Act III:

[Lights up on stage.  Nora sits in a parlor, which is small but well decorated.  The furniture is slightly worn, but kept in order.  Despite the second-hand look, the room is very neat.  There are book shelves to stage right, a window seat in the rear, and a door facing stage left.  An old vertical piano is pushed against the wall to stage left.  NORA sits at a table stage center, wearing a modest dress.]
NORA: [shuffling papers, humming to self absently] Little Amelia is on holiday for two weeks... The Chekovs are postponing until the week after next... I suppose that things would be slow, it being Easter... [there is a knock outside the door] Just a moment, please! [getting up, setting papers down.  NORA goes to the door and opens it.  The MAILMAN enters]
MAILMAN: Good afternoon, Miss Nora. 
NORA: [pleasantly] Good afternoon.
MAILMAN: [drawing a stack of letters out of bag] A note from the headmistress... Some bank notice... And an envelope from a Mrs. Linde. 
NORA: Thank you. [She takes the letters.  MAILMAN exits.  Bringing the letters back to her table, she opens the first letter.  Reading it aloud:] "Dear Miss Nora, [she pauses], The Board of Governors at St. Peter's Academy for Young Women would like to formally extend our gratitude for your two years of service.  We would like to offer you a promotion, for which you would take on the responsibilities of educating our pupils in formal dance, introduction to music, and to lead seminars on some classical arts.  This would be in addition to your duties as an assistant to the advanced music and drama classes. It would be accompanied by a raise in salary..." [suppressing a smile] A promotion! [looking back at letter] "Please send your reply to the headmistress's office as soon as possible." As if I wouldn't!
[Nora sets the letter down, searching for a pen and paper.  Finding some, she scribbles out a response and sets it down.  She picks up the letter from MRS. LINDE and opens it with a letter opener. Reading it aloud:]
NORA: "Dearest Nora; Nils and I received your last package.  The pressed flowers make a lovely make a lovely addition to our living room decorations.  Since you last visited, he and I have moved to a new apartment, which is closer to the bank.  I could simply not stand to pass Torvald in the street; despite my best attempts at evasion, he always sought me out, asking about you.  Fear not, my dear Nora; I still hold my position at the bank, and Nils has been picking up some work as a clerk.  It appears that you are not as incompetent as I once believed you to be.  Though I miss my childhood friend, I am glad that you have found boarding in a respectable part of your new city.  I hope you are more inclined to teaching than I was, but you seem to have found your niche..." [NORA trails off, looking slightly distressed] Does Torvald think of me still? Even after all this time?
[She paces the room, setting the letter down on the table.  Biting her lip, she looks back at the letter. After a moment, she goes back to the table, grabs another piece of paper, and leans her hip against the table.]
NORA: Dear Mr. Helmer; no, too formal.  Dearest Torvald;...No, that doesn't work either... [squinting at the paper] Dear Torvald; [she nods to herself, and scribbles that down.  NORA begins to pace the room, while delivering monologue.  She ends by the window.  She pauses every few sentences to write down her thoughts.]
I write to you not for my own desire, but for the sake of you and the children.  It occurs to me that despite your ability and influence, you persist in your want for my return.  Though I swore not to contact you, it is not responsible for a man to forget his obligations to his children or his friends.  It has been two years and five months since my departure, and I have rebuilt my life.  I teach at a finishing school and am a private piano instructor to the youths of this city.  My rooms are modest and my closets bare, but I have adjusted.  Do not let my leaving you destroy your ambitions....
[There is a tumultuous sound of feet on stairs, and shouts of a child. Distracted from her letter, NORA sets it down on the window seat, where it falls to the floor without her knowledge.  NORA rushes to the door and opens it.  Enter a girl and her mother, the girl about age ten]
NORA: Good day, Mrs. Moore. [bending down to meet the eyes of the girl] And hello, Miss Sarah.  Have you been practicing for your lesson?
SARAH: Yes Miss Nora. 
NORA: Excellent! How are your scales?
SARAH: [bashful] I didn't practice those as much...
NORA: [smiling] Oh, well I suppose we can work on those today.  Will you be staying to listen, Mrs. Moore?
MOORE: No, I have errands to run.  [Kissing SARAH's head] Good bye, dear.  I will be back at five. [exits]
[NORA leads SARAH over to piano, where they both sit.]
NORA: Can you play me an arpeggio? Good... [NORA coaches SARAH quietly through some piano exercises, giving encouragement.  The letter to Torvald lays forgotten.  Lights dim to sounds of NORA and SARAH playing piano]
FIN

Act II Analysis: Torvald and the Tarantella

     Act II of A Doll's House escalated the plot and reconfigured relationships between the characters.  Most of the act was in anticipation for a party the Helmers were to attend; while preparing the tarantella and her dress, Nora had to deal with further exploitations by Krogstad, an amorous connection by Dr. Rank, and thoughts of suicide. 

     The tarantella holds particular significance in this act.  The tarantella, a very fast dance, is said to have originated as a cure for a poisonous spider bite.  The exertion from the dance was supposed to sweat out the venom and thus save the person's life.  This legend gives new dimension to the symbolism of the tarantella in this act.  Nora decides that she would commit suicide immediately after the dance; she, like the bitten dancer, is betting on it to either save her or to give her one last hurrah.  Nora also examines her legacy in the hours before the party.  In a fit of near hysterics, she tells Kristina, "You must bear witness that it isn't true.  I'm perfectly sane, and I know exactly what I'm doing now, and I tell you this: no one else knows anything about it--I did it all by myself..." (p 201).  The reader can see that she has developed from Act I; Nora, instead of being careless with her words, intentionally gives Kristina her testament, possibly to be used in court.  This reinforces her decision to commit suicide, which Krogstad doubted when he said, "You forget that then your reputation would be in my hands..." (p 200).

     At the end of Act II, Nora intends for her suicide to protect her children from corruption, and more importantly, to shield Torvald.  The reader, however, gets a sense that Nora has started to realize the state of things between her and her husband.  The flirtatious mood between Dr. Rank and Nora establishes that Nora does not feel comfortable expressing herself around Torvald.  In spite of this, Nora exploits and distracts Torvald by asking him to watch her dance.  She jauntily prompts, "Sit down and play for me, Torvald dear; criticize, and show me where I'm wrong, the way you always do..." (p 203).  The sexual undertones of this scene demonstrate that Nora knows Torvald well enough to manipulate him, but that he does not know her well enough to recognize a trick. By the end of Act II, Nora has not had an epiphany about her relationship with Torvald, but the reader can anticipate that she will have to acknowledge her feelings (or lack thereof) about him.  Her actions show that she cares about him as a person, but not as a wife.  She compares being with him to being with her father; she subconsciously thinks of him more as a family member than a lover.

     Is Nora starting to come to terms with her relationship to Torvald? Does the escalation of the plot correspond at all to the tarantella?  Does Dr. Rank suspect that there is growing discontent between Torvald and Nora?   

Act I Analysis: Patriarchy and Privilege

      Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House is an examination of the effects of ignorance on a seemingly ideal household.  Ignorance is a broad theme of the play; it can be understood as the lack of empathy between a man and his wife, or a general lack of important information that causes Nora to make sloppy mistakes. 
      The influence of the patriarchy--that is, a society dominated by male influence and leadership--shaped Nora's actions.  In the nineteenth century, a woman was not to question her husband, no matter his intent or foolishness.  Nora comments that, "it was tremendous fun sitting there working and earning money.  It was almost like being a man..." (p 162).  This demonstrates that she has cunning, despite her aloof persona.  Torvald accuses Nora of squandering money on frivolous items, but never investigates.  The condescending tone that Torvald speaks to Nora with establishes that he does not think she could make independent choices.  One such interaction is as follows:
           "HELMER: So my little obstinate one's out of her depth, and wants someone to rescue her?
             NORA: Yes, Torvald, I can't do anything without you to help me." (p 178)
Nora takes advantage of Torvald's lack of expectations.  Because of this, she is able to take out a significant loan, lie about its origin, skim money from the household funds, and amortize the loan without suspicion.  The patriarchal society gives Nora no power to negotiate life on her own terms, but the assumption by men that women are incapable lets her deceive her husband.  It should be noted, however, that Nora seems to admire her husband in spite of his superior attitude towards her.  
      A negative effect of Nora's patriarchal, upper class society is that it leaves her very unaccustomed to real life.  She was born in relative wealth, and married into relative wealth; Nora never needed to work full time in order to make ends meet.  This left her severely lacking in understanding of business negotiations, money, and empathy towards those less fortunate.  She is incredulous to hear that a widowed friend was left nothing by her husband: 
        "NORA: Nothing at all?
         LINDE: Not even any regrets to break my heart over.
         NORA: Oh, but Kristina, that can't be true.
         LINDE: It happens like that sometimes..." (p 154)
Because of her privileged status, Nora does not understand corruption or manipulation.  It does not occur to her that she has dated her father's signature after his death, and this can be attributed to her lack of experience in high-pressure scenarios.  This ignorance created by circumstance/lack of exposure is similar to the argument made by lawyers defending Ethan Couch.  Couch was arrested for killing pedestrians while driving drunk; his lawyers argued that Couch did not understand his actions were wrong because he was afflicted with "affluenza", or a lack of common sense due to his wealthy upbringing.  Ibsen impresses on the reader the foolishness of certain white collar crime.  Torvald was too proud to take out loans, even though it would have saved his life.  His wife was moved to crime because of his pride in the matter, which likely would not have afflicted someone of lower standing.
       Is the villain of A Doll's House Krogstad, the desperate man seeking to keep his job, or Torvald, the husband whose pride forces Nora to go to extremes in order to save his life?  Is the true villain the patriarchy, which made Nora a victim of circumstance, or should she have obeyed her husband and the law?   
 

Introduction

About Me


I am Emily Paule.  My special skills include being able to solve the Rubik Cube, consuming large amounts of mac and cheese in one sitting, and playing with dogs.  English class has been one of my favorites this year; particularly, I have enjoyed the class discussions/seminars.  As much as I love the sound of my own voice, it serves me well to hear other perspectives, experiences, and thoughts.  I feel that I have grown to have a better appreciation of literature and have more respect for my peers as a result of these discussions. 


Biography: Henrik Ibsen


 Henrik Ibsen was a Norwegian playwright.  The peak of his career was in the mid-1800s, starting with the plays Brand and Peer Gynt.  He is known as the father of the modern drama; his plays are characterized by a focus on realistic struggles, complex and imperfect characters, and an emphasis on psychological effects and development instead of intricate plots.  Many of his works were considered obscene and not for polite company because they attempted to dismantle and discuss the role of women/oppression of women, sexual awakening, and the hypocrisy and false airs of middle and high society.  With this in mind, I suppose A Doll's House will be about a family that appears pristine at a glance, but is broken on the inside.  The symbolism of a doll is that a doll does not think or act, but smiles and is subject to the will of others.  This could be the predicament of the main character. Potential themes could be that appearances do not always reflect reality, and that forcing a someone to bear a burden they do not want will lead to anger and uprising. 
Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906), as a boy, grew up in relative wealth.  His father, a merchant, went bankrupt and the family was forced to leave their town in shame.  Ibsen's education was too expensive to continue, so he became  a pharmacist's assistant.  When he was eighteen, he fathered a child with a servant; he paid expenses for the child as to avoid defamation.  Ibsen was denied entrance into a university, joined a radical political group, and began writing for journals.  His career as a playwright started soon after, but most of his initial work flopped or faced major scorn.  He found work as a manager at multiple theatres, which later would produce his plays. Later, he was married to Suzannah Thoreson.  Ibsen spent lots of time abroad, including a twenty-seven year "exile" in Germany and Italy.  It is commonly thought that Ibsen's illegitimate child and rapid change in socioeconomic status influenced his work.  This also explains his heavy skepticism of high class society.  Additionally, many of his plays involve characters seeking to find inner peace or discover who they are. 


Sources:
http://www.worldbookonline.com/student/article?id=ar270700&st=henrik+ibsen#tab=homepage
http://www.fofweb.com/Lit/default.asp