Act 3 - Nora finally leaves!

After finishing up Act 3 I'm pretty much shocked over the result. I cannot believe Nora actually left Helmer! This is something I would never imagine in a million years especially because of what time period this play was in. Women even today are hesitant of leaving their husband because of how many problems there are to keep their jobs, homes, and actually survive. Then again, I'm so happy she left him because they truly are two opposite people who think and act in two totally different ways. This marriage would have went down hill or would be such a guilt trip for Nora even if this whole controversy never opened itself up.

Also, I can't stand the fact that Helmer didn't do anything to try to make Nora happy those eight years they were together until he found out she was going to leave him. He basically doesn't want her to leave so he doesn't look bad without a wife. So in the end he really doesn't care how she's going to feel, as long as he comes out on top. Haha typical man! Sorry guys. A man will always look bad when his wife leaves him for any reason and I bet he'll make up lies and tell people he left her.

Not to mention at first reading the end of the story made me mad with how so to the point it was. But then as I read the last part when it says the door slams it basically got mind thinking. I felt like that one little line gave off the idea that she was for real and was definently not coming back. I am kind of suprised she left her children but they never were shown in a way that she was truly in love with them or cared for them like a mother should.

When Nora says she needs to go on her own and learn by herself I thought she was being sort of silly. Then as she explained it more I realized she really, REALLY needs to go learn for herself how the real life is and make decisions on her own. I feel like her father and her husband never let her grow on her and make her own mistakes so that made Nora the woman we all know in the play. I guess we'll never know if Nora and Helmer ever find each other again but we can let our imaginations wonder. Overall, I actually suprised myself and really enjoyed this book.

Act 2 : Analysis

So now we have finished Act Two and I'm really getting into all the drama. My suspense keeps building up and I really want to know how Nora's going to deal with all this controversy! I'm starting to still see Nora as a very determined woman. The fact that she's not giving up on this makes me wonder how desperate she is to not let her husband know. It also shows me how scared she is to just admit it to her husband and how she's taking it as a "live or die" situation.

As I've been reading I also realized how much of a typical man Helmer is. He treats his wife with no respect more and more. He repeatidly keeps calling her a featherbrain, scatterbrain, and a skylark. Helmer makes it seem like it's normal and perfectly okay to treat his wife like that. Nowadays most women don't take the kind of treatment and there's women these days who are perfectly okay leaving their man behind and being on their own. Back then it was very rare for a woman to go against her husband and make it on her own.

There has also been a big part of this act that really opened up my eyes. Basically when Mrs.Linde says Krogstad would have done anything for her got my mind thinking. I think that's going to foreshadow that she's going to try and help Nora so the secret doesn't get out. Another big thing that came up is that in this act we notice that Dr.Rank has a big thing for Nora ! It reminds me so much of those soap operas like Ms.Santos said but in the way that there's always flings or flirty with a married woman and a "friend" hiding it from her husband. That's definitely one thing I'd like to find out if there's some secret affair going on or just a innocent flirting.

My opinions on the characters pretty much stay the same but I'm starting doubt Nora's intelligence with this whole "secret". Also, Helmer each time he comes up and says something makes me want to scream "JERK!" No woman should be treated with such disrespect and no woman should be so dumb to actually listen and love him. Well then again Nora leaving Helmer back then would have been a very bad move. Hopefully the drama gets even more exciting the next act and Nora finally reveals the secret! ( :

Act 1 : The Suspense Continues!

In the first act, we meet a married couple Helmer and Nora who are very much in love but very much different. Helmer treats Nora as if she just a woman meant to be ordered around and there for him to listen to his every idea and need. Also, we find out they have three children and that Nora treats them as dolls instead of the children they are. She finds it amuzing to dress them up and I feel that might be because of how Helmer treats her basically telling her in a non-mean way to do what he says. Basically, we learn in the household Helmer has the say but on the inside of everything we all know it's Nora because of what trouble she has got into.

As I've been reading Act 1 of A Doll's House I have noticed many things about certain characters. In a way I feel Nora did what she had to for the right reason and tried to help her family. I don't think many woman today would have the courage back then to go against their husband to save his life. It's pretty amazing how a woman like Nora could love her husband so much to go to those odds to save him. You don't really see many women like Nora going against odds and law to help support her family. This showed me that's a very strong-minded woman who knows what she has to do. As much as she knows it is wrong she supports herself which many women today I feel lack. Women today aren't quick to be leaders as much as men are and I hate that we all sit back and let men rule our lives. More women should stand up for their rights and men shouldn't be so quick to judge women, they could end up being ten times a better leader then a man.

However apart from Nora's controversial stuff she did behind her husband's back I feel the plot is going to get even more intense in the next few acts. After, realizing everything Nora can do I think this will lead her to even more problems in the future acts. I think Krogstad is also up to no good and once he's fired he's going to put Nora into lots of problems. This really goes well with what we see today especially when something goes wrong in a trade off or business situation. When something goes wrong today, people quickly try to get the other person in trouble or try to scare them so they won't get in trouble.

Continuing, the part that really threw my into a fury of how deep in her knees she was with this difficult situation was when she was basically begging her husband to keep Krogstad. Nora showed me at this part how in trouble she was and how at this point she was willing to slump to any level to get her way. It's pretty astonishing what she would do to hide this from her husband. It kind of goes back in my mind each time she begs that why doesn't she just tell him already !? He can't get that mad at her and he definitely won't result to killing her. I think at some point she should just fess up to him and face the consequences for going against him even if it was to help him. It's not like she did for the wrong reasons, right ?

Overall, I feel that Nora reminds me so much of Beneatha from A Raisin in The Sun because of her empowerment to help her husband and family and how frivolous she acts about it in the beginning. Also, how she feels it's her job and that even if its a "man's job" she still does it. Personally, I feel Nora will get into a big mess with this because of her lack of thinking it over and how she'll fix this problem. I really hope to see her grow as character and I would like to see her admit to her husband her mistake which I feel would be very dramatic but it would open Helmer's eye to the real woman he married even as vehemently he'll react. I can't wait to see what's going to end up happening to her. Will her guilt finally hit an all time low or is she just going to keep taking it all in and living it down ?

Henrik Ibsen & A Doll's House

Henrik Ibsen the author of A Doll’s House was born in Skien, Norway. He is known as the “founder of modern prose drama”. He moved away from the Romantic style, and brought the problems and ideas of the day onto the stage of his time. His life changed dramatically from prosperity to poverty when the boy was very young. He lost many family friends and devoted his life to theater and finally died on May 23,1906. Basically, with all his offerings to the theater have forever changed the history of the stage, as we know it.

In my opinion, I think the play will relate to the author by expressing his hard struggles through his life. It will also talk about the hard troubles of the middle class and how life was back then for them. The play will have a lot to do with the author because that's what most of his writing was known to be based around back then. Also, from the title of play I think the play will be about women or girls because that’s the first thing I think of when I hear dolls. To sum up, I feel it will be about the women’s struggle’s back then and how they went through all the problems he saw or experienced.

Cited Sites:

http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/ibsen.htm