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Significance of the title
The title of the play has immense significance as it shows that the protagonist Nora has never been treated more than a playful thing shifting from the hands of one person to another. The ‘Doll’ represents Nora and the ‘House’ represents the house of Helmer where Nora lives.
If the play is observed critically we can see that the title of the doll is used in a rather ironic manner suggesting that he enjoys the beauty of her wife and enables her childish behavior but as the play progresses, we come to see that there is much more to her then just her feminine side. Nora is a dignified individual who seeks validation and tries to break free from the restrictions imposed on her by her husband and society in general.
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According to her husband Nora is just an inanimate object with which he toys Nora says in the play “Our home has been nothing but a playroom. I have been your doll-wife”. This pretty much sums up the reality of their married life, their picturesque home, and Helmer’s attitude towards her. Nora is an apparent doll that is subservient and acts as per the demands of her husband who wants to see her as almost perfect and unchanging.
Another ironic reference is made in the usage of the word ‘Doll’ when the house is described because we can clearly comprehend that the ‘house’ not ‘home’ does not belong to Nora the real owner of the house is Mr.Helmer along with the doll. In fact that house is her cage where she is bound to act like her husband wants.
The use of the word ‘house’ also indicates the thematic meaning. The word house is used instead of home which is full of emotions. On the other hand, the house only depicts some place or shelter to live in without any emotions or feelings of a family attached to it.
However, not all translators agree on the same name some call it “A Doll’s House” while others just name it “A Doll House”. In one title doll is the possessive of the house and in another, it merely defines what sort of house it is.
Chrismas Tree as a Symbol of Nora's State
The Christmas tree undoubtedly is full of symbolism because it symbolizes Nora’s position in the household which is merely decorative. She dresses up the tree with different ornaments and decorations as she does in her life to cover up the lies and deceit. At one instance she tells the maid to not let children see the tree until it is decorated the same way she tells Torvald that she cannot be seen in her costume until the party.
There are many parallels between the Christmas tree and Nora as we know that at the beginning of Act II, the tree is described as “Christmas Tree is […] stripped of its ornaments and with burnt-down candle-ends on its disheveled branches” which depicts that everything is falling out of place and the obvious beauty of the tree has been damaged same is the case with Nora because her condition is worse as her lies begin to fade and truth of her fraud is about to her emerge.
Nora’s condition has also been explained in the same way that “[Nora] is alone in the room, walking about uneasily” which suggests that her physical as well as psychological condition is battered.
Portrayal of Noras’s Tarantella Dance
We know that Norma constantly tries to please her husband by doing different stunts and by dressing up like a doll one such instance is when she rehearses for the tarantella dance that she prepared for her husband. It is shown that during the practice she wears a colorful shawl that spills the enthusiasm of life and energy which her husband disapproves but by the time she has her last dances she is so caught up in the whirl of life that her costume changes to a black colored shawl which is the color of apathy and death and sorrow.
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Her dance is wild and full of chaos and hysteric movements which her husband does not know anything about because the fear of her lie being revealed is stinging Nora. Her dance casts an arousing mood upon Torvald and he could not hold himself and wanted to get intimate with her wife. Nora being in her worries rejects him which he obviously does not take very well.
Nora: “Leave me Torvald! Get away from me I don’t want all this.”
Torvald: “what? Now Nora you’re joking with me. Don’t want __? Aren’t I your husband?”
Torvald wants Nora to adhere to society’s demands of a good wife as well as comply with his orders anywhere and anytime he wants. The tarantella dance which originated from the moves of a person who was bitten by a poisonous spider also symbolizes her mood and frenzy. She frantically dances as a reaction to the blackmailing of Krogstad who poisoned her life and to the smothering oppression of her husband in the name of love.
OTHER SYMBOLS AND METAPHORS EXPLAINED
Starting from the setting of the play, it is one of the most vital symbols in the play as the play progresses as the end of the year approaches. Many significant events are celebrated at that time i.e. Christmas and the dawn of the New Year. The play symbolizes the ending of the old and the birth of the new as many people change their lives with the changing year.
For example, Krogstad changes his behavior and decides to give his life another chance with Mrs. Linde, Torvald discovers that he has been lied to by his wife and changes from being a lover husband to a judgmental demeaning one. Similarly, Nora has a spiritual awakening as well and realizes her worth and walks out of the house and her pitiful marriage because she wants to be more than a “doll-wife”.
Another symbol that is prominent throughout the play is the stove. The stove makes a fire which provides warmth and heat. Nora goes and touches the stove when she talks with Krogstad and tries to protect herself against the icy cold situation she is facing.
Again at the instance when Dr. Rank declares his love for Nora she walks over to the stove without any clear purpose for doing so which depicts that she somehow feels safe in the warmth of this object whenever something bothers or bewilders her.
Another symbolic action that we find at the end of the play is that of Nora shutting the door of Helmer’s house and stepping outside. This is not the mere act of ending the marriage or leaving his home but caters much more than that. It shows that she left her old self behind and is ready to live life on her own terms.
She is breaking the shackles made by her husband and accepting her role as a conscious wise and free woman. This also refers to the modern woman’s step towards gaining independence, and free will, and facing hurdles on her own. That is why Ibsen’s play is called a modern play.
Motives Behind Nora's Lying
Nora lies to her husband about several things be it little things like macaroons or the critical matter of financial fraud. If we talk about Nora’s stance about her wrongdoings she simply denies the fact that she has committed a crime. She forged the sign of her late father to sanction a loan in which she is not alone. What she doesn’t realize is that she has been morally corrupt on various levels.
Krogstad, her accomplice however accepts his mistakes and now faces the criminal charges and wants Nora to do the same. She on the other hand stands firm on the ground that she did all she did with the best of intentions. Nora after rejecting her husband’s apologies and pleading in the end decides to leave the doll house and their deceptive marriage.
If we talk about the reason why Nora lied to her husband there are some facts. First off the biggest reason one can simply conclude by reading the play is that she did it out of love for her husband. She courageously committed a fraud to save her husband when Dr suggested her to take Torvald to Italy.
Initially nor tries her best to convince Torvald to burrow some money to go to Italy but he refuses as a result she takes this huge daring step on her own. Knowing her husband and his temper Nora is unable to tell him the truth about the finances so she keeps hiding it because she fears Helmer’s reaction.
If we take the instance of Nora lying about the macaroons that too is justified somehow because she is caged in the so-called house she shares with her husband. She cannot even fulfill her simplest wish of eating something she desires without the approval of her controlling husband. Nora’s childlike behavior is an instinctive response to her husband’s demeaning behavior. We can say that her capacity for deception is not limited.
TORVALD’S REACTION AND HIS TAKE ON BEING CHEATED
Torvald was more than angry when he finds about all the matters going on. He feels deceived, cheated, and insulted. The cause of his anger is justified within the context of social norms which a wife should follow i.e. consulting her husband before making such a huge decision.
Nora despite having good intentions in her heart breaks the basic and far most important rule of a spousal relationship which is trust. As soon as Torvald got to know about Nora’s lies he immediately denounced her as being her wife and bashed her. He cannot bring himself to show gratitude towards Nora for saving his life instead he becomes offensive and concerned for his own reputation. This leads us to think that all of this may have hurt his ego and patriarchal dominance.
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In a deeper sense, we can see that why Torvald felt so fumed up because whatever Nora did behind his back involved Krogstad who is fraudulent and does not have a good reputation. Torvald is worried that Krogstad may destroy his reputation with all the blackmailing also he was insubordinate.
Torvald could not digest the audacity of her wife and an ex-employee that they had done something that could potentially harm his job and respect. He realizes that his standing as a man is at stake and that he cannot control his own wife from attempting such a crime.
Torvald names his wife as “irresponsible” and shames her saying “Now, do you understand what you've done to me!” claiming Nora had done some irreversible damage to his social status. He also degrades Krogstad along with his wife.
CORRUPTION, LIES, AND DECEIT REFLECTED BY EACH CHARACTER
The theme of lies and deception runs throughout the play. Starting from Nora when she deceived her husband by borrowing money and then piling up lies upon lies to protect her husband or to some extent her own self. She keeps fabricating little things like eating macaroons or tiptoeing around her husband to hear him.
She idealized her father in her childhood and soon realized that she was wrong and then lovingly made her husband her ideal. To some extent, Nora knows that her husband is just controlling her and wants her as he wishes to see her but she continues to live in that fancy world that she created around herself. She even urges her children to tell lies when she says “Don't talk to anyone about the strange gentleman. You hear? Not even to Daddy”. In this way, she is giving way to their purity and teaching them to scam their way out of difficulties. This does indicate the unhealthy ritual of lying and deceit in their family.
If we observe the behavior of Torvald we can see that he is maneuvering his wife according to his needs and wishes. He does not truly love her as their marriage failed the test. He is manipulative lies about his undying love and sacrifices his life for Nora.
Similarly, Dr. Rank who is the family doctor lies and keeps his true feelings about Nora under the cover. On one side he tries to be a good friend to Torvald by keeping his feelings hidden on the other hand he cannot restrict himself from confessing his love in front of Nora.
Every character seems to struggle with appearance VS reality while keeping up with those masked identities and lying to each other intentionally or unintentionally. In the end, we can say that all of them are reborn and acquire a lesson from their mistakes.
The play is interpreted by Ayesha Imtiaz, one of the team members at the School of Literature.
