This paper will carry out a biographical analysis of the play titled A Doll’s House by Henrique Ibsen and will focus on the main character Norah Helmer and the role of the other characters in her life. These characters are Torvald Helmer, Dr. Rank, and Nils Krogstad. The paper will make various references to the play and will conclude by giving an overall analysis of the characters that have been profiled.
A Doll’s House revolves around a character called Norah Helmer who is the wife of Torvald Helmer and together they have three children. Norah is a complex person who builds her happy life through the adoption of the fantastic expectations of her husband which denies her the chance to reveal her authenticity. One of her popular comments in the play is “The children shouldn’t see this till dusk after it has been decorated” and this remark allows the reader to start understanding the nature of Norah Helmer. She allows her husband to have a perception that she is a down-to-earth, submissive and obedient wife and she entertains her husband through dance, recitations, and dress-ups. She uses her feminine charm to convince and influence her husband and pretends that she is submissive to his instructions. Later in the play, the reader learns that this is a childhood trait and she cannot allow her husband to feel obligated to her. She does anything she can to safeguard her illusions of a happy home.
Norah is a criminal and a hero at the same time (Unwin 19). She saves the life of her husband by obtaining a confidential loan after forging her father’s signature. This brings a legal issue that can explore the place of a married woman in the family. In this society where the play is set, women were not supposed to get loans without the permission of the man of the house. She tries to pay this huge loan using her meager resources for years and hides under the veneer of arts and crafts which she practices. Her readiness to defy the law to save Mr. Helmer’s health illustrates that she is a courageous woman and debunks the perception that she is a weak character.
She is not changed by Krogstad’s blackmail and the trauma that accompanies it and these challenges actually open her world to her potential which has not been fulfilled and appreciated. During the climactic encounter with her husband, she tells him “I have been doing tricks for you, Torvald” (McFarlane 34). This is when she realises that she has not been her authentic self all through her illusionary happy marriage. Norah has been faking identity so as to conform to the expectations of her husband and the society but she changes radically after being catalysed by the reaction of her husband after he learns about the loan obtained through forgery. She learns that her whole life is on a collision course with her real personality. She starts defying her husband in small but useful ways.she starts by feeding on the macaroons and cheating about it. She starts deriving pleasure from small acts of rebellion as her awareness about her true life continues to rise. This awareness escalates her need for rebellion and this leads to her ultimate departure from her house, leaving her children and husband in the house. She goes to search for the independence that has been lacking in her life. One of the most influential people in her life is Torvald Helmer and he is a man who has a very narrow view of what is good and bad. This man presents himself as the perfect patriarch of his household, a man who is firmly in control of his own family and a wise man with a high sense of moral judgement. His fortunes turn for the better when he assumes a managerial position in a savings bank and a better part of his conversations with his wife revolve around finances and money. These conversations reveal his patronising nature as he talks about how he avoids taking loans and being in debt. This reveals his cautious approach to life and is conscious of how the public perceives him. He talks to his wife using a condescending tone; one would think that he is a parent and not a spouse to Norah. The wife therefore fakes an impression that she is totally obedient to him is and he buys this false impression. Though he exudes a strong exterior, he is a coward who cannot confront simple issues like personal illness or illness of a close pal. All the people around him struggle to protect him from several realities of life and one of his biggest undoings is thinking that the world revolves around him. He thinks that his wife must be the person he expects her to be and manipulates her to do several things which she falsely submits to. Naturally, he is a misogynist who thinks that the problems in the worlds are caused by women. Though he portrays himself as strong man, he is actually weaker than the wife; he is more childish and has to be sheltered like a baby from the harsh realities of life. His childishness is petty and is revealed by his refusal to work with Krogstad because he is threatened by the fact that Krogstad does not respect him as he expects. “Retaining Krogstad will make me a laughing stock and I don’t want to suffer indignity in front of my juniors” (Ibsen 78). This is another petty decision he makes after his wife request that Krogstad be kept at the office and this indicates that his reputation is a priority that cannot be equated with the desires of his wife and the interests of others. His final reaction emphasises his egoistic nature where he insists that his wife has ruined his happiness and will not be allowed to be in control of the house and children. However he bars her from leaving the house because he does not want the society to notice that there is a split in the family. He wants to save the appearance of his family because cannot stand negative perception from the public.
Another person who really influences the life of Norah Helmer is Dr Rank. Dr Rank is a family friend of the Torvald’s and he visits them everyday on his way home from work. He is very close to Norah because unlike her husband, he listens to her without castigating and demonizing her. Norah confides in Dr Rank and feels comfortable in his presence. She also tries to flirt with him and his feelings for Torvald’s wife are deeper; their relationship is more than ordinary friendship. Dr Rank has a terminal disease and when he is about to die, she calls Norah because there is something she wants to share wit her. He does not allow Torvald to see him in his sick room saying “Torvald Helmer is too sensitive to face me in my situation and I can’t have him around”. Norah wants to ask him for money to pay off her loan but her conscience holds her back. She realises that she has been using her feminine charm on Dr Rank too. This character does not develop the play very much but he is a symbol of moral corruption though his selfless and humble nature endears him to most leaders. When he dies, very few people get emotional and this illustrates his insignificance in the society.
The character that ruins the life of the protagonist is Nils Krogstad. He is the loan shark that lent Norah the loan, and his boss is Torvald Helmer whom he sees as a threat to the security of his job. He tries to make a good name to keep his job because his past performance has not been excellent but he ends up blackmailing Norah to safeguard his career. He threatens to expose Norah’s secret to Torvald and this really scares her because she knows that she has committed a grave crime. He therefore asks Norah to influence her husband to help him safeguard his career and in return for his silence on the loan issue. He is the antagonist in this play though his antagonism is not villainous but his willingness to torment Torvald’s wife exposes his cruel nature. He is somehow sympathetic to her and this can be illustrated when he says “Every Shylock has some little feelings” (Ibsen 89). He discourages Norah from committing suicide and he behaves the way does because he has a meaningful personal motive. He wants to keep his job which on the balance because he does not want to expose his family to the vagaries of a tainted reputation. Just like Mrs. Helmer, Krogstad has been wronged by the society and both characters have forged signatures though the latter’s crime is minor and hardly breaks any law. However, the society stigmatises him by perceiving him as a criminal and the isolation he suffers impedes his personal and career progress (Williams 40). He is a victim of circumstances and his odds with morality started when his suitor called Mrs. Linde left him for a wealthy man who would easily provide for her unlike Krogstad who had to struggle to make her happy. Social forces thus forced Mrs Linde from Krogstad prompting him to resort to corporate crime and though the unfairness of the society towards this antagonist cannot justify his criminal actions, it helps to bring him close to another victim of the society, Mrs. Helmer and helps to wither away the reader’s perception of Krogstad as despicable character.
In conclusion, a biographical analysis of this play cannot be complete without references to Norah Helmer, the main character, Torvald, Dr Rank and the main antagonist, called Nils Krogstad. The blackmail of Nils Krogstad, the forgery of Norah Helmer and the final reaction of Torvald Helmer are the main highlights of this play.
Works Cited
Ibsen, Henrique. A Doll’s House. London: Nick Hern Books, 1994.
McFarlane, James. The Cambridge companion to Ibsen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
Unwin, Stephen. Ibsen’s A Doll’s House: Study Guide. London: Nick Hern Books, 1997.
Williams, Thomas. Parallels in A Doll’s House. Chicago: Monmouth, 1997.