Assignment Number 2: Act I

In Act I of A Doll's House, we are intorduced to the Helmer family. At first glance, they are your typical Victorian family, built on the stereotypes that society has presented them with. They are more than happy to live up to the expectations of their society, but one family member risks some abnormality in their perfect lives. Nora Helmer has a secret.

Nora Helmer seems like the ideal trophy wife. She is Torvald Helmer's "skylark" and treasures her role. She is not the sharpest tool in the shed, but her beauty is enough to get by. She is a decent mother to her children when she feels like mothering them, treating them as if they are her playthings, calling them her "dollies". Her only flaw, as far as Torvald is concerned, is her frivolousness. But he is completely unaware of the fact that she has been lying to him. Torvald owes his life to her, and she believes that if he knew that, her role of the perfect wife would be usurped from her. She tells her friend, Mrs. Linde, that she plans to wait until she has lost her beauty to tell him, so that he will have a new reason to love her. But to her dismay, Krogstad threatens to tell Torvald exactly what happened. At first, she is not happy with the prospect of that happening, but it would not be too detrimental to her marriage. But then, Torvald goes on his rant about how wrong it is to forge signatures, and unintentionally convinces her that she is a monster. Nora is so shaken up by what Torvald has said that she refuses to let her own children near her. She is faced with the prospect of shaming her husband, and she simply cannot bear the thought of that happening. If Torvald were to find out, it would be the end of her world, and in her mind the end of their family's happiness.

Nora reminds me a lot of a character from one of my favorite TV shows, Gossip Girl's Blair Waldorf. The setting of the show, the Upper East Side of Manhattan, takes on an almost Victorian feel and often the characters have almost Victorian states of mind. Blair prizes her role of "Queen Bee", just as Nora prizes her role as trophy wife. There have been instances throughout the show where Blair's status has been threatened by a rumor or a scandal, and Blair has attempted to avoid them at any cost. Her attempts often backfired on her. It is quite possible that Nora's attempts to avoid Krogstad will backfire as well.

A Doll's House often expresses barbaric ideals, but I believe that they will challenge the stereotypes presented by society in later acts. Nora has the potential to be a very strong woman, as long as she breaks free from the clutches of her overbearing husband.