“A Dolls House” and feminist criticism
...ping out of tune!” (Ibsen 949). In the public eye, by men, women were essentially looked at as one man’s honoring trophy. By other women they were looked at as one man’s wife, who would never be able to be independent or survive without her husband leading the way. Nora starts out in the play as the typical woman of her time, flowing through the house with hums of sweetness. However, she is sneaky by hiding such things as the macaroons, the Christmas tree, and presents. She also hides riskier subjects such as the forged unpaid loan she took out for her husband’s life, and the blackmail presented by Krogstad, leaving her with the challenge of finding herself. A challenge that the majority of women back in this era would not think twice of attempting. Nora becomes very much aware of all the damage that can happen with her family concerning the blackmail. For the time Nora was present in, it would be logical for her to either reveal the truth to her husband or commit suicide, but instead she runs to other alternative solutions. Nora tries to undertake actions that were not very appropriate for women to take during the late 1800s, and her fears end up leading her to hide the truth of the blackmail from her husband. However, when Helmer discovers the letter, Nora loses herself, her power of control, and is forced to face the music. This next scene in the play, when Helmer becomes aware of the secret, represents the reaction a typical man would give to his wife back in the Victorian era. As the truth of the letter lies revealed, Helmer becomes obsessed with the deterioration of his reputation. To Nora, he unveils his true self and heartlessly tells her how she is a hypocrite, a liar, an unfit mother, and coldly says to her, “…how you have ruined my entire happiness…jeopardized my whole future.” (Ibsen 974) When in fact she did it so he could be alive to have a future. Regardless of how Helmer shoots down his wife with horrible putdowns, he still insists on staying together and hiding the truth. This made it clear to Nora that rather than being in an honora...