ipl-logo

Essay On The Role Of Women In A Doll's House

957 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Changing roles of women in twenthith century literature

Abstract
The roles of women in the play A Doll’s House exposes the restricted role of women during the time of its writing and the problems that arise from a drastic imbalance of power between men and women. In “A Doll 's House,” Henrik Ibsen especially probed the problems of the social passivity assigned to women in a male-oriented society. While characteristics of the play are portraying as a male dominated roles by men making all the decisions in both society and their family unit, hold all position of power and authority, and are considered superior. Nora Helmer decides to take control and deface mean of authority and takes a stand as a dominate independent female.

Defying Gender in Society
Forced Traditionalism to a "Man 's World" the female characters within this play are often forced to obey to the beliefs and values of men. Women started realizing that they needed to fight for their rights to change the situation. In the opening of A Doll’s House, Nora appears utterly happy and takes pleasure in the company of her children and friends even though she is treated like a child by other characters. She does not seem to mind her doll-like existence, in which she is coddled, pampered, and patronized. Thus, reflecting the situation faced by many women of this era and showing the oppression of female characters in this play and their expectations dictated by society.
Nora is recognized to her …show more content…

Women have come a long way having achieved tremendous success regarding rights to education, property, family planning, reproduction and voting. Many have accepted the ridicule given to them and have continued to fight. Still, the struggle is not complete. Women still face the issue of discrimination. The glass ceiling is a form of discrimination which prevents educated, professional, well qualified, hardworking women from being promoted to higher levels in an

Show More
Related
581 Words | 3 Pages

For a play in 1879 feminism was a huge aspect in everyone’s lives, especially within a marriage. In A Doll’s House, written by Henrik Ibsen, showcased Nora a character in the play to be heavily influenced by

Read More
558 Words | 3 Pages

However both woman had endured abuse and are victims of a male dominated society. Nora the wife of a banker and a mother of three children seem to have it all. Her family lives in a fancy well-furnished home and they seems to well of financially, and her husband loved her very much. However the reader soon find out that he is an egotistical controlling man that sees Nora as an absent minds child.

Read More
1409 Words | 6 Pages

Most critics around the world believe the play led to increase awareness on the need for women’s rights in all continents, on the other hand some critics opine that the play depicted women as inferior creatures and dolls who have no personality of their own. Nora Helmer the main character strives to achieve the perfect concepts of life set by the society and her husband. Nora is trapped in her home where her Torvald has built a wonderful life for his ‘doll wife’. Nora’s transformation comes when she discovers the role in doll house imposed on her by the society and her husband and she is desperate to free herself in order to discover her identity.

Read More
1319 Words | 6 Pages

Literary Argument Paper A Doll House is an 1879 play written by Henrik Ibsen that observes a few evenings within the household of Torvald and Nora Helmer. In A Doll House many different themes of traditional gender roles and marriage are explored throughout the play. Questions are raised on if the ways the events unfold are acceptable. At the end of A Doll House the main character Nora leaves her husband Torvald due to her realization that they are not in love and that she has been living with a stranger all these years.

Read More
1265 Words | 6 Pages

Gender equality: the pinnacle concept that American society is not-so desperately trying to achieve. Many Americans have convinced themselves that gender equality was remedied by the Nineteenth Amendment and the Second Feminist Movement, and have not considered the thousands of steps that are left on the journey. In recent years, a matter of public interest has been the gender wage gap, stating that women are earning significantly less money than men for doing an equivalent amount of work. Critics of the effort to “break the glass ceiling” claim that a pay gap does not exist, and that if it does, it is because women either do not work as hard, have to tend to their families, or hold lower paying jobs. However, the gender pay gap has been proven to exist in a variety of different forms,

Read More
1136 Words | 5 Pages

Nora’s defiance may have resulted in criticism from society, but Ibsen importantly commented on the terrible treatment of woman in relationships and the world. Ibsen created A Doll’s House in a time where women were treated unjustly and poorly. While the play might seem slightly irrelevant now, it still has a place in the world today. Women can borrow money and leave their husbands; however, society still puts tremendous pressure on women to fulfill sacred vows. The expectation to assure her husband’s happiness and to prioritize everyone else before herself is still an issue that many woman face today.

Read More
1043 Words | 5 Pages

In today’s economy women are moreover subjected to being judged by their age, their looks, or in a lot of cases by the way that they dress. The “glass ceiling” is also a form of gender discrimination. The glass ceiling refers to the invisible barriers that disable women from getting higher ranks because, majority of the upper level positions are passed by them and given to the men in the company. “Sex or gender discrimination in the workplace is defined as treating someone unfavorable because, of the persons sex, whether they are applying for the job or are already a present employee at then establishment. The Equal Pay Act makes it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sex in the payment of wages or benefits.

Read More
1349 Words | 6 Pages

The play closes on a positive note with Nora, representative of the supressed female, overcoming Torvald, representative of the oppressive male, however to express the true extent of this achievement, Ibsen makes evident the context of the struggle that society dictated women live by. The progressive characterisation of the protagonist Nora encapsulates Ibsen’s intention of pushing theatrical and societal norms through showing how women deserve to create their own identity and not be restricted by their male oppressors. Ibsen crafted every line to show the development of her dialogue, actions, setting and properties, and in doing so he potently slammed the door on the patriarchal society of the 19th

Read More
1396 Words | 6 Pages

In Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, appearances prove to be deceptive veneers that disguise the reality of situations and characters. Ibsen’s play is set in 19th century Norway, when women’s rights were restricted and social appearance such as financial success and middle class respectability were more important than equality and true identity. Ibsen also uses realism and naturalism, portraying the Helmer’s Marriage through authentic relationships, which are relatable to the audience. In A Doll’s House, Nora represents 19th century women entrapped by society to fulfill wifely and motherly obligations, unable to articulate or express their own feelings and desires.

Read More
1956 Words | 8 Pages

Their only importance was to cook, clean birth babies and support their husbands quietly. It was socially accepted that women were to be totally subordinate to the men in there family. Women in this time period did not have her own identity, she was under the ruling of her husband. In the drama A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, The character Nora Helmer uses her relationships with her husband and friends to show characteristics of Feminism in her true identity during

Read More
1287 Words | 6 Pages

This play, A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, focuses on women, especially in marriage and motherhood. Torvald is a character, who describes inequality between men and women and the women’s role in the society in that era. He believes that it is an important and the only duty of a woman to be a good wife and mother. As an individual, a woman, could not conduct or run a business of her own, she needs to ask her father or husband and they were only considered to be father’s or husband’s property. Women were not allowed to vote and divorce if they were allowed they would carry a heavy social shame and it was only available when both partners agreed.

Read More
1205 Words | 5 Pages

Today, men and women have equal rights, but that does not mean life has always been simple for both genders. When Shakespeare writes A Midsummer Night’s Dream, there are roles, behaviors, and expectations for the dominant men and submissive women. This literature portrays the major changes in the lives of both sexes throughout the years, which shows the advances women gain with time. The gender issue of men being dominant and women being submissive used in the drama, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, shows the differences in the roles, behaviors, and expectations appropriate for each gender and is an example of an outdated stereotype.

Read More
759 Words | 4 Pages

Her existential choice seems to be forced upon her by society, but in adopting her husband‘s and society’s language, so often used to contain in control women, she now speaks of her duties towards herself, even sacred ones. In a radical refusal to stick to inherited notions of women’s role in family and society, Nora rejects the other identities available to her, both as a doll and as self-sacrificing wife and mother, and of her husband’s pet names for

Read More
1567 Words | 7 Pages

Ibsen uses doll’s house metaphor to support that aberrant decisions are made by women who are discriminated by an unfair society. Nora realizes truth about real love and marriage. In the house, Torvald reads the letters from Krogstad and shows skeptical changes in mood by showing anger, fear and adoration toward Nora. After all his reactions, Nora asserts, “ 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 76). The “home” is an appearance of cage where dolls are kept in.

Read More
1384 Words | 6 Pages

Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a play set in 19th century Norway, when women’s rights were restricted and social appearance was more important than equality and true identity. In A Doll’s House, Nora represents 19th century women entrapped by society to fulfill wifely and motherly obligations, unable to articulate or express their own feelings and desires. Ibsen uses Nora’s characterization, developed through her interactions with others as well as her personal deliberations and independent actions, language and structure in order to portray Nora’s movement from dependence to independence, gaining sovereignty from the control of her selfish husband, deceitful marriage and the strict social guidelines of morality in 19th century Norway. Initially, Nora appears to be a dependent, naïve, and childlike character; yet, as the play unfolds, she appears to be a strong, independent woman who is willing to make sacrifices for those she cares about as well as herself.

Read More

More about Essay On The Role Of Women In A Doll's House

Related Topics

Open Document