ipl-logo

Gender Role In A Doll's House

1315 Words6 Pages

Since the dawn of time, a person’s gender has been an essential component of determining what roles each gender is to assume in life. Woman have frequently been viewed as the submissive or weaker gender, only to be useful in the home, the ones who are not capable of making it in a man’s world, who are not allowed the same rights and privileges as their male counterparts. Men, on the other hand, have always been viewed as the dominant or stronger gender, the one who’s job it is to be the provider, the one who makes all the important decisions for his family. In Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, these assumed gender positions are upheld to the highest degree throughout the majority of the play; not being dismantled until the pivotal ending where Nora makes her stance on this lifestyle very clear.
In the 19th century Victorian era, Ibsen delves into a society vastly different from the society we know today. He explores a society in which the men are in control, the men run businesses, the men control the money, while the women …show more content…

This allows us an opportunity to appreciate where we are now. Over the past 150 years, society has seen major advances towards making men and women equal. This has been done by petitions, by voting, and by very strong women who have taken a stand to fight for what they believe in. Women had to fight for the right to attend higher education, the right to vote, the right to hold positions in government, and most recently, the right for men and women to be paid equally. Acquisition of these rights has truly helped to shape society into what it is today. It is remarkable to see through the eyes of Ibsen’s characters the society that could still be happening had brave women not decided to take a stand against the steel grasp of the man’s society to destroy the metaphorical barricade that women were trapped

Show More
Related

  • Similarities Between The Yellow Wallpaper And A Doll's House

    581 Words  | 3 Pages

    For a play in 1879 feminism was a huge aspect in everyone’s lives, especially within a marriage. In A Doll’s House, written by Henrik Ibsen, showcased Nora a character in the play to be heavily influenced by

    Read More

  • A Doll's House And Lysistrata Analysis

    1550 Words  | 7 Pages

    The relationships between gender and power in A Doll’s House and Lysistrata ‘One is not born, but, rather becomes a woman’. Lysistrata and A Doll’s House both present the disadvantaged position of women in their respective societies. The two plays present the relationship between gender and power and follow two women who go to extremes to become liberated from the restraints of their oppressive and dominating patriarchal society. Therefore, it is clear that both Nora and Lysistrata demonstrate the potential for women 's power and resistance in situations of male dominance in a hegemonic patriarchy. In order to prove this, it is important to look at the relationship between man and power, woman and power and the ways in which Nora and Lysistrata embody this power in the two plays.

    Read More

  • A Doll's House Analytical Essay

    1136 Words  | 5 Pages

    Nora’s defiance may have resulted in criticism from society, but Ibsen importantly commented on the terrible treatment of woman in relationships and the world. Ibsen created A Doll’s House in a time where women were treated unjustly and poorly. While the play might seem slightly irrelevant now, it still has a place in the world today. Women can borrow money and leave their husbands; however, society still puts tremendous pressure on women to fulfill sacred vows. The expectation to assure her husband’s happiness and to prioritize everyone else before herself is still an issue that many woman face today.

    Read More

  • Edna Pontellier's Role In The Awakening

    567 Words  | 3 Pages

    Patriarchal societies have existed as long as there have been humans. From the beginning when men would hunt and women would gather, to the present day wage gap, men’s demonstration of superiority is evident throughout history. Women, historically, serve as accessories to men, seen not heard. However, some brave women question their role in society. Edna Pontellier, in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, conforms outwardly to the societal role of women existing only as mothers and wives but questions inwardly through exploration of her individuality and sexuality, as demonstrated through her relationships with her husband Leonce Pontellier and Robert Lebrun, yet her realization that her growth will not be accepted by others ultimately causes her death.

    Read More

  • A Doll House And Trifles Comparison Essay

    558 Words  | 3 Pages

    In comparing and contrast both drama A Doll House by (Henrik Ibsen), and Trifles by (Susan Glaspell). The authors shine a light on how a woman had no place in society in the nineteenth century .A woman place was in her home and her responsibility’s consist of taking care of her husband, her children and her home. Mrs. Wright was introduce to the reader as woman that was held for murdering her husband after a long time of abuse. Nora was introduce to the reader as woman that had everything in life.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On A Doll's House

    1409 Words  | 6 Pages

    A Doll’s house is a realistic three act play that focuses on the nineteenth century life in middle class Scandinavian household life, where the wife is expected to be inferior and passive whereas the husband is superior and paternally protective. It was written by Henrik Ibsen. The play criticised the marriage norms that existed in the 19th century. It aroused many controversies as it concludes with Nora, the main protagonists leaving her husband and children in order to discover her identity. It created a lot of controversies and was heavily criticised as it questioned the traditional roles of men and women among Europeans who believed that the covenant of marriage was holy.

    Read More

  • Social Expectations In A Doll's House

    759 Words  | 4 Pages

    Ibsen, in his working notes, observed that “...a woman cannot be herself in today’s society”, since society in the 19th century, particularly in Norway, was exclusively male.

    Read More

  • Societal Gender Roles In Things Fall Apart

    847 Words  | 4 Pages

    Can Societal Gender Roles Limit an Individual? A man is supposed to be strong, powerful, and well respected. What if all genders were seen in the same light? In most societies, past and present, men are viewed as the dominant gender.

    Read More

  • A Doll's House Character Analysis

    1384 Words  | 6 Pages

    Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a play set in 19th century Norway, when women’s rights were restricted and social appearance was more important than equality and true identity. In A Doll’s House, Nora represents 19th century women entrapped by society to fulfill wifely and motherly obligations, unable to articulate or express their own feelings and desires. Ibsen uses Nora’s characterization, developed through her interactions with others as well as her personal deliberations and independent actions, language and structure in order to portray Nora’s movement from dependence to independence, gaining sovereignty from the control of her selfish husband, deceitful marriage and the strict social guidelines of morality in 19th century Norway. Initially, Nora appears to be a dependent, naïve, and childlike character; yet, as the play unfolds, she appears to be a strong, independent woman who is willing to make sacrifices for those she cares about as well as herself.

    Read More

  • Hedda Gabler Research Paper

    363 Words  | 2 Pages

    Before this interactive oral I didn't know why Ibsen’s “Hedda Gabler” is based on the feminist movement as he admitted that “he was not a feminist”, but now I assert to his interest on the societal changes for him to portray feminism in his play. The information given in the discussion included about women’s roles and how it affected changes made during the movement. This interactive oral enhanced my understanding on how Ibsen used typical woman's life aspects of the Norwegian society to build up Hedda’s role for her anti-domestic character. Ibsen’s childhood life influenced him to build the structure of the play based on common household problems.

    Read More

  • Women In Hedda Gabler

    1499 Words  | 6 Pages

    As Hedda is implicitly forced to be submissive to Tesman, bound to social norms while Mrs Elvsted finds fulfillment and social liberation, and is cuttingly betrayed by Brack, Ibsen illustrates how vulnerable and entrapped women are made when the female role is unnecessarily but strictly enforced by the patriarchy. The character dynamics allow the audience to be more receptive to Ibsen’s messages when he challenges their beliefs about the significance and implications of enforcing gender roles onto women as the audience forms a bond with Hedda as she reacts to these other characters. This allowed his message to be conveyed effectively to the

    Read More

  • A Doll's House Research Paper

    864 Words  | 4 Pages

    Even though he was a male he still took the task of writing about women's rights because he was not a conventional romantic writer plays. He had a tougher life than other male writers as he went into destitution and was not accepted into university. His protagonist, Nora, was scrutinized because of her “unwholesome” behavior of leaving her husband and Ibsen felt pressure to write and alternative ending, but he did not lose his integrity and kept the play as it was. He was a “feminist” in the sense that he cared about individuals lives and wanted to expose oppressive and hypocritical institutions like the Church and marriage. His writing was not much different than female writers of the time period, but he was able to be more direct with his work because he did not fear the backlash from audiences because he was a

    Read More

  • Gender Inequality In A Doll's House By Henrik Ibsen

    1287 Words  | 6 Pages

    A Doll 's House", is a play by Henrik Ibsen. “A Doll 's House” by Henrik Ibsen represents the first signs of the rise of feminism. The play reflects his social, economic and political views of women 's setting free in his time. In this play, Ibsen makes many hints about the roles of society and how the female gender was treated at the time. Feminism is a social

    Read More

  • Role Of Women In Literature

    1495 Words  | 6 Pages

    The role of women in literature crosses many broad spectrums in works of the past and present. Women are often portrayed as weak and feeble individuals that submit to the situations around them, but in many cases women are shown to be strong, independent individuals. This is a common theme that has appeared many times in literature. Across all literature, there is a common element that causes the suffering and pain of women. This catalyst, the thing that initiates the suffering of women, is essentially always in the form of a man.

    Read More

  • Our Lady Of Alice Bhatti Analysis

    787 Words  | 4 Pages

    Women have less to say about what they need or want but they have to pay much and also to face the results when the men around them botch. It is dreary to see these frail willed men delineated in the novel who failed to stay up for women, who recognize an overall population where women are set backs of their

    Read More

More about Gender Role In A Doll's House

Open Document