Symbolism in A Doll’s House Essay - 949 Words

Henrik Ibsen’s â€Å"A Doll’s House† is a controversial play focusing on the marriage of Nora and Torvald Helmer. The play is filled with symbols that represent abstract ideas and concepts. These symbols effectively illustrate the inner conflicts that are going on between the characters. Henrik Ibsen’s use of symbolism such as the Christmas tree, the locked mailbox, the Tarantella, Dr. Rank’s calling cards, and the letters allows him to give a powerful portrayal to symbolize aspects of characters and their relationship to each other. The Christmas tree in itself is symbolic and it means the play takes place during Christmastime. Ibsen uses Christmas tree to mainly construct the character of Nora. The Christmas tree symbolizes the feelings of†¦show more content†¦Ibsen also uses a symbol to develop Torvald Helmer as a character. The locked mailbox represents Torvald as a superior and controlling husband. The mailbox is for Torvald alone to access, as he only holds the key. Similarly, Torvald’s study is a private room that Nora is never allowed to enter. The fact that Torvald will not even allow Nora to read the mail shows how far he has kept her apart from the outside world and kept her under his total control. Torvald does not recognize Nora as an intellectual person to be involved with any business or important matters in life. The mailbox also represents Nora’s submissiveness, which signifies the oppression of all women during the time period. The Tarantella is an Italian folk dance. The name â€Å"Tarantella† derives from the name of a poisonous spider; the Tarantula. When bitten, the venom will of the Tarantula makes the person move uncontrollably as if dancing. This movement believes to relieve the person from pain. Thus, dancing non-stop wards off the venom of the spider (Streetswing.com). The Tarantella dance relates to Nora as trying to rid herself of the pain and problems in her life. Additionally, Nora’s infuriating movements implies her suicidal intentions after the dance to save her husband’s reputation. Likewise, the Tarantella signifies the gruesome climax of Nora’s doll life. This dance reveals the transformation of Nora from an innocent womanShow MoreRelatedSymbolism of a Dolls House2840 Words   |  12 Pagesï » ¿Alex Simonton Research Paper Third Period April 15, 2015 Symbolism of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen is perhaps one of the most hotly debated plays to come out of the 19th century.   The eighteen hundreds continued the process of the demystification that began with the Enlightenment.   Because of the discoveries of the Enlightenment, humans could no longer be sure about their place in the universe.   This, of course, had an impact on the theater.   The movement towardRead MoreSymbolism and Sexism in Ibsen’s â€Å"a Doll’s House† Essays949 Words   |  4 Pages Symbolism and Sexism in Ibsen’s â€Å"A Doll’s House† Henrik Ibsen, the author of the controversial play â€Å"A Doll’s House† said, â€Å"There are two kinds of moral laws, two kinds of conscience, one for men and one, quite different, for women. They don’t understand each other; but in practical life, woman is judged by masculine law, as though she weren’t a woman but a man†¦A woman cannot be herself in modern society.† Isben created the plot of â€Å"A Doll’s House† from those ideas. IbsenRead More Symbolism in A Dolls House. by Henrik Ibsen Essays1637 Words   |  7 Pages Henrik Ibsen’s â€Å"A Doll’s House† a nineteenth century play successfully uses symbolism to express many characteristics of Helmer’s life, together with the way that the main character Nora feels towards her marriage at the end of the play. Ibsen’s use of symbolism to convey about the social setting, including the harsh male-controlled Danish society, seen mostly in T orvald in the play and the role of women, signified mostly in Nora. These symbols act as foretelling before the tragic eventsRead More Symbolism in A Dolls House by Henrik Ibsen Essay example2771 Words   |  12 PagesSymbolism in A Dolls House by Henrik Ibsen      Ã‚   A Dolls House by Henrik Ibsen is perhaps one of the most hotly debated plays to come out of the 19th century.   The 19th century continued the process of the demystification that began with the Enlightenment.   Because of the discoveries of the Enlightenment, humans could no longer be sure about their place in the universe.   This, of course, had an impact on the theater.   The movement toward realism, which, like the 19th century in generalRead MoreSymbolism of Houses in A Dolls House and A Rose For Emily Essay894 Words   |  4 Pagesthe act of avoiding a flawed and evolving society. Whereas, â€Å"A Doll’s House† by Katherine Mansfield portrays the way that a flawed society can change through small acts of resistance that break the boundaries of social hierarchies. Both Mansfield and Faulkner use houses as symbols of a flawed society in their stories, however the manner in which they use these symbols are very different. In a â€Å"Rose for Emily†, Faulkner uses Emily’s house as a symbol of the barrier Emily forms between herself and societyRead More Noras Symbolism in Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House Essay973 Words   |  4 PagesNoras Symbolism in Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House      Ã‚  Ã‚   In every society power is the bringer of fortune and influence. In his play A Dolls House, Henrik Ibsen portrays, through the character of Nora, the power women are gaining in patriarchal societies. Nora, who symbolizes all women, exercises her power throughout the entire play. She cleverly manipulates the men around her while, to them, she seems to be staying in her subordinate role. In all three acts of the play Nora controls manyRead MoreRealism Theatre Essay1085 Words   |  5 Pagesuse of symbolism, character development, stage setting and storyline and is exemplified in plays such as Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House and Anton Chekhovs The Three Sisters. The arrival of realism was indeed good for theatre as it promoted greater audience involvement and raised awareness of contemporary social and moral issues. It also provided and continues to provide a medium through which playwrights can express their views about societal values, attitudes and morals. A Dolls House is theRead MoreLiterature and Aspects of the Human Experience Essays1584 Words   |  7 Pagesthis theme of love are: â€Å"A Rose for Emily†, â€Å"Love Song†, and â€Å"A Doll’s House†. Although some of the stories deal with family and parental love, this paper will focus on the aspect of romantic love. In the story â€Å"A Rose for Emily† by William Faulkner romantic love was between Emily and the doomed Homer Barron; the poem â€Å"Love Song† by Joseph Brodsky gives the declarations of a man in love; and finally in the drama â€Å"A Doll’s House† Nora is fighting for the romantic love of her husband Torvald HelmerRead MoreSymbols and Conflict in A Dolls House Essay example1088 Words   |  5 PagesSymbols and Conflict in A Doll’s House Symbolism is used commonly in literature to reveal a deeper meaning through something indirectly. As defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, symbolism is â€Å" the art or practice of using symbols especially by investing things with a symbolic meaning or by expressing the invisible or intangible by means of visible or sensuous representations† (Symbolism.). From colors and emotions, such as red and romance, to animals, like doves and peace, symbols betterRead MoreHenrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House Essay example1182 Words   |  5 Pages Phylogeny versus misogyny, arguable one of the greatest binary oppositions in a work of literature, is present in Henrik Ibsen’s 1879 Norwegian play A Doll’s House. The title itself suggests a misogynist view, while the work mainly consists of feminist ideology, as Ibsen was a supporter of the female as an independent, rather than a dependent on a male. Nora knew herself that her husband did not fully respect her, and this became a major conflict in the play as Nora progressively became more self-reliant