always expectations set out for Nora to fulfill as women were given a submissive role in the society. Society’s expectations never stop towards women as they were judged in terms of purity and domesticity.
Nora takes pride in thinking of herself as the perfect housewife and mother. She, just as every other wife, plays often with her children and attends formal parties on her husband’s arm. She is told
During act III, Nora asked to speak to Torvald after her performance of the tarantella dance. The following conversation demonstrated her quest for autonomy and freedom, as well as Torvald’s inadequate responses to her arguments and demands; it also showed how deeply connected her unhappy situation is with society’s regulation of the relationship between the sexes. She asserts that she is “...first and foremost a human being”, and her strong conviction that her womanhood, and the expectations associated with it, are secondary, strengthens her resolve to make a radical choice: A break with both husband and, with necessity due to her legal position, her children (Ibsen, 184). During her conversation with Torvald, she proclaims, “I have other sacred duties... The duties to myself (Ibsen, 184).”
Torvald and Nora’s relationship and home can be compared to as a “doll house” because of its perfect characteristics, however it is quite the opposite, with its foundation based on lies and pretend happiness. The stage directions read “A room furnished comfortably and tastefully, but not extravagantly. At the back, a door to the right leads to the entrance-hall, another to the left leads to Helmer’s study. Near the window is a round table, arm-chairs and a small sofa. Engravings on the walls; a cabinet with china and other small objects; a small bookcase with well-bound books” (Ibsen 4).
