'A Doll's House' - Thoughts Preceding Study

I have watched the Young Vic's production of 'A Doll's House' twice now, and have found myself feeling the same way both times. 

I have found the play to be:

• unsubtle in its themes
• insufferable/difficult to watch at times due to the bird motifs and strange portrayals of love

Nora's speech at the end, however, is brilliant. I love it, I love its delivery in the version I watched, and I think that it is a particularly brave ending in its cultural context. Her epiphany removes the awkward rush of themes and twists in the second act. 

I'm looking forward to discussing the themes in greater depth in the weeks to come with my class. 

'A Doll's House' by Henrik Ibsen - 2

Torvald has 'an aversion against anything ugly'. His terms of endearment (birds) is thus explained. He loves beautiful things because they belong to him. He tells Nora that she 'is his most treasured possession', and says that he 'knew he wouldn't be able to keep Dr Rank long'.

When Nora says, "Please be nice to me," her insecurity is made clear. Her need for affection by anyone - men or women, children or adults - is presented. When Dr Rank tells her he loves her, however, she runs away. Is this a foreshadowing of her fleeing later in the text? She is a bird - birds must fly.

She trusts Dr Rank more than 'anyone else'. Dr Rank picks up on how Nora loves keeping secrets from her husband - she finds this exciting, but Rank understands how this represents her mistrust. Nora and Torvald's relationship is difficult to understand. At some points it is tender, at others, it is predatory.

Nora uses her husband - "I can't do anything without you."

Rank and Torvald prey on Nora as they watch her dance 'as though her life depended on it.' Torvald thinks that her performance 'was a little too natural'. This is because Torvald considers her to be a doll, in his doll's house.

Torvald says, "I always think that an exit should be dramatic." It's amazing how much foreshadowing there is in the texts.

Nora gives Dr Rank light - physically (when she lights his cigar) and metaphorically. He has lived in darkness for so long, but his love for Nora brings him light. That is why his invisibility hat and cross are black, to contrast with her brightness.

Torvald treats Nora like a child - telling her to sit down, take his jacket off her shoulders. He loses his love for her so quickly, then so quickly it returns when 'they are saved'. He takes the moral high-ground by stating the most obvious sentence in all of theatre - "I find your inability to do anything rather attractive. It makes me realise that I'm a man and you're a woman." His monologue about her 'becoming his child' summarises the major themes of the entire play.

Nora realises that neither of them had understood each other before his confession. He finds her amusing - he perceives her to be incapable of doing anything, especially helping him, because he thinks that he is infinitely better than her. She realises that she has been 'terribly treated' by her father and by Torvald, because she never understood what love was, because the men in her life loved her because they loved the
idea of her. Nora says, "I've lived my whole marriage...like a street-entertainer...by performing tricks for [Torvald] because that's how [he] likes it."

She decides to leave Torvald so she can learn who she is and 'stand up on [her] own'. Torvald says that she is a mother and a wife before anything else, before herself, and Nora 'sees with clarity' that her responsibility lies with herself, and not with others. She states that she has 'a different opinion on this matter' to Torvald, and it is the first time that she has said what she feels, and not what Torvald does.

Torvald says that 'no man would give up his honour for the person he loves.' She retorts, saying 'thousands and thousands and thousands of women have done' exactly that. This shows an awareness of the world that she has not displayed before.

Nora says, "we have the people we are fond of, and the people we enjoy being with."

Nora concludes that she 'doesn't believe in miracles anymore.' This is an excellent climax.

'A Doll's House' by Henrik Ibsen - 1

There are many key concerns in 'A Doll's House', and Ibsen makes them very clear through his association of motifs with characters e.g. Torvald and birds, Anne-Marie and maternity, and Dr Rank with sickness and temptation.

One of the main techniques I found interesting was that of foreshadowing. Having seen the play before studying it, I know the conclusion, which makes the rewatching of the production all the more interesting. I noted down some examples of foreshadowing from the first hour or so of the production:

• Nora says "I'd never break a promise I'd make to you." 
• Nora says "You shouldn't underestimate me." 
• Torvald says "The mothers were the worst."

I also found Nora's obsession with appearances intriguing. This is summarised in her comment to Mrs Linde - her view that "It's so important to be finely dressed." This links with the protagonists' desire to be admired. Nora's sons try to impress her with tales of their games because they don't see her enough, whereas Nora uses her sexuality and vanity to impress her husband, dressing for him ("I want to look good for you.") and responding to his demand: "I'm your husband - it's your job to indulge me." 

This exposes a great deal about Ibsen's portrayal of men and women in the text. Torvald's use of bird-names really irritates me, and every time he uses one, I feel a bit ill. Nora is a caged bird. However, her role is more complex than merely being an oppressed wife. 

She is very aware of her beauty and sexuality, and uses these to her own advantage, especially with Torvald and Dr Rank. She caresses Torvald, and complements him, and plays him, almost, at his own game, just without the forced terms of endearment. 

I'm looking forward to being able to analyse why the text is called 'A Doll's House' in a bit more detail - I have some ideas, but not enough to formulate into a thesis just yet.