The Key to Self-Discovery and Self-Realization in Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House

Student’s Name
Instructor’s Name
Course
Date
Beyond The Obvious: The Key to Self-Discovery and Self-Realization in Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House
Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a play that sheds light on Nora Helmer and her journey to enlightenment and self-discovery. Nora spends her entire life unquestioningly following the patriarchal social order that is emboldened in her father and husband.She is forced to borrow money from Krogstad, an ill-reputed man, who also happens to be Torvald’s employee, but she keeps it a secret for her husband’s sake. In a bid to keep this secret, she tries to persuade her hard-nosed husband not to fire Krogstad, but she is unsuccessful. Upon his dismissal, Krogstad sends Nora’s husband a correspondence that details her deceit in taking the secret loan. She distracts her husband from reading the letter but fails, again, so when this is discovered, Torvald becomes infuriated. Disregarding the noble and heroic underlying reason, to save his life, he insists that the deceitful act has tainted his reputation. Torvald forgives his wife when he learns that the debt will not have to be paid, but his self-centeredness is too overwhelming for Nora to forgive, so she slams the door at him and leaves. A Doll’s Houseproves that appearances are misleading, and the path to self-discovery and self-realization lies in the ability to discern the reality that lies beyond the obvious.
The greatest awakening occurs to Nora, who ultimately realizes that, contrary to her belief that Torvald is a strong man anda loving husband, he is selfish, narcissistic, and morally feeble. The possibility of Krogstad’s blackmails reveal that Torvald is an unapologetic ingrate who only “thought it amusing to be in love with” her (Ibsen 42). After risking going to jail and her financial stability to save her husband, his selfishness and cowardice prevent him from seeing why his wife acted as she did, and he readily reprimands her. Instead of apologizing, Torvald takes the moral high ground to forgive Nora for his fault. He reaffirms his ingrained bigotry by terming Nora’s act to save him a misjudgment that underscores the fact that she “cannot do without guidance” (Ibsen 41). All these occurrences shake Nora to the uncomfortable reality that even though she has been married for eight years, her husband is a stranger who is unworthy of sharing her life with, especially in matrimony.
Nora’s childhood and marriage increase her awareness of her position in the society, thus triggering in her a sense of self-value. In a rare moment that she gets to converse with Torvald as an equal, she recalls that her father and husband have never loved her but done to her manyinjustices. As a child, her father treats her as his doll-child, andwhen she moves into Torvald’s house, believing it would make a difference, her objectification continues because he perceives her as a “weak and fragile” amusement doll-wife (44), a property (41), and condescendingly christens her “a little featherbrain” (2). Nora rejects this kind of treatment, for she realizes that she has a sacred duty to herself and must seek education independently, the kind of thinking that define a modern woman (Ridge 760). Indeed, marriage may hinder a woman’s independence, quite literally making her a prisoner, but it requires introspection to realize the point at which to break free.
Nora and her husband also learn of the incongruence between what Krogstad appears to be and what he is in reality. In the beginning, Krogstad is ill-reputed, using Nora’s secret to blackmail her into doing his bidding and even threatening to have her husband reinstate and promote him at the bank. When Torvald learns that his wife has borrowed money from Krogstad, he fears that the “scoundrel” will domineeringly do and demand anything of him (Ibsen 40). Nonetheless, Linden reaches out to him and convinces him that the actions he has taken are out of despair, and he should stop – a piece of advice to which he heeds (34). Surprisingly, he returns Nora the promissory note and apologizes, something that Torvald lacks the courage to do. If the seemingly villainous Krogstad could turn out to be more sympathetic and loving, then it is justifiable to conclude that patience is a crucial virtue contributes hugely in perceiving the different side of a person.
The social system of patriarchy sustains male chauvinism, which, in turn, conceals weak and broken men who cannot thrive without the help of women. Men in the play believe that women are destined to serve them and put them above everything else. Krogstad initially believes that it is unacceptable for Linden t...