‘Men may seem more powerful than women, but the reality is different’. In light of this view,
consider ways in which Ibsen explore power and gender in A Doll’s House?
In A Doll’s House, men are seemingly in the dominant position, and they manipulate their power to
control women in an ideological sphere so that their own identity and social status may be retained
and acknowledged by society. As exposed in the play, in the Victorian era, men were in a financially
and ideologically superior position over women, while women were kept in a subordinate position
and were confined to their homes as they are not economically independent and had to rely on their
husbands for support.
Under Torvald’s masculine power, Nora is deprived of her identity and dignity and has to be
comfortable to her husband’s ideology. He wouldn’t allow his wife to break the rules, which, to him is
an insult and sabotage to his manliness and his authority. He has ‘forbidden’ his wife eating sweets
and proportions his wife’s expenditures on the household. A strong sense of authority and
possession can be regarded as a revelation of Torvald’s desire of power over women. Torvald makes
use of diminutive language such as ‘little’ ‘squander bird’, ‘squirrel’ that diminish Nora’s equality.
Torvald has trapped himself by accepting societies corrupted perceptions of women and his own
obsession with authority. In Act 3, Torvald, with his close-minded beliefs, insists that Nora possesses
‘sacred duties’ by stating, “First and foremost, you’re a wife and a mother”. Torvald insists that Nora
is neglecting these fundamental duties to her husband and her children. In essence, Torvald is
suggesting that Nora is failing to fulfil her role as a stereotypical woman, as Torvald perceives it to
be. In this situation, it is clear that Torvald believes that Nora is an incompetent adult and often
treats her like a child. This further depicts Torvald’s incongruence and inequality with his wife and
in turn highlights how much the dynamic of Nora and Torvald’s relationship is based on his control
over her. While Torvald’s belittling language can be seen clearly in Act 3, he
often makes use of abstract phrases that suggest insignificance to indicate his authoritative nature
over Nora. In the beginning of the play, Torvald calls out ‘Is that my little lark twittering out there’.
The use of the word ‘little’ allows him to appease his need for authority and dominance in a
seemingly playful manner. Torvald’s continual use of seemingly playful labels when referring to his
wife is significant in that the words replace her name, depersonalising her all of which, not only
placing Nora on a level below humanity, but reducing her to the level of a household pet – this
instantly reemphasises Torvald’s authority over Nora.
One could argue, Ibsen criticises social divides having written the play in a naturalistic form – not
adhering to the common conventions of the well-made play. Nora, although initially presented as
frivolous, is shown to be stronger and far more intelligent than the stereotypical ‘damsel in distress’
often shown in traditional well-made plays. In having her secretly save Torvald’s life and work – it
forces the audience to criticise the delicate and weak image often placed on women. Torvald’s
outburst at the end of the play in discovering Nora has lied also forces the audience to question his
role as the ‘hero’. The contrast between calling her a ‘liar’ and a ‘criminal’ to reverting back to “my
little Nora” when they are saved, not only shows how fake and flawed her melodramatic is, but often
associated with women. Ibsen could be criticising the view of men in society as “heroes” and
protectors by having Torvald not living up to that.
Though Nora is treated like a doll child first by her father and then by her husband and is never
allowed to evolve as a person, beneath her subordinate and childish exterior is a woman who has the
potential to be manipulative and deceptive. Nora plays along in order to please Helmer and
manipulate him, but also because she does not want to disclose her many secrets, trivial and serious.
When she performs acts that are generally reserved for men, or withdraws from practices associated
with women, she shows the gender attribution of these acts to be social constructions and thereby
challenged their reified status. One may argue that Nora only develops an authoritative character
when she is deceptive – firstly through obtaining a loan and secondly after having experienced the
