A Doll’s House: During Reading
Selection Summaries
Students will read passages
from the play, A Doll’s House
and respond to questions by
summarizing the plot during
reading in order to show
understanding of the separate
gender spheres associated
with the Victorian Era.
About the Author Pre-Reading
• Read each of the following
sections on page 940-941 and
fill in important information on
your notesheet.
• You will have 15 minutes to
complete the notes.
About the Author Pre-Reading
Henrik Ibsen
•Critics & audiences hated
Ibsen’s work because he
was a literary pioneer.
•Creator of modern realistic
drama.
•First modern writer to use
drama to explore socially
unacceptable issues.
•Greatest and most
influential dramatist of the
19th century.
Difficult Beginnings
•Family was very poor.
•Hired as a playwright for
The National Theater of
Bergen.
Career in Theater
•Most popular play
Brand was written in
1866.
•Became a popular
playwright from this
point forward.
About the Author Pre-Reading
Controversial Art
•A Doll’s House was not liked by the public
because it portrayed a woman whose actions
were unacceptable.
Modern Realistic Drama: A type of play unlike
anything audiences has seen before.
1. Reflects ordinary language.
2. Depicts characters and situations as they really
are.
3. Addresses controversial issues and society’s
assumptions.
Act 1: Selection Summary 1 P.943
• Read the stage directions at the beginning of
Act 1.
• List four details from the passage that indicate
the Helmer’s social standing.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Tastefully furnished
Study
Piano
Porcelain stove
Small art objects
China figures
Books
Fire
Carpet
Act 1: Selection Summary 2, pp. 943-946
•
•
•
•
List the nicknames Torvald calls Nora.
What is Torvald’s attitude toward money?
What is Nora’s attitude toward money?
How would you describe the roles Torvald and
Nora have in their marriage?
Torvald calls Nora “little lark” and “my squirrel.” He views her
as a child and shakes his finger at her and interrogates her
about the macaroons. Nora, on the other hand, is obedient to
Torvald and lies about her actions to appease him. Nora is
presented as a spendthift, while Torvald is against borrowing
money because it eliminates the freedom of the borrower.
Their marriage is essentially unstable where Nora is limited to
the decisions of her husband, Torvald.
Act 1: Selection Summary 3, pp. 947-949
• Review the gestures Nora displays while talking with Torvald.
• How are her gestures indicative of her childlike role in her
marriage?
• Who is expected to join the Helmer’s for dinner? What does this
reveal about Torvald’s previous health?
• Who arrives at the Helmer’s home? How is her social status
different than Nora’s?
Nora claps her hands excitedly when she and Torvald speak; she
doesn’t like to be teased. Nora and Torvald talk about Dr. Rank
coming for dinner later, which sheds light on Torvald’s previous illness
that required the Helmer’s to travel to a warmer climate which was a
great expense. In addition, Nora’s old friend Mrs. Linde arrives.
Kristine is a widow without children who has suffered hard times;
while Nora is concerned with “stacks of money,” Kristine is only
focused on being sensible and “the necessities.” The two women are
a contrast to each other.
Act 1: Selection Summary 4, pp 950-951
•
•
•
•
From whom did Nora get the money to travel to Italy?
For what reasons did Kristine marry her husband?
What is Kristine’s motive for visiting Nora?
Predict: What is Nora’s “big thing” she has yet to reveal?
Nora got the money to take Torvald to Italy as per Doctor’s orders
from her father who later passed away. In their discussion, Kristine
reveals to Nora that she married her husband with whom she did not
love for financial security reasons; she needed to care for her sick
mother and two younger brothers at the time. Without his income,
she has faced exhausting work days which Nora cannot empathize
with. In order to dramatize her own hardships, Nora reveals that she
has her own troubles which most likely have to deal with finances
and foreshadowed by earlier conversations with her husband.