Act III: Alternate Ending

In my alternate ending, I am starting where Nora begins to explain to Torvald that she is leaving him.

Nora: *starting to rise from her seat, turning to Torvlad* I am leaving you, Torvald. I realize now that all you and my father ever did was treat me as if I were your possession, but I'm not. I'm a human being, Torvald, just like you. *Nora begins to grab her coat, readying herself to leave*

Torvald: *grabbing her arm* You can't leave, you're a woman! Women don't leave their husbands, Nora.

Nora: Well this one is.. *Tugging on her arm* Release me, please.

Torvald: Nora, my silly little songbird, listen to how inconsiderate you're being! Your duty is not out there in society, it's in the safety of the house.

Nora: If Kristine can work for a living without a husband with nobody telling her she shouldn't, then why can't I? I'm like every other woman, except I'm actually trying to do something.

Torvald: *Losening his firm grip* But, you always needed me. Nora don't you see, you're not educated enough to know how to handle the crude world. I can help you, maybe we can come to an agreement, yes?

Nora: I have made up my mind, Torvald. *Taking advantage and stepping back away from him* I'm going. I'll stay with Linde for the night, and I'll send her back to come get my things. This will be the last time you see me.

*Torvald is silent, watching Nora as she began to exit the room. After a couple seconds of silence, he heard a door shut.*

Nora: *Stopping halfway down the steps, looking up at the window of the children's room* Their light is on.. They're supposed to be asleep! Oh dear, if they had heard everything Torvald and I have spoken about.. Oh I can't even imagine the horror they must be feeling! I should go back inside and tell them everything will be okay. *Nora walks back to the door, stopping when she grabs the doorknob.* I can't go back inside. I don't live here anymore, therefore I am considered a stranger. No strangers in the house.

*Nora lets go of the doorknob, ready to leave. The door opens when she reaches the last step, out run the children.*

Nora: My dollies! *She pulls them into an embrace* Why are you awake so late? I thought the nurse put you to sleep.. You weren't tired? Well you have to sleep, or else you won't have energy to run around with daddy! Daddy's crying? Yes my little dolly I know. Mommy's going to the market to get something to make daddy feel better. What's that you ask? You'll see! Run along inside, mommy will be back! *The children run back inside, shutting the door behind them. Nora sighed heavily, beginning to walk back into the house.* Torvald?

Torvald: Nora? Oh Nora you're back! *Hugging her* Thank God you came to your senses, my songbird.

Nora: I'm not back for you, I'm back for the kids.. Let's come to an agreement, Torvald. I'll be able to work and live my own life outside of the house walls, and don't have to listen to your commands.

Torvald: Yes! Of course! I will do anything for you to stay.

Nora: You don't want to be with me, you just don't want people to know that I attempted to leave. *Beginning to walk up the stairs* Goodnight, Torvald. *Turning to look at Torvald* I hope you know you will be sleeping on the couch until further notice.

Act II: Character Analysis

Act II in A Doll's House is full of dramatic scenes and plenty of visual moments. The characters showed a little more about themselves as well, and in which we will start to analyze the actions of two different characters: Torvald Helmer and Christine Linde (Mrs Linde.)

In act I, you can clearly read that Nora and Torvald's relationship isn't the most romantic or loving. You can see how Nora loves Helmer in the way she speaks about and to him, but with Torvald, it's almost impossible to tell whether or not he loves her. Since the beginning of Act I, he's spoken to her as if she were his little sister, not his wife. He practically controls her, as in Act II, he states "Nice?-- because you do as your husband wishes? Well, well, you little rogue, I am sure you did not mean it in that way," (Ibsen). This is basically his way of saying to Nora, "You have to listen to me, I'm your husband." It's as if he finds her intolerable when she does something he doesn't like.

Onto Mrs Linde, Nora's old friend. Mrs. Linde returned in Act I because her husband had died, but has had no reason to mourn him or stay in the town they lived in together. Besides working for her brothers and mother (which she finished before leaving), she claims she didn't have anything back there. She's a very mature woman, as she clearly throws out there when speaking to Nora at the beginning of Act II. "You are still very like a child in many things, and I am older than you in many ways..." (Ibsen). But, in my opinion, I believe that Mrs. Linde secretly thinks less of Nora as Nora is more "childlike" and doesn't work. If she looks down on Nora, then she might not assist her if she does get sent to court for her crime, or if Torvald were to find out about what she's done. Even though she's assisting her now, she might turn her back at any moment on Nora, which could lead to something bad. Even though I'm sure she finds Mr Krogstad just as disreputable as everyone else does, she might look at Nora just the same now that she knows what she's done.

❝ You are still very like a child in many things, and I am older than you in many ways... ❞

Question of the day!

In my honest opinion, I think Nora is exaggerating just a tad bit by wanting to commit suicide. Running away from home also seems like a childish act. If she's committed a crime, then she should just take retribution for her actions. Do you agree with me and think what she's turned to is uncalled for, or think what she's turned to is reasonable?

Dancing the Tarantella Dance with

Torvald and Nora Helmer.

Act I: Character Analysis

Some of the characters in A Doll's Mansion are very easy to read, such as Nora, the main character. She loves to spend money, tells a lot of little white lies (like when she lied about the contraband macaroons that she bought), and tries her best to please her husband, herself, and society at any time. She clearly loves to spend money, as she admits to it herself when speaking to her husband, Torvald. "H'm! -- You should just know, Torvald what expenses we larks and squirrels have," (Ibsen). In that quote, Nora is clearly stating that she has expensive taste, and people with expensive taste love to spend money; as everyone she knows calls her a spend-thrift. She didn't seem to have any issues, that is, before Mr Krogstad has claimed to have found out that she has forged her father's signature. And after she found out Mr Krogstad knew, she spoke to Torvald and explained how he hates people who forge signatures. This scared Nora, and it shows how now she is petrified of how he has told her that "Nearly all cases of early corruption may be traced to lying mothers," (Ibsen). This scares Nora, and builds an inner conflict whether she should help Mr Krogstad and forget any of that ever happened, or stay loyal to her husband and take the consequences that will come with her actions.

❝Nearly all cases of early corruption may be traced to lying mothers. ❞

The next character I want to focus on is Mr Krogstad.  As spoken about in Act I, everyone thinks he's "rotten to the core" and a horrible man. His character is more to be looked upon as the bad guy in my opinion, as he blackmails Nora using what he knows against her in order to keep his job at the bank. He only wants to recover his respect for the sake of his children and wife, as he has forged a signature, which has in fact ruined his reputation around their hometown. He speaks to Nora about wanting his respect back as his kids are "growing up" and they deserve to have a father who's respected. He also explains how if he looses his job, then he'll have nothing else to help him advance in earning back his respect around town. His inner conflict, to me, is that he knows if he attempts to call Nora out for forging her father's signature no one will believe him or find him hypocritical for sending someone to court for something he has done; or they will believe him and he'll earn respect, but he might also be frowned upon by Torvald, who (thanks to his promotion) is now his boss. Being frowned upon by your boss will most likely lead to being fired in the end of it all.

Do you think Mr Krogstad was wrong for blackmailing Nora and should just except the he could get fired? Or would you blackmail Nora as well? Do you consider Nora or Mr Krogstad the bad guy of the play?

This is probably how Nora ate those macaroons

Introduction and Henrik Ibsen

Hello internet! My name is Hailey, I love music, Dan and Phil, writing, and video games because they're fun! What I like the most about English are actually the teachers because they make class fun and enjoyable. I also really like the stories we read, as I love to read and the stories we read are very interesting, yet very different from what I usually read on my own time. They open me up to a new variety of words which I love to use (some of them), and they each have their own, unique and interesting message. For example, I loved the message in The Alchemist because it's all about following your "personal legend," which means follow something you're destined to do. Such a strong message, in such a small book.

But what I'm really here for, Henrik Ibsen.

Often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the founders of Monderism, Henrik Ibsen was born on March 20, 1828, and was announced dead on May 23, 1906. He was a theatre director and poet. His play A Doll's House became the most performed play in the early 20th century. Ibsen wrote his plays in Danish, and is also the world's most frequently performed dramatist since Shakespeare. His plays were shaped by his family background, and some of his most notable works were A Doll's House (1879), Ghost (1881), Peer Gynt (1867), and Wild Duck (1884). He married Suzannah Thoresen on June 18, 1858. Suzannah gave birth to their only child, named Sigurd, on December 23, 1859. They lived in poor financial circumstances and he moved out of Christina, Norway (his hometown), and moved to Sorrento, Italy. He did not return too Christina until 27 years passed. Ibsen is often ranked as one of the most distinguished playwrights in the European tradition. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1902, 1903, and 104.

Source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrik_Ibsen - Wikipedia