Important Quotes & Their Themes

"I have been performing tricks for you, Torvald. That’s how I’ve survived. You wanted it like that. You and Papa have done me a great wrong. It’s because of you I’ve made nothing of my life" 

I believe this quote is extremely significant within the novel as it reflects the context of women's roles within the time period. I believe that Ibsen included this to make the audience reflect on gender roles and the equality and fairness of the sexes and their roles within society. The fact that women were solely dependant on men for their lifestyle and what they were able to do with minimal power they had is clearly reflected within this quote, as for women it was not socially acceptable for them to have jobs (with or without consent from their male figure) they were unable to earn money and therefore had minimal power and only appeared to have power once it was gained from the male. This quote reflects the theme of both Nora's idea of freedom and the Unreliability of appearances as Nora through out the play pretends and acts upon a little innocent girls persona which she abuses to manipulate Torvald into giving her what she wants however it is clear that Torvald enjoys her acting this way as it portrays him as being more dominant which reflects on his masculinity and male role within the house. The use of "I've been performing tricks for you Torvald" relates closely to previously when he calls her little pet names like "squirrel" he uses this type of language to keep Nora in her place to prevent the change of the hierarchy as he is a clear Marxist, both of the characters are aware that it is all an act however Nora is only just awakening them up to the realisation as she is now left with no purpose but the typical role of a housewife and having little independence of her own. "You and papa have done me great wrong" this shows that she is now beginning to realise the harm in who she has been transformed into through growing up and through purely pleasing men, she begins to realise that in life there is more than just acting child-like to make males more satisfied. Moreover, Ibsen could have used this to suggest that women are seen as objects and ornamental as they have little freedom and must put on a show to please men as their only purpose.

"One day I might, yes. Many years from now, when I’ve lost my looks a little. Don’t laugh. I mean, of course, a time will come when Torvald is not as devoted to me, not quite so happy when I dance for him, and dress for him, and play with him" 

This quote clearly shows the theme of Nora's idea of freedom, this tends to be the idea that if she pays all her debt she can dedicate herself to Torvald completely and her family however after Krogstad threatens her she begins to think of a new idea of freedom; relief from her domestic obligations. She wishes to have her own goals and ambitions and believes that her family is holding her back. This is clearly shown within this quote as she begins to reflect on her future life, the use of her exclaiming that Torvald will not need her when she expresses "a time will come when Torvald is not as devoted to me, not quite so happy" this shows that she expects other things from her life other than being a wife or mother, it juxtaposes against any other beliefs we have about Nora as typically she is perceived as being Naive however this shows that she is being rather realistic to circumstances as she knows that the love and attraction between her and Torvald with not last forever which also contrasts against her expressing her shock to Mrs.Linde when she expresses that she did not love her husband who recently died. The fact that she is discussing her appearance and happiness when she thinks may be appropriate to tell Torvald about the loan shows that she has an understanding of the foundations of the relationship as we previously know that Torvald likes to show off Nora to increase his social exterior furthermore she shows that she is aware of what Torvald love depends on - her appearance. She knows that when she begins to become older and less attractive the love that Torvald will have will become less apparent and passionate.

"Has it got the sulks, that little squirrel of mine? {takes out his wallet} Nora, what do you think I've got here?"

Here, I believe that Ibsen has included this line to show the male dominance within the relationship. Torvald patronises Nora however she frequently plays along as she knows she will get what she wants out of it which is extremely smart considering she is perceived as being childish and naive, the fact that she can manipulate Torvald shows that she has more control and power over him than he does to her. The use of Torvald describing her as a "little squirrel of mine" shows that he is possessive and objectifying her as she isn't allowed to be her own person but what Torvald wishes her to be which is shown later within the play, "little squirrel" is a way of demeaning her and making her appear less powerful alongside animalising her as she has minimal freedom; just like an animal. However later on when he says "Nora, what do you think I've got here" shows that he is playing on this idea of her being a child as the tone he is speaking to her in is rather patronizing, the fact that he can give her what she wants is elongated to ensure that he receives the best reaction he can get from her as she knows that it will make him feel more dominant and masculine knowing that he has pleased her, The use of the wallet signifies power as with money comes great power, showing that Torvald has and controls a lot of money suggests that Nora's power and independence is controlled by her husband again reflecting on women's rights. Torvald doesn't give Nora huge sums of money regularly or shares what he earns with her equally as then it would give her equal power to him making him appear more immasculine and weaker towards society. 

“Free. To be free, absolutely free. To spend time playing with the children. To have a clean, beautiful house, the way Torvald likes it.”

This quote is extremely ironic and contradictory as Nora’s idea of freedom is what Torvald her husband wants, the fact that she is basing her happiness on somebody else’s and the idea that her freedom is to make somebody else happy is not freedom at all also representing the theme of Nora’s idea of freedom. Within this quote in act one she is expressing that after she has paid all is owed from Krogstad she will be left with nothing more to worry about than her children, here the audience has a hint of what Nora could have done wrong as it links in well with later on within the play when Torvald states that a person who commits fraud is unfit to be a parent when talking about Krogstad as once the debt is paid Nora will be fit to be a mother again and return back to the lifestyle of being a housewife. As dealing with business is commonly a man’s role within this time era it is suggesting that Nora is unable to cope with a male role and that she is incapable of being under stress which makes the audience reflect on their ideology of women. This quote also relates with the previous quote of “you and papa have done me a great wrong” as it reflects the idea that all she has been taught is to make the male dominant in her life happy and doing so she has created a lifestyle that she does not wish to be involved in again making the audience reflect on to what extent women’s “rights” were concerned.

"From now on, forget happiness. Now it’s just about saving the remains, the wreckage, the appearance."

This quote also supports the theme of The unreliability of appearance as it shows that appearance is everything to Torvald. The fact that everything is not at all normal and that Nora has commited a criminal act shows that from the external point of view everything is so perfect and happy - as he wishes. Torvald immediately is more concerned about his reputation than he is about comforting and supporting his wife possibly as he feels as though he doesn't know who she is any more as the child-like Nora he knew was an act in order to please, he shows to care about the appearance of being perfect and content rather than being perfect and content as the family could remain happy if they talk it through and support one another however as he appears so fixated on maintaining the appearance of the family he is losing the actual love and compassion that makes a family which he shows minimal concern for in this situation. The use of "saving the remains, the wreckage" shows that his appearance matters to a great deal in order to keeping him dignified and respected by others which he perceives as being more important. Furthermore, the idea that Nora has created a "wreckage" suggests that his love was purely based on the immature persona she acted for him, as she did something that was mature and male like his image of her has also been destroyed alongside this describing it as a "wreckage" refers to the idea that because she is a woman she was unable to carry out such a "masculine" business task successfully. 

Characters Significance

Nora Helmer:
Nora Helmer is the main antagonist within this play, at the beginning of the play she appears happy in her home life showing naivety and childlike behaviour especially when her husband, Torvald teases her, she appears to play along with the idea that she is a little pet to be played with and looked after - a lot like a doll. She shows great excitement when discussing money that her husband earns and provides for the family which helps reflect her immaturity Ibsen attempts to portray, through out the play she is pampered and patronized and appears to be shown to be incapable of looking after herself, so other characters think. I believe that Nora is the typical stereotype of women within the time period as men believed they were weak and incapable, the extreme and exaggeration Ibsen has created Nora to be would help develop the audiences understanding about how ridiculous this stereotype is. Furthermore as the play progresses Nora reveals that she is capable than more than her husband thinks as she claimed a loan under her fathers name committing forgery in order to save her husbands life which shows that she is intelligent enough and has other skills beyond being a wife and mother as she could not take out a loan in her own name as women in that time needed a male in order to support the decision, the fact she has broken the law for her husband shows courage and bravery as she will be aware of the consequences that she must be faced with however determination is shown on Christmas day when she does not want her day to be ruined by Krogstad which shows how loving she is towards her family. I believe that the purpose of Nora is to both make the audience reflect on their views about women and their rights and roles within society and to progress the narrative as the binary opposition theory by Strauss suggests that good vs bad develops the plot further as the antagonist and protagonist create a base for the narrative to build on.


Torvald Helmer:

Torvald Helmer is a wealthy husband of Nora Helmer, he has a strong stereotypical male role of working hard and bringing home the money in order to support his family. He appears to enjoy the idea that Nora is dependant on him and is reliant on him to look after her a lot like an animal which he commonly refers to her as. Furthermore he is very keen on keeping his appearance and the family, he appears a marxist as he wants to maintain at the top which is reflected as he is concerned about what people think of him and his family, this is reflected when he rejects Nora's request of keeping Krogstad. Moreover the male role he portrays also supports the idea that he enjoys to possibly objectify Nora as he is so very determined to teach her the dance for the party for everybody to see, he appears to adore the idea that Nora belongs to him and nobody else showing that he believes that she solely revolves around him as he is now the only male figure within her life. I believe that the purpose of Torvald within this play is to show re-emphasis the roles within the family home and to also possibly show that the difference between men and women is not that different, this is because Torvald appears even more childish than Nora, as Nora plays along with the idea that she is a doll to gain what she wants she is actually being rather tactical and smart about the situation where as Torvald shows child-like behaviour as he shows by other characters that he needs to be protected for example Dr.Rank confides in Nora that he must not visit him when he is dying, he tells Nora as though she is responsible for Torvald where as typically the male has dominance, Dr.Rank says that he mustn't see him as it would upset and distress him too much and be too ugly for him to see showing that he needs to be protected from realities of the world around him.

Krogstad:
Krogstad within this play is the protagonist, he must battle with the beliefs of Nora (the antagonist) in order to develop the plot further, the purpose of Krogstad is that he creates the disequilibrium within the narrative leaving a disruption Nora must fix. However, I believe that Krogstad is also their to make the audience reflect on gender roles further as comparing Krogstad and Nora they appear to have a lot in common although they are persevered differently. I believe that because Nora is typically a female and they're stereotyped as being vulnerable and weak that Krogstad appears to be more powerful and meaner as he is almost taking advantage on the power he has despite the fact that he is in more of a vulnerable position by losing his job and then letting down his family, they are both in the same position yet we appear Krogstad to be evil and the "bad guy" purely down to the fact he stereotypically is the more dominant gender.

Context

The context behind A Doll’s House is a clear reflection of a changing time with society changing for the better.

Women: Despite the fact that women’s rights were beginning to be enforced women still had little control and power over both political and personal freedom as within relationships, the dominant male in the female’s life basically controlled them, whether this be her father or husband they had major influence on a woman’s life, even if the wife was unhappy within a relationship a divorce was socially stigmatized and agreed to only if both partners signed therefore leading the male in control as he wouldn't sign. Money related to power and with poverty leading into women working they still had minimal power as the wage they were on in domestic jobs (such as teaching) had limited low pay as the middle class were so worried about the hierarchy being reformed which restricted freedom further. As women were fighting for rights they were making little progress with them achieving the same protection in the working place as little boys, the right to be educated at university and inheritance rights over wills. However, in 1888 married women in Norway were given control over there own money as in 1879 females couldn't borrow money without a male superiors consent (father or husband). In 1913 Norway in Europe allowed equal voting rights between men and women Men began to feel emasculated by women that were adopting jobs or gaining there own money as they did not have that much control or power over them anymore. 

Family Life: Family was very stereotypical with certain gender rolls having specific jobs within the home to ensure social structure was reinforced as women, as mentioned previously, had very little power when it came to political or economic issues as they were psychologically , socially and financially dependant on their male superior. Many wives wanted everything for there family which became challenged towards the end of the century as ideas began to change, the position of women was to look after the children and do domestic chores and jobs where as the males job was to bring home money and care about the appearance of his family ensuring his wife looked attractive and appealing.

Norway: In 1814 Norway was disbanded from Danish control which helped Norway gain power and an idea of their own cultural identity and society so personal and political freedom became extremely important to the people of Norway which was enforced in Ibsen’s play as it has themes of personal freedom and independence. Furthermore Norwegian identity was expanded on as in 1814 Landsmal developed giving Norway it’s own language instead of speaking Danish.

Realism

Plays Genre: The plays genre is dramatic realism and Ibsen was known to be one of the four fathers of realism within theatre although most theatre productions in the 19th century were melodramas, spectacle plays (disasters) comic operas, and vaudevilles. Theatrical realism was overall a  movement that began in the 1870s up until slowly becoming less popular within the 20th century. Realism developed conventions of theatre and drama to create more real life based plays and stories to help make the audience feel as though they can relate. Furthermore naturalism was also becoming popular which included a focus in everyday middle class lives. Realism and naturalism complimented each other, whilst realism focussed on the choices characters have where as neutralism views the influence of decisions made. Realism emerged from three main causes:

Development of Positivism (cause and effect from observation) — August Comte (1798-1857)

Understanding of “Survival of the fittest” Charles Darwin (1809-1882)- life develops gradually, he introduced the main points that:
1. People were controlled by heredity and environment
2. Behaviours were beyond our control
3. Humanity is a natural object, rather than being above all else Equal distribution for everyone

(Karl Marx 1818-1883): Arguing against urbanization and believed that everyone should be equal. These three causes helped develop theatre as a response to these new social / artistic conditions as it opened up to the ideas that:
1. Truth resides in material objects we perceived to all five senses; truth is verified through science
2. The scientific method—observation—would solve everything
3. Human problems were the highest were home of science

Ibsen's Life

Ibsen's life: Born into a large family on the 20th of march 1828, Ibsen was the fifth child of Knud and Marichen. Brought up and raised in Skien, Norway, Ibsen didn’t show any signs of becoming a playwright however did show an interest in becoming an artist and commonly acquainted his mother when going to the theatre, his father was a successful merchant and his mother painted, played the piano and loved to go to the theatre also. Despite this upbringing, Ibsen and his family found themselves in poverty when Ibsen was at the age of eight as his fathers work lost business leading the family to move into a farm closer to town where Ibsen spent his time happily painting and reading. Ibsen’s experience of living both wealthy and in poverty provides an understanding of both lifestyles, this could have had a huge impact on the way Ibsen creates such storylines and realism within his plays. At just the age of fifteen Ibsen stopped school and went into work gaining an apprenticeship in an apothecary (medical profession selling drugs and medication) in Grimstad where he continued to work until he was 21, in his free time he continued to paint and write poetry leading to him writing his first play influenced by Shakespeare in 1949 called Catilina which was a drama written in verse. Working life: Preparing for university Ibsen moved to Christiania (Oslo) in 1850 for university examinations to study at the University of Christiania where he soon made friends with other writers living in the capital and other artistic fields one friend in particular named Ole schulerus kindly paid for the publication of Ibsen’s first play (Catilina), which unfortunately failed to get much notice. In 1851 Ibsen met a theatre manager named Ole Bull who seemed to like Ibsen and eventually offered him a job as a writer and manager for the Norwegian Theatre in Bergen this gave Ibsen the chance to explore all the things within theatre alongside this Bull allowed him to travel to expand his knowledge. In 1857, Ibsen returned to Christiania to run another theatre there which seemed to challenge him with others claiming that he mismanaged the theatre and calling for his ouster. Despite his difficulties, Ibsen found time to write another play  Love's Comedy, a satirical look at marriage, in 1862.

Personal Life: Ibsen lead to have a long and happy marriage to Suzannah Daae Thores with a wedding in 1858 and welcomed their only child, son Sigurd in 1859 however Ibsen also had a son from previous relationship. He had fathered a child with a maid in 1846 while working as an apprentice as mentioned previously. While he provided some financial support, Ibsen never met his first son. Becoming old: unfortunately in 1900, Ibsen had a series of strokes that left him unable to write anymore. However luckily Ibsen to live for several more years, but he was not fully present during much of this time. Ibsen died on May 23, 1906. His last words were "To the contrary!" in Norwegian. Considered a literary titan at the time of his passing, he received a state funeral from the Norwegian government.