Ms. Ricciardi
Modern World Literature
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
Henrik Ibsen
Biographical Intro
"A woman cannot be herself in the society of the present day, which is an
exclusively masculine society, with laws framed by men and with judicial
system that judges feminine conduct from a masculine point of view."
--from Ibsen's Workshop, 1912
Henrik Ibsen, considered by many to be the father of modern prose drama, is
said to be the most frequently performed dramatist in the world after
Shakespeare. Born in Skien, Norway, on March 20, 1828, he was the second of
six children. Ibsen’s father was a prominent merchant, but he went bankrupt
when Ibsen was eight years old, so Ibsen spent much of his early life living in
poverty.
In 1858, Ibsen married Suzannah Thoreson, and eventually had one son with
her. Ibsen felt that, rather than merely live together, husband and wife should live
as equals, free to become their own human beings. (This belief can be seen
clearly in A Doll’s House.) Consequently, Ibsen’s critics attacked him for failing to
respect the institution of marriage. Like his private life, Ibsen’s writing tended to
stir up sensitive social issues, and some corners of Norwegian society frowned
upon his work. Sensing criticism in Oslo about not only his work but also his
private life, Ibsen moved to Italy in 1864 with the support of a traveling grant and
a stipend from the Norwegian government. He spent the next twenty-seven years
living abroad, mostly in Italy and Germany.
While living in Italy, Ibsen published his masterpiece, A Doll’s House. It is widely
considered a landmark in the development of what soon became a highly
prevalent genre of theater—realism, which strives to portray life accurately
and shuns idealized visions of it. Realism in art and literature is the
depiction of subjects as they appear, without embellishment or
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
interpretation. In A Doll’s House, Ibsen employs the themes and structures of
classical tragedy while writing in prose about everyday, unexceptional people. A
Doll’s House also manifests Ibsen’s concern for women’s rights and for human
rights in general.
Ibsen wrote for and about the middle class and life in the suburbs and small
towns. He focused on characters and psychological conflicts rather than dramatic
situations. His central theme was the duty of the individual towards himself, not
the out-of-date conventions of bourgeois [middle-class] society.
Society's criticism of Ibsen was raised to a fevered pitch at this point [A Doll’s
House, Ghosts], but society itself was losing its control over the mass of people,
most of whom didn't live in the rarefied air of the Victorian gentleman. They
wanted to see Ibsen's plays because he showed what so many of them already
knew to be the reality. The tide had turned.
Ibsen had completely rewritten the rules of drama with a realism which was to be
adopted by Chekhov and others and which we see in the theater to this day.
From Ibsen forward, challenging assumptions and directly speaking about issues
has been considered one of the factors that make a play art rather than
entertainment.
He died on May 23, 1906.
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
Cast of A Doll’s House
By Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) Norway
A play in three acts, written in 1879
CAST
Nora Helmer (The main character. A young married woman, mother of three.)
Torvald Helmer (Nora’s husband.)
Doctor Rank (A close friend of the Helmers)
Mrs. Christine Linde (Nora’s former classmate; now a widow.)
Nils Krogstad (Torvald’s co-worker and former classmate. Widower with children)
The Helmer’s three young children
Bob
Ivan
Emmy
Anne Marie (Nurse, or nanny, for the children. Also, Nora’s former nanny.)
A housemaid
A porter
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
A Doll’s House Vocabulary
Find the definition for each.
1. Precarious (Adj.) -
2. Procure (V) -
3. Impudent (Adj.) Impudence (N.) -
4. Entreaty (N) -
5. Caprice (N) Capricious (Adj.) -
6. Inexorable (Adj.)
7. Amicable (Adj.)
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
8. Expedient (Adj.)
9. Prevaricate (V)
10. Obstinate (Adj.)
11. Intercede (V)
12. Façade (N)
13. Subversive (Adj.)
14. Provincial (Adj)
15. Bourgeois (Adj.)
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
Directions: Answer each set of questions with paginated bullet points. Be
sure that your notes are clear enough that they are easy for you to understand
when you review them and that their meanings are clear to me.
Set #A-- ACT I (8 questions, pages 3-15)
1. How does Torvald address his wife; what terms does he use? What is their
significance?
2. What can you infer about Nora from the gifts she buys her children?
3. Why does Torvald scold Nora for her spending habits and then encourage her
behavior? What does this tell you about their relationship?
4. What has happened to Christine’s family? (mother, brothers, husband)
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
5. What three things has Christine’s husband failed to leave her after his death?
What can you infer about Christine from this?
6. Why has Christine come to the city?
7. What secret does Nora confide in Christine?
8. Christine calls Nora a child several times…why?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
SET B--ACT I (6 questions, pages 16-28)
1. What pretense did Nora make to hide from Torvald the fact that she was working?
How did she feel about working?
2. What information does Dr. Rank suggest about his own health?
3. Describe two things that Nora does with her children. What does this tell you
about her relationship with them?
4. What does Krogstad want to tell Nora while her husband is away?
5. What crime are Krogstad and Nora both guilty of?
6. What is Helmer’s attitude about the influence of parents upon children?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
SET C--ACT II (8 questions, pages 30-40)
1. Why does Nora act agitated and uneasy at the start of the Act?
2. What two questions does Nora ask Anne (Nurse) about her children? What does
this foreshadow?
3. How does Christine plan to help Nora?
4. What request does Nora repeat to Torvald and why?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
5. How does Torvald react when Nora calls him “narrow minded”? What is its
significance?
6. Why is Torvald determined to fire Krogstad?
7. What is in the letter that Torvald gives the maid to deliver on Christmas day?
8. Why doesn’t Nora feel that she can tell Dr. Rank her secret?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
SET D--ACT III (8 Questions, pages 40-48)
1. What is Krogstad’s new plan?
2. When Nora asks Krogstad for sympathy, what is his retort? Why is it significant?
3. How does Krogstad know that Nora is planning to “run away”?
4. Why does Krogstad want to keep his job so badly?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
5. What conflict does Nora feel about the idea that Torvald will discover her secret?
6. Why does Nora tell Torvald that she has forgotten how to dance?
7. What do we learn about Christine and Krogstad?
8. Nora says she has “thirty-one hours to live.” What does this suggest?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
SET E--ACT III (7 Questions, pages 49-58)
1. What type of relationship once existed between Christine and Krogstad? Why did
it end?
2. Why does each of them want to rekindle the relationship?
3. What ironic thing does Torvald say to Christine about Nora’s behavior? Why is
this significant?
4. Explain the metaphor Torvald uses when he tells Mrs. Linde that she should
embroider rather than knit.
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
5. On page 55 Nora reprimands Torvald for saying “Why should I look at my
dearest treasure? --at all the beauty that is mine, all my very own?” Why is this
complement deceptive? What is the importance of Nora’s reprimand?
6. What does Torvald unsuccessfully try to do after the party? What is the
importance of his failure?
7. Upon interrupting the Helmers, Dr. Rank says that “one can’t have anything in
this life without paying for it” (56). Why is this insightful to the overall meaning
of the play?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
SET F--ACT III: (11 Questions, pages 59-68)
1. On page 58 Torvald expresses his secret fantasy of rescuing Nora from a great
danger. Why is this situational irony? What is the significance of Nora’s reaction
to his statement?
2. What is Torvald’s reaction when he reads Krogstad’s letter?
3. What conditions does Torvald set up for the continuation of the Helmer’s
marriage and why?
4. How does Torvald’s attitude change when he discovers that Krogstad has returned
the incriminating paper?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
5. What are the two meanings of Nora’s lines “I am taking off my fancy dress” (61)
and “Yes, Torvald, I have changed my things now” (62)?
6. What does Nora find remarkable about the conversation they have after the party?
7. How does Nora explain why she never became an independent thinker?
8. What does Nora mean when she says she has not been happy, but only merry
(63)?
Ms. Ricciardi
MWL
NAME: __________________________
BLOCK: _________________________
9. What does Nora believe she must do before she can bring up her children?
10. What duties does Nora see as above those of religion and the law?
11. What was the “wonderful-terrible” thing that Nora was waiting to happen? What
is the significance of Torvald’s response to this idea of hers?