1. DRAMA II Modern Drama
Lecture 7

2. SYNOPSIS 1. Symbolism in The Doll’s House
2. Ibsen’s view about symbolism
The Christmas tree
Skylark
Toys
New Year
Door
Macrons
Title
3. Critical Analysis: Thought provoking aspects
social attitudes toward money
gender related attitudes in relationships

3. I. Symbols
Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

4. Symbolism in A Doll’s House Ibsen
Ibsen significantly uses the symbols (symbolism) to represent the identities and ideologies of 19th century.
He uses different symbols that relate to not only culture, religion, politics but also that  bears the psychological effects indeed.
Symbols like door, macron, embroidered dress, tree, and even the title itself is symbolic and influence at the society.

5. IBSEN’S VIEW ABOUT SYMBOLISM
Ibsen himself says’
“to try and give the reader the impression of experiencing a piece of reality”(Ibsen qouted in homer :p.72).
The language, setting and even dress, parties are realistic features shown in symbols.
Ibsen portrays the features of mediocrity and femininities, ideologies and identities in this drama and believes in the freedom and equality of woman.

6. Symbols ‘Black hat’ and ‘black cross’ Symbolizes ‘death’
‘Fisher girl costume’ Symbolizes ‘pretending to enjoy her life’
‘Italy’ Symbolizes ‘the good false image of Nora’s life’
‘Norway’ Symbolizes ‘reality’

7. Doll House’ Symbolizes ‘the tendency of the characters to play roles’
‘Toys’ Symbolizes ‘the act of pushing the roles into Nora’s children’
‘Macaroons’ Symbolizes ‘Nora’s deceit to her husband’
‘Tarantella’ Symbolizes ‘Nora’s agitation at her struggle with Krogstad and with her husband’

8. ‘Christmas tree’ Symbolizes ‘the mood of the play’
‘Stockings’ Symbolizes Nora’s attitude trying to please men and her flirting with Rank’
‘Letter box’ and letter Symbolizes ‘a trap for Nora and the cause of her demise’

9. ‘Embroidery’ Symbolizes ‘the stereotypes pressed on woman’
‘Ring’ Symbolizes ‘the marriage’ and the bound
‘Skylark’ Symbolizes ‘the way that Tarvald treats Nora like a child’

10. Symbols… The Christmas Tree Squirrel skylark Toys New Year Door
Macrons
Title

11. The Christmas Tree
The Christmas tree, a festive object meant to serve a decorative purpose, symbolizes Nora’s position in her household as a plaything who is pleasing to look at and adds charm to the home.

12. It is decorated as Nora would be on Christmas day and there is a star twinkle top of the tree that represent the hope and ambitions of Nora.
The new year that starts from Christmas is symbolic to the feminists movements that give liberty to Nora against the male dominance.
Nora is as attractive in multidimensional identity, a mother a daughter , a wife hence she is a pleasing object constructed by Ibsen as religion refers to Christmas.

13. John Northon argues that,
“the symbols is for the first time, a physical reality on the stage, a mere enough to it suggest actual presence. It is therefore both fact and symbol and from that fusion emerges the closure union of symbolism and reality which makes the play so complexly significant (the wild duck 1884, p )

14. There are several parallels drawn between Nora and the Christmas tree in the play.
Just as Nora instructs the maid that the children cannot see the tree until it has been decorated,
she tells Torvald that no one can see her in her dress until the evening of the dance.
Also, at the beginning of the second act, after Nora’s psychological condition has begun to erode, the stage directions indicate that the Christmas tree is correspondingly “de-shaped.”

15. Squirrel/skylark’s Symbolism
“Is that my little lark twittering out there”?(Ibsen, A Doll’s House:5)
Ibsen uses the animated and in animated choices and refers Nora to  innocent bird like skylark.
The linguistic choices in symbolic representation are patriarchal in nature has Sapirwhorf hypothesis _
‘languages is determined by thought and that thought gives strength to male to manipulate and enjoy the power of language’.
Nora is inhibited in Helmer’s house and she is praised by him in metaphoric speech pattern but at the end the same skylark is ready to fly for freedom autonomy

16. Toys’ Symbolism
“Yes, yes, it will. But come here and let me show you what I have bought. And all so cheap! Look, here is a new suit for Ivar, and a sword; and a horse and a trumpet for Bob;  a doll and dolly’s bedstead for Emmy,—”(Ibsen, A Doll’s House:5)
Toys are the clear picture of thee development of ideology and identity.  
Nora has bought “a horse and a sword” for her son  so that male is initially represented as holder of power and authority
while the gifts  for Emmy are  dolls that is the significant example to build femininity (ies) and masculinity (ies) culturally that is why Emma is gifted  by a doll.

17. Ibsen says that a woman of his century is much advanced and womanhood is a socially constructed phenomenon created by men

18. New Year’s Day
The action of the play is set at Christmastime, and Nora and Torvald both look forward to New Year’s as the start of a new, happier phase in their lives.
In the new year, Torvald will start his new job, and he anticipates with excitement the extra money and admiration the job will bring him.
Nora also looks forward to Torvald’s new job, because she will finally be able to repay her secret debt to Krogstad.

19. By the end of the play, however, the nature of the new start that New Year’s represents for Torvald and Nora has changed dramatically.
They both must become new people and face radically changed ways of living.
Hence, the new year comes to mark the beginning of a truly new and different period in both their lives and their personalities.

20. Door’s Symbolism Setting and staging…
Play open with door in setting, Nora walks towards door is sign of imprisonment of woman of 19th century under the bond of marriage. She seems to be happy but in fact critics peep inside the door and find the femininity (ies) and identities of domesticate woman.
“A room furnished comfortably and tastefully, but not extravagantly.
At the back, a door to the right leads to the entrance-hall, an other to the left leads to HELMER:’s study. Between the doors stands a piano. In the middle of the left-hand wall is a door, and beyond it a window. Near the window are a round table, arm-chairs and a small sofa. In the right- hand wall, at the farther end, another door; and on the same side, nearer the footlights, a stove, two easy chairs and a rocking-chair; between the stove and the door, a small table”.(Ibsen, A doll’ s House: 2)

21. The whole drama is performed inside the room
The whole drama is performed inside the room. That also brings the capitalistic perspective of the society.
The door opening is actually view of the domestic situation in patriarchal society we find at the dismissal of the relations again the door is in front of Nora to celebrate freedom as earlier she entered in cage created by men.

22. Macrons’ Symbolism
Ibsen provides non verbal feminists clues as Nora’s shawl, macron, tree etc..
“Just now. [Puts the bag of macaroons into her pocket and wipes her mouth.] Come in here, Torvald, and see what I have bought”.(Ibsen, A Dolls House:4)
The self independence is governed by Torveld is depicted by Ibsen.
Suffrage movement was one of the central reaction against this male monopoly.
Woman was not free physically and oppressed psychologically too.
That is why Nora is subordinate creature to Helmer. “She shut the door, she continues to laugh, she takes off her things, she takes a bag of macrons out of her pocket and eats one or two”

23. In the male dominance the issue of identities and femininities is at the verge of collapse and the gradual intensity of this tyranny make persuade to other sex to rebel and snatch the freedom that was got by Nora at the end of  play.
She transgendered her identity.

24. Title as Symbolism
The title is in itself a symbolic note describing the femininity and identity of the Victorian society doll is a playful object for everyone and even that is a decoration piece feeling less and emotionless.
she is a puppet in the hand of Torveld who want to push the strings according to his wish.
Nora also apparently functions as commanded doll but in the end of the play writer is succeeded to awake her from subordination and rebel from the male dominance.
She is now independent and making her decision according to her will and choice.
The last line she uttered is sign of change bringing the equal rights without gender segregation.
The whole drama is full with linguistic lexical and symbolic references representing the female of Ibsen’s “A Doll’s house”.

25. Critical Analysis: Thought provoking aspects
Money
social attitudes toward money
Gender
gender related attitudes in relationships

26. Thought provoking aspects…
Do we observe Ibsen’s work conveying any specific (characters’) social attitudes toward money?

27. Comparison of Torvald’s and Nora’s attitudes toward money
Torvald and Nora’s first conversation establishes Torvald as the member of the household who makes and controls the money and Nora as the one who spends it.
Torvald repeatedly teases Nora about her spending, and at one point Mrs. Linde points out that Nora was a big spender in her younger days.
These initial comments paint Nora as a shallow woman who is overly concerned with -material delights.

28. Yet Nora’s generous tip to the porter in the play’s opening scene shows that she is not a selfish woman.
More important, once the secret of Nora’s loan is made known to the audience, we see that Nora’s interest in money stems more from her concern for her family’s welfare than from petty desires.

29. Comparison of Torvald’s and Nora’s attitudes toward money…
We realize that the excitement she has expressed over Torvald’s new, well-paying job results from the fact that more spending money means she can finally pay off her debt to Krogstad.
While Torvald seems less enthralled by money because he doesn’t talk about it except to chastise Nora for her spending, he is obsessed with having a beautiful home, including a beautiful wife.

30. He considers these things important to his reputation, and keeping up this reputation requires money.
Although Torvald accuses Nora of wasting money, Nora spends her money mostly on worthy causes, whereas Torvald uses his for selfish, shallow purposes.

31. Comparison of Torvald’s and Nora’s attitudes toward money
Torvald perceives Nora as a foolish woman who is ignorant of the way society works, but he likes Nora’s foolishness and ignorance because they render her helpless and therefore dependent on him. It soon becomes clear to us that Nora’s dependence, not Torvald’s love for Nora as a person, forms the foundation of Torvald’s affection for her.

32. In Act One, Torvald teases Nora about wasting money but then tries to please her by graciously giving her more. Similarly, he points out her faults but then says he doesn’t want her to change a bit. He clearly enjoys keeping Nora in a position where she cannot function in the world without him, even if it means that she remains foolish.

33. In general, Torvald disapproves of any kind of change in Nora’s constant, obedient demeanor because he needs to control her behavior. When Nora begins to dance the tarantella wildly in Act Two, he is unsettled. In Act One, Nora says that it would humiliate Torvald if he knew he was secretly in debt to her for his life, indicating that Torvald wants the power in his marriage to be one-sided rather than mutual.

34. Does Ibsen draw our attention towards any gender related attitudes in relationships (Institution of marriage)?

35. What do you think about Torvald constant criticism of Nora for her wastefulness and foolishness while simultaneously supporting her behavior?
What insight does this attitude give us into Torvald and Nora’s relationship?

36. REVIEW: Lecture 7 1. Symbolism in The Doll’s House
2. Ibsen’s view about symbolism
The Christmas tree
Skylark
Toys
New Year
Door
Macrons
Title
3. Critical Analysis: Thought provoking aspects
social attitudes toward money
gender related attitudes in relationships

37. Agenda: Lecture 8 Thought provoking aspects…
Do we find characters’ development during the play due to their life experiences they go through…
Do you think Ibsen’s Doll’s House is anther return to his favorite subject, “the Social Lie and Duty”?