Category Archives: A Doll’s House

Study questions and Discussion about A doll’s house

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Act 1

Why does the play begin with a detailed description of their home?

It shows their socioeconomic status and the description is also useful because this is a drama that is used in the theatre.

How would you describe the relation between Helmer and Nora?

Nora is “doll-like”. Helmer has the power and likes to control her. It is clear that the author, Ibsen, doesn’t like this relationship.

Nora has small secrets. Ibsen tries to give the reader (viewer) the feeling that Nora is hiding something more important. In the beginning her secrets seem to be unimportant. Let’s look at one example in the beginning:

“Helmer (wagging his finger at her). Hasn’t Miss Sweet Tooth
been breaking rules in town today?
Nora. No; what makes you think that?
Helmer. Hasn’t she paid a visit to the confectioner’s?
Nora. No, I assure you, Torvald—”

Ibsen later shows that her secrets a bigger: She didn’t tell Helmer that she borrowed money. And of course she didn’t tell that she is in love with Dr. Rank.

Who is Linde, and why is she visiting Nora?

Linde is an old friend. She needs a job. She knows that Helmer can help because he is going to get a leader position.

Later in the play we find out that Linde and Krogstad have known each other earlier and they were in love. But Linde didn’t choose Krogstad because he was too poor. Line had a good reason to choose a richer man: She had to be able to help her sick mother and two younger brothers:

This is from a conversation early in the play:

“Nora: You mustn’t be angry with me.
Tell me, is it really true that you did not love your husband?
Why did you marry him?
Mrs. Linde. My mother was alive then, and was bedridden
and helpless, and I had to provide for my two younger brothers;
so I did not think I was justified in refusing his offer.”

Linde also gives this explanation to Krogstad later in the play.

It is also interesting to notice Nora’s questions: “is it really true that you did not love your husband?” and “Why did you marry him?” – This interest is of course a reflection of Nora’s own life.

Why does Nora pretend that she doesn’t know Krogstad?

She borrowed some money from him (to be able to pay for a trip to Italy that saved Helmer’s life).

Act 3

Where is Nora going in the end of the play?

The ending is ambiguous. We don’t know for shure where she’s going.

When Nora says to Helmer that she’s going to leave him, Helmer asks “Where would you go?”, and she says “Maybe I could go to mrs Linde”.

But it’s clear that Nora has feelings for Dr. Rank who is going to die soon. So maybe Nora is going to visit him before he dies.

I strongly recommend these pages about “A Doll’s House”:
Norwegian page about the play – National Library of Norway

A doll’s house – Summary and Analysis

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Act 1

Nora comes home with a christmas tree. Her husband, Helmer, blames her for spending too much money. But Nora reminds Helmer that his new position in the bank will give them more money the following year. In this part we see how Helmer controles his wife. He has the money, and Nora acts like a little doll (hence the title).

[You should also see this article: Study questions and Discussion about A doll’s house]

After this Mrs. Linde comes to Nora because she needs a job. She has heard about Helmer’s new leader position, and believes that Helmer can give her a job. In their conversation Nora tells Linde that she saved Helmers life when they were younger: Helmer was sick, and the doctor told Nora that he could only be cured if he could live in a warm country for a year. Nora borrowed money to pay for a travel to Italy that saved Helmers life (Helmer didn’t know that Nora borrowed the money). But the question is: Where did Nora really get the money? This will be clear later in the story.

After this Krogstad (a worker in the bank) comes. He knows that if they give mrs. Linde the job, he will loose his. Krogstad says to Nora that she must make shure that Helmer doesn’t fire him. If she doesn’t, Krogstad will reveal that Nora borrowed the money from him and she signed the papers with a falls signature.

Act 2

Nora is worried. She needs to do something about the threat from Krogstad.

Dr. Rank comes in. He is and old friend, but later it becomes clear that Nora and Rank have feelings for each other. Dr. Rank tells Nora that he is sick, and he thinks that he’s going to die.

Later Nora asks Helmer not to fire Krogstad. But Helmer doesn’t care.

In this act it becomes clear that Nora and dr. Rank have feelings for each other.

Krogstad comes back and tells Nora that he’s going to tell Helmer about the secret. Krogstad want’s to be the leader in the bank. And if he doesn’t get this power, he will tell the world about Nora’s secret.

Act 3

Krogstad and mrs. Linde used to know each other. The where in love, but Linde rejected Krogstad because she needed a man whith money (someone who could support her and her helpless mother and younger brothers). But Linde says that they can live together now. Therefore Krogstad says that he doesn’t want to bother Nora anymore. But Linde believes that Nora must tell her husband the truth.

Dr. Rank comes in and tells Nora that he is going to die soon.

In the end Nora understands that Helmer wasn’t ready to help her at all. And therefore (and also because she believes that there was no love in the marriage) she leaves him and the children. She want’s to find herself.

Themes

The relation between men and women
Subjection of women
Male domination
It is clear that Henrik Ibsen i against the subjection of women. The play is from 1879 – ten years after John Stuart Mill’s book The subjection of women. It is also clear that Ibsen has some of the opinions that we see in Mill’s book, e.g. the opinion about marriage.

Love (True love vs. “false love”)
Independence
Money and power
Old love
Vanity
Honor

Symbols

The black cross – Symbolizes death.
Nora dancing uncontrollably while Helmer plays piano – Symbolizes that she doesn’t want to be controlled any more.

Genre

Drama

Author

Henrik Ibsen, a norwegian writer who lived from 1828 to 1906.

Context

The story A doll’s house was written in 1879. Around this time many scandinavian authors (especially Henrik Ibsen) were inspired by Georg Brandes, an intellectual who believed that the art should show some of the problems in society: The subjection of women, poverty, power etc.

In this time the story A doll’s house was shocking to some people. Especially because the woman Nora leaves her husband and children.

[You should also see this article: Study questions and Discussion about A doll’s house]