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I&R desire essay
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Essay on the presentation of desire in Christina Rossetti's poetry and Henrik Ibsen's 'A Doll's House'.
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“Human desire inevitably leads to misery”. Compare how Ibsen and Rossetti presentdesire in the retrospective texts.
Through Ibsen’s 1879 realist play A Doll’s House and Rossetti’s collected poetry of
the Victorian era, desire is presented from the male point of view as the question of
whether desire will always ultimately fade is explored. Writing in 19 th Century
Norway, Ibsen was influenced by the imbalance of power in relationships, particularly
through his own experience of his father, who was an alcoholic and who took out his
own troubles on his children and wife; Ibsen’s sister described their mother as “loving
and self-sacrificing", which can be reflected through Nora’s character. He was highly
influenced by members of family who were involved in the feminist movement in the
late 1800s, which also fed into areas of his writing – particularly in relation to his
female characters. Similarly, writing in 19th Century England, Rossetti was influenced
by the connection between love and death, distinctly through her relationship with
James Collinson, who she wrote many poems about, often linking them to the
imminence and the pathos of death. In A Doll’s House and Rossetti’s poetry
collection, the writers argue that desire is portrayed from the male point of view,
highlighting the imbalance of power between men and women in the 1800s. Whilst A
Doll’s House displays that the level of desire one has for a partner will always remain
the same, Rossetti’s collection of poetry shows that desire will ultimately fade within
a relationship, whether that be through death, or the intervention of another.
Both Ibsen and Rossetti use their writing to explore the theme of desire as it is
portrayed from a male point of view – thus highlighting the imbalance of power
between men and women in the 19th Century. Ibsen’s A Doll’s House clearly uses
the character Torvald to highlight male desire. This is particularly evident where he
refers to Nora’s “distracting beauty”; whilst this could show the desire Torvald feels
for his wife, it could also show a jealousy of the attention she receives from others.
Perhaps this is why Nora is accused of “playing the fool” for Torvald, as by doing this
she contributes to his desire for her. Ibsen argues that “A Doll’s House is not about
everybody’s struggle to find him or herself, but about everywoman’s struggle against
everyman”, and this really highlights the significance of the imbalance of power
between men and women, and how seemingly the desire of men is always
prioritised. Similarly, Rossetti’s poetry collection of the Victorian era shows the desire
of men and the dominance they typically have within a relationship. In When I am
Dead, My Dearest, readers in the late 19th century could probably have assumed the
speaker to be male due to the commanding speech of the deceased telling ‘my
dearest’ what they should and shouldn’t do and how they should feel. “Sing no sad
songs for me” shows the speaker assuming that his dearest has the same level of
desire for him as he does for her. Comparatively, Rossetti’s Maude Clare, argues
critic Avery, “is a clear critique of dominant masculinity”. This is clear as when “my
lord gazed long on pale Maude Clare”, she in turn returns her “half of the golden
chain/ …[he] wore about... [his] neck”. Maude Clare’s actions contrast that expected
by society in the late 1800s through her sheer dismissal of Thomas’ desire for her.
The emphasis on the lengthening of words “long” and “lord” through their sound
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