A Doll’s House Socratic Seminar Ticket

Using bullets to format your responses, answer the following cluster-questions with CEA’s to maximize the amount of
evidence you include to support each claim and deepen your analysis to avoid plot summary. Be sure to cite each
quotation/evidence by page number.

1. Following its publication, Ibsen asserted in interviews and commentary that A

Doll’s House examines “issues facing humanity rather than women in
particular.” Using quotations from the play as evidence, argue how Ibsen
demonstrates that each of his characters – Nora, Torvald, Kristine, Krogstad,
Anne, and Dr. Rank – suffer losses of identity and agency resulting from
Victorian historical, cultural, moral, and psychological strictures implied within the
play.

● Nora says on page 79 “But i find it impossible to convince myself that the
law is right” showing that the historical standards of the time are overall
unjust
● Torvald is forced into an occupation he is not good at, as if he doesn’t then
he will be viewed as a failure
● Mrs linde is ostracized for being a widow, being limited to certain
occupations due to that
● Krogstad is a widower, and the historical standards make him seem
weaker and need to turn to crime to pay for his children
● Nora is obviously forced into a marriage where she doesn’t love her
partner
● Krogstad and Torvald are both perceived as weak men by society as they
aren’t very good at their jobs
● Anne, Kristine, and Nora are all not able to be fully free due to being a
woman
● Dr rank is sick, which makes the society perceive him as weaker
● Kristine and Krogstad’s relationship is a complete contrast of typical
Victorian relationships, with Kristine working, Krogstad taking care
of the children, and there being a significant amount of love
involved.

2. A symbol is an object, action, or event that represents something or that creates

a range of associations beyond itself. In literary works a symbol can express an
idea, clarify meaning, or enlarge literal meaning. Analyze how Ibsen’s doll house
symbol functions in the play to reveal his thematic purpose to critique
Victorian marriage, morality, gender role inequality, and social class.
Support your claims with direct quotations as evidence; do not merely summarize
the plot. Which symbol (song bird, Christmas tree, Tarantella, macaroon, or
doors) do you consider to be the second most compelling tool through which
 Ibsen critiques society? Again, support your claims with direct quotations as
evidence; do not merely summarize the plot.

The symbol of a doll house critiques Victorian marriage by comparing the way a child
plays with dolls in a house, with the child having complete control over the dolls to how
the husband in the marriage has complete control over the wife. The morality aspect is
also critiqued by showing that it cannot be a moral relationship where one party has
basically absolute power over the other. Gender role inequality is the same thing, where
women are severely limited to house work and raising children, and men can do
whatever they want. There are exceptions to this like the relationship between Mrs.
Linde and Krogstad, which is completely different from a typical Victorian relationship.
Social class is also compared, with women in the story being viewed as second-class
citizens, with them being thought of as less intelligent than men and less capable.

● I think that doors are the second most compelling tool that Ibsen critiques society
with, as they can be used in multiple scenarios. The most obvious example is the
closed doors for women. These represent the opportunities women cannot have
simply due to their sex, and this applies inversely to men. This is signified with
Nora leaving Torvald at the very end, by opening the door to their house and
leaving, representing Nora leaving traditional society and making her own life.
● The song bird is also a good symbol, as it is a representation of women in the
Victorian era. The songbird makes pretty noises and is something to admire, but
it cannot do what it wants due to the cage. Women in society are metaphorically
caged in just like the songbird.
● Macaroons are another good example of what is wrong with Victorian society, as
they are a sweet, enjoyable treat that everyone likes, but Nora cannot have any.
This represents how Torvald limits Nora’s opportunities.