CifAPTERl
INTRODUCTION
1.1
. Background of Study
The object of this study is Henrik Ibsen's play entitled A Doll's House. He
produced and finaHy published it in Munich in 1879. Born in 1828 :in Skien, Norway,
Henrik Johan Ibsen, usuaHy called Hemik Ibsen, became the eldest of five children since
his older brother's death. Leaving his family, Ibsen traveled to Grimstad, a small,
isolated town and began to write satire and elegant poetry inspired by the revolution of
1848.
also spent time analyzing and criticizing modern Norwegian literature. In
1868, he moved to Dresden and then to Munich in 1875. It vvas in Munich in 1879 that
wrote his groundbreaking play, A Doll's House.
In the next decade, Ibsen pursued his interest in realistic drama, earning·
international acclaims. Many of his works were published in translation and pelfonned
throughout Europe. He was famous for seeking out ideas and encouraging his writing.
After suffering a series of strokes, Ibsen died in 1906 at the age of seventy-eight. He was
unable to write for the last few y ars of his life.
(http://Wtww.knowledgerush.com/kr/jsp/db/author.jsp!authorid=296&authorName=Henr
ik%2Bibsen)
Ibsen's A Doll's House is a well-told story that can involve us emotionally in the
life of its characters. There are eight characters in the play, i.e. Torvald Helmer, Nora,
Doctor RMrs. Christine Lindeand Nils Krogstad, Helmer's three smaH children,
Anne-MariaHelene and a porter. The main character is played by a female character
named Nora. She is married to a middle-class man, Torvald Helmer. Unfortunately, their
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marriage is not happy because Nora actually lies to her husband and her husband always
treats her like treating a child. Her husband, Torvald Helmeris a high profile man who
used to be a lawyer. He is recently appointed as a bank manager. He starts at the bank
straight after the New Year celebration, and he gets a big salary and lots of commission
from his new job.
Once when her husband becomes seriously ill, Nora borrows some money to
save her husband, but her husband does not know about it. She borrows the money from
her friend, Krogstad. However, Krogstad sends a letter to Torvald telling about Nora's
borrowing money from hun, but Nora informs about Krogstad's letter to Torvald before
he reads the Ietier. Sohe finds it out through Nora's confession instead of from the
letter.
play is ended with Noras leaving her husband, and the family.
reason to choose a play written by Herrrik Ibsen is because the author
particularly talks about wo1nen's struggle against patriarchal values existing in society in
most of his plays. FurthennoreIbsen
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A Doll Is House is chosen because this play
picv.Jres a woman who still practices her domestic responsibility although at the end of
the play she stntggles against the social, patriarchal value. The last reason is because the
play delivers a moral message dealing with women's denied capability, namely being
independent.
I.2
Statement of Problems
The problems discussed in this paper are as follows:
1. Ifow is the
character struggle against the culturalpatriarchal values
presented in the play?
2. VVhat cultural, patriarchal values are opposed by the main character?
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3. What theme can be revealed through the discussions above?
I.J
Scope and Limitation
The scope of the discussion is limited to description of the struggle against the
social, patriarchal values shown by the main character in A Doll's House. The main
character of the play is a woman named Nora. The main theme of the play is also
analyzed after the discussion of Nora's struggle. This whole study takes 10 montl1s to
complete.
I.4
(rl)al and Function
The goals of this study are:
1. To describe the main character struggle against the cultural, patriarchal values in
the play.
2. To describe cultural, patriarchal values that opposed by the main character in the
play.
3. To discuss the main theme of the play.
The functions of this study are:
1. To offer reference to readers on analysis of character and theme.
2. To give insightful understanding on Ibsen's plays.
3. To provide knowledge on literary analysis to the enthusiastic readers.
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Research Methods
The
used is library research. The whole research is conducted through
some steps. They are reading the play, formulating problem to study, conducting the
analysis, fmding sources that support the analysis. Data consist of printed references and
books which are obtained from libraries of Billa Nusantara University:> University of
L""ldonesia, and from online materials as welL