Dustin Hartle ENGL-112 Dr. Graham A Doll’s House In A Doll’s House, Ibsen presents a view of society that is unconventional, and contrary to many of his peers. Ibsen breaks from tradition to compose a play that deals with what were at the time controversial social issues, including women’s right to self fulfillment, fiscal responsibility, and gender roles. In A Doll’s House as well as in many of his other plays from his modern period, Ibsen was criticized because he dared to break new ground and to challenge the accepted values of his society. Many critics who have read, seen, and commented on A Doll’s House have stated that it is most definitely a feminist work. However, Ibsen himself never outright stated that his play was indeed feminist, or had a feminist agenda. Even though A Doll’s House wasn’t necessarily feminist, many stage productions of the play had the ending amended in order to make it more acceptable. There is no denying the theme of women’s rights in A Doll’s House, yet I am not convinced that feminism was Ibsen’s main message. Careful examination of the play will reveal Ibsen’s true message. But first, in order to find the feminist views in the play, we must first define feminism. According to Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, feminism is defined as “the theory of political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.” In ACT 1, the reader is first introduced to two of the primary characters:Torvald Helmer, the dominant, wise, caring, smart and prosperous husband, and Nora, the meek, submissive, foolish, and naive housewife. Torvald is the "man of the house"; he is the
breadwinner, and works hard for his family. He is the boss and everyone obeys him unquestioningly. According to Torvald, Nora is a "spendthrift" who cannot be trusted with money. She spends her day cooking, cleaning, and helping to care for the kids. As you read on, you can begin to see that Nora fills the role of Torvald’s pet, his "little squirrel". Nora is Torvald’s Doll. After the initial exchange between Nora and Torvald, it is difficult to see that Ibsen views society and gender roles any differently than his peers. However, Ibsen next introduces Mrs. Linde, a character that begins to buck the traditional role of women. Mrs. Linde is the first sign of feminism in the play. Mrs. Linde is a widower, and has become an independent woman who provides for herself and lives off her own
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