A Doll’s House - The Start of Act 2
1. Re-cap – What tensions are unresolved at the end of Act 1. Be as clear
as you can on Nora’s situation and how it involves the other
characters.
2. Nora starts the scene alone – what does her behaviour demonstrate
about her state of mind?
3. The scene follows with a series of (mostly) dialogues that offer a
range of perspectives on Nora’s character:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
The Nurse: p.26-7 --- Holly/Melissa/
Mrs. Linde: p.27-30 – Lok/Sam
Helmer: p. 30-32 Pablo/Monica
Rank: p. 33-38
Rajit/Phil/James B
Krogstad: p. 39-41 – David/Tom
Mrs. Linde: p. 41-43 Billie/Gina
For each of these sections, take notes and be prepared to talk about:







Nora’s state of mind
How she relates to the character
The use of tension and dramatic irony
Language and symbolism
Comparisons with Act 1
Links with Death of a Salesman
The themes of family, respectability, gender politics, the effects of the
past, money, freedom
End of Act 2 – What dramatic function does the Tarantella serve?
Tarantella dance has roots in Ancient Greece. It was a ritualistic dance
in honor of the god of music and sun, Apollo, and god of wine,
Dionysus. Ancient Greeks settled in Italy, and continued this beautiful
dance to this day.
In the Italian Taranto, Apulia, the bite of a locally common type of wolf
spider, named "tarantula" after the region[3], was popularly believed to
be highly poisonous and to lead to a hysterical condition known as
tarantism. The stated belief in the 16th and 17th centuries was that
victims needed to engage in frenzied dancing to prevent death from
tarantism using a very rhythmic and fast music. The particular type of
dance and the music played became known as tarantella.