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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
I had to read this for school and honestly if I were to rate it off of the first half of the play I would have given it 2 stars. I just found it to be incredibly slow and I had no motivation to finish it (It took me 4 days to read 67 pages). Luckily around the second act I started to become more invested, but the third act THAT WAS GREAT. The ending is the only reason I gave this book the high rating I gave it. At the beginning Nora really bothered me, but those last few pages really changed my mind about the whole thing and I am so glad that I read this!
Amongst the modern plays I have read, this first foray with Ibsen is probably my favorite. They say that he was ahead of his time as a playwright who questioned the true nature of the status quo of the society around him, but this play feels more relevant and deeply relatable today than most of the ones I have read that came from others in the decades that followed.
In A Doll's House, we meet Nora, a happily married mother of three whose husband has just received a promotion that will really put their family on easy street. This sweet little house wife who everyone thinks of as having little intellectual talent and few serious dilemmas has actually being paying off a long and secret debt she incurred long ago to help her husband without his knowing it. Throughout the play, the suspense is high as to whether she will keep her secret and pay off her debt or be exposed to shame and disgrace. Time and again, she uses the persona others project upon a housewife as a ruse to keep suspicions allayed.
In the end, the question of her success or exposure somehow manages to become secondary in an utterly gratifying and profoundly impactful grand finale. The questions of fitting into the mold, keeping secrets buried, marital bliss, and economic prosperity become greatly diminished in light of the bigger questions of what we lose of ourselves when we go along with a stereotypical role for the sake of assuming some mantel of peace and prosperity.
This play will forever be a raging success.
In A Doll's House, we meet Nora, a happily married mother of three whose husband has just received a promotion that will really put their family on easy street. This sweet little house wife who everyone thinks of as having little intellectual talent and few serious dilemmas has actually being paying off a long and secret debt she incurred long ago to help her husband without his knowing it. Throughout the play, the suspense is high as to whether she will keep her secret and pay off her debt or be exposed to shame and disgrace. Time and again, she uses the persona others project upon a housewife as a ruse to keep suspicions allayed.
In the end, the question of her success or exposure somehow manages to become secondary in an utterly gratifying and profoundly impactful grand finale. The questions of fitting into the mold, keeping secrets buried, marital bliss, and economic prosperity become greatly diminished in light of the bigger questions of what we lose of ourselves when we go along with a stereotypical role for the sake of assuming some mantel of peace and prosperity.
This play will forever be a raging success.
Rolf Fjelde's translation is much more musical than this one, but I'm still excited to share it with students this week. "There is no one who gives up honor for love." "Millions of women have done just that."
When my son's 9th grade English teacher assigned this play, I was excited to read along with him. Since it's broken down into 3 acts, it gave good stopping points along the way to discuss our thoughts.
My son-not surprisingly-didn't enjoy it. I, however, did. I think it is provocative and deeply telling of the patriarchal society that we've all grown up in. Similar to Nora, I'm ready for a change!
Synopsis (plus spoilers):
Nora is married to Torvald, a powerful man in the banking business. They have been married for 8 years and have three children, although the nanny does most of the childrearing. Nora is more or less viewed as the "trophy wife". Throughout the play, we hear Torvald refer to his wife mostly using little nicknames and niceties. However, this shows the reader that he thinks much less of her as a person. After we discover a mistake that Nora has made, Torvald explodes and essentially disowns Nora only to quickly reverse his opinion after there is no harm done. Only, this has opened Nora's eyes to the possibility of a new life for herself.
In Ibsen's original version, she leaves her husband and children to discover who she is and to learn along the way.
In an alternative German ending, Torvald makes her see the children one last time, where she changes her mind and decides to stay for their sake.
My son-not surprisingly-didn't enjoy it. I, however, did. I think it is provocative and deeply telling of the patriarchal society that we've all grown up in. Similar to Nora, I'm ready for a change!
Synopsis (plus spoilers):
Nora is married to Torvald, a powerful man in the banking business. They have been married for 8 years and have three children, although the nanny does most of the childrearing. Nora is more or less viewed as the "trophy wife". Throughout the play, we hear Torvald refer to his wife mostly using little nicknames and niceties. However, this shows the reader that he thinks much less of her as a person. After we discover a mistake that Nora has made, Torvald explodes and essentially disowns Nora only to quickly reverse his opinion after there is no harm done. Only, this has opened Nora's eyes to the possibility of a new life for herself.
In Ibsen's original version, she leaves her husband and children to discover who she is and to learn along the way.
In an alternative German ending, Torvald makes her see the children one last time, where she changes her mind and decides to stay for their sake.
"Nigdy żaden z was mnie nie kochał. Wam się tylko zdawało, lubiliście tak o sobie myśleć... że mnie kochacie."
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Appreciated how it explored how the traditional role of women in relationships can result in her being infantilized rather than a true partner. Really thought provoking!
I would have gone for three stars. But this is written by a man, in 1879, which is kind of awesome.