In our first encounter with Nora, we see a silly, weak, marionette-like woman who is controlled by her fear of disappointing her husband. However, as the play ensues, circumstances reveal different layers of Nora’s persona. Each character and memory teaches us something new about the Nora beneath the façade.
Although Torvald has been married to Nora for eight year, he knows nothing about her. He squeezes her into his mold for a wife: obedient, innocent, spend thrifty, etc. He treats her like his pet, his doll so to speak. However, Nora soon has an epiphany in which she realizes that Torvald is selfish, careless, and shallow. He does not care for Nora’s needs. She hopes that a miracle will come true and he will be a changed man. But when the opportunity for him to prove himself as a good husband arises, he fails to take charge. At this point, Nora gathered the courage to do what was socially unacceptable: she leaves Torvald. (Interesting thought, she always says, “Torvald loves me,” never “I love Torvald”)
Mrs. Linde is a vital character in the play because she shows Nora that a woman can survive on her own. Mrs. Linde is a widow and has been forced to fend for herself. Seeing this, Nora talks to her maid and we hear her first ponderings of leaving. She asks if her children will be well taken care of if she leaves the house, and the maid reassures her that they will.
By the end of A Doll’s House, we see that Nora is a passionate, motivated, and confident woman who is not a puppet, but rather the puppeteer of her own show. She cuts the strings that connect her to her home and takes control of her life. In Victorian England, the ending of a play was at best taboo. Women, especially married women, could never walk out on their husbands or family because it was considered socially and morally wrong. However, Ibsen was ahead of his time and he shows us that the conviction of a person is stronger than the norms of a society.
