Re-reading Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House: A Modern Feminist Perspective

Abstract

This article aims to present a re-reading of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House from a feminist perspective. Ibsen’s play is a pioneering feminist play, and he is credited for creating the first real feminist character in the history of theatre. The central female characters are analyzed, and the article also addresses the attitude of society towards women and how they struggle to prove themselves. Feminist literary criticism and feminism constitute the conceptual framework of the paper. In this play, Nora Helmer is under the illusion that her married life is perfect and that she owns what she deserves. Torvald, her husband calls her a ‘twittering lark’, ‘squirrel’, ‘song-bird’, and she is pleased with it. However, her illusion shatters when she faces the reality of finding herself being treated like a doll. As soon as she realizes that there exists an individual self of her, she revolts. She leaves the house, challenging the social institutions which contribute to women’s subjugation. Nora protests against the ill-treatment towards her by society for her willingness to get her right back, for her self-respect, and for finding herself.