Two Old School Friends/A Doll's House/Comparison And Contrast Essay
Henrik Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House” shows how two good school friends who haven’t seen each other in many years have led totally different lives. Nora is married, has three children and everything she wants or needs. Her husband Torvald treats her like a doll, indulging her every whim and calling her pet names, such as “singing lark”, “little squirrel” and “little spendthrift”. He pats her on the head much as one would a small child. Nora is sensible and completely unaware of her own worth until the last act of the play. In contrast, Mrs. Linde is a widow who married her husband for money and has no children. Since her husbands death she has had to work to take care of her sickly mother and two small brothers. Her mother has since died and her brothers are grown up and have made good lives for themselves. Mrs. Linde now has only herself to take care of. The play also shows how Mrs. Linde has matured and Nora has not. Nora initially appears flighty and excitable, her main concern seems to be charming her husband and being the perfect wife. It is Christmas eve and she is excited about showing Torvald what she has bought for gifts and decorating the Christmas tree. Mrs. Linde
Then, we have Nora, who on the same token saves her husband’s life, which shows again, the trend of women sacrificing for their families. Both Nora and Mrs. Linde express their feeling of pride in helping their significant others by sacrificing themselves. A strong sign that Mrs. Linde brings us a better understanding of Nora is their parallel in characters. Both are willing to sacrifice themselves for values dear to their lives. This act of aiding significant loved ones gives us a better understanding of Nora. Mrs. Linde shows her loyalty to her family when she did not think that she “had a right” to refuse her husband’s marriage proposal. After taking into consideration her sick mother, her brothers, and Krogstad having no money, she married for the welfare of her family. Which means that in this society family is top priority. To the women in this era, loyalty to their loved ones is highly expected. Nora is secretive and hides her thoughts and actions from her husband even when there is no real benefit in doing so. Deception appears to be almost a habit for her, as she hides the fact that she is eating macaroons, which Torvald has forbidden her to do. Nora’s biggest secret, that she has borrowed money, in the name of love, is the hardest to keep hidden. In contrast, Mrs. Linde meets with Mr. Krogstad, initially to ask him to t
Some topics in this essay:
Nora Linde,
Doll’s House”,
Christmas Nora,
Nora Nora,
Linde Krogstad,
Torvald Nora,
Nora Torvalds,
Linde Nora,
Henrik Ibsen’s,
mother brothers,
“a doll’s house”,
torvald nora,
themselves linde,
understanding nora,
loved ones,
doll’s house”,
nora linde,
school friends,
contrast linde,
“a doll’s,
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Approximate Word count = 919
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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