A Doll's House Quotes Flashcards
being with Torvald is a little like being with Papa. (Nora to Dr Rank)
Love & Marriage. Power. Sexism.
This quote reveals an insight into Nora’s view of her marriage to Torvald. As the audience, we see Torvald infantilises her with his power and control over her. He speaks to her in a derogatory manner and her freedom is constricted in the marriage.
Interestingly, even the use of ‘papa’ suggests Nora is childish. The audience could question whether Torvald’s power over her has exacerbated this immaturity.
he says he wants me all to himself (Nora to Mrs Linde)
Love & Marriage. Gender. Sexism
This shows the possessive behaviour that Torvald has over Nora. This foreshadows the claim that Nora makes that she feels as if she was his “doll”. However, at this point of the play, Nora instead does not see Torvald’s possessive behaviour and rather only thinks that it is due to love to he is acting this way. This reveals how she was conforming to societal gender roles of women at that time, trying to be a perfect wife.
A man’s better at coping with these things than a woman…
Love & Marriage. Gender.
For assistance with her debt issue, Nora consults Dr Rank. This implies that Nora accepted the conventional stereotype that only men are capable of handling serious or financial concerns and that women are not. Even though she had displayed her ability to borrow and pay back the amount of money she owed, she is still convinced that she requires assistance from a man.
new manager had been talked over by his wife
little woman
Do you want me to make myself a laughing stock in the office? (Torvald to Nora)
Love & Marriage. Power. Deceit. Sexism
More than anything Nora is concerned about, Torvald is more protective of his reputation. His disregard for her viewpoints, especially in regard to professional affairs, provides a basic picture of their relationship. The fact that Torvald refers to Nora as a “little woman” further emphasizes the notion of the “doll’s house”—that Nora is nothing more than a toy and a source of amusement for him. Additionally, Torvald does not see Nora as an equal. Even though she is his wife, he still considers her thoughts to be “any kind of outside pressure.”
you are dancing as though your life depended on it. (Torvald to Nora)
Love & Marriage. Gender. Power. Individual vs Society
By promising to rehearse the Tarentella, she prevents Torvald from opening his letterbox. However, Nora begins to dance wildly and does not listen to Torvald’s instructions. This shows how her inner turmoil has taken the best of her and she is unable to act like a “doll” anymore.
In the literal sense, her life did depend on this dance as Torvald opening the letter would ruin her life.
The act of ignoring Torvald’s instructions may foreshadow the eventual leaving of Nora from Torvald.
Just like a woman.
Never borrow! (Torvald to Nora)
Money. Power. Sexism.
Torvald criticises Nora for spending too much. They have different attitudes towards money. Nora believes that there is nothing wrong with borrowing money but Torvald thinks it is immoral and shameful.
Torvald also reveals his sexism, and indeed the attitude of 19th Century Norway, as he believes women are not to be trusted with money.
Power is explored in this quote as well. Torvald believes he has power over his wife and wants to keep her in a submissive position. However, this quote is ironic because we later learn that Nora did indeed borrow money behind Torvald’s back.
This quote also foreshadows the eventual dismantling of Torvald and Nora’s relationship
never dream of doing anything you didn’t want me to. (Nora to Torvald)
Love and Marriage. Gender. Deceit. Sexism. Individual vs Society.
In this scenario, Nora assumes the role of the ideal wife, promising complete loyalty to Torvald, in this case regarding the fact that he has forbidden her from eating macaroons. This phrase appears to express Nora’s love for her husband and her acceptance of gender norms on one level, implying that she adores Torvald so much that she is prepared to give up her autonomy to make him happy. In actuality, she is lying. She has already disobeyed him—both in the little act of eating macaroons only moments earlier and in the larger one of borrowing money early in their marriage.
Torvald has thus been misled twice by Nora: first, when she disobeyed him, and second when she lied to cover it up. The overstated nature of the statement—that she would “never dream” of defying him—increases the tension in the deception and implies that the part Nora is trying to play is unrealistic and unachievable. As a result, it foreshadows the fact that she won’t play the part.
Almost like being a man. (Nora to Ms Linde)
Gender. Money.
Nora tells Mrs Linde that she has been paying back the money she borrowed to pay for the trip to Italy in secret by saving money for herself and even taking up copying work, which she had to finish at night so that Torvald wouldn’t notice. In contrast to how Nora had previously been treated and behaved, this comment exposes a more selfless and mature side to her. Even though she lies to her husband, the fact that she has been willing to make such great sacrifices for him demonstrates her true love for him.
Ibsen suggests that Nora’s lie may have been necessary because Torvald lacks confidence in her ability to make wise judgments on her own and more broadly because, in this society, males don’t generally respect or trust women). Torvald thinks Nora just wants to partake in leisure activities, but she demonstrates in this passage that she also likes the responsibility of working for a living to support her family. The first indication that Nora might not be happy with her usual roles as a wife and mother can be found in this line. It foreshadows her decision to give up her comfortable life to become autonomous and independent at the play’s conclusion.
condemn a man for a single mistake like that. (Torvald to Nora)
Deceit. Individual vs Society.
When Nora considers that Krogstad may have committed forgeries out of necessity, Torvald says that Krogstad was likely simply being careless, but that even so, Torvald would have been willing to overlook that error alone. Here, Torvald positions himself as an impartial, sane source of moral authority who possesses the personal capacity to grant others’ forgiveness. This comment further demonstrates Torvald’s abhorrence of dishonesty; while forgery is forbidden, Torvald considers Krogstad’s dishonesty intolerable.
The conversation between Torvald and Nora is about Krogstad, but Torvald’s statements also have implications for how he may respond if Nora’s “crimes” were to come to light; after all, Nora is guilty of forgery and deception in addition to borrowing money, which Torvald fiercely condemns. However, Ibsen invites us to believe that Torvald would overlook Nora’s transgression as it was only “one error.” However, by the play’s conclusion, Torvald behaves in an utterly callous manner, showing Nora no mercy as opposed to the way he portrays in this sentence.
he can never drop the mask,
A fog of lies like that in a household, and spreads disease and infection to every part of it.
reeking of evil germs (Torvald to Nora)
Love. Deceit. Individual vs Society.
Torvald outlines the effects of Krogstad’s dishonesty, admonishing that his family will suffer a great deal as a result. Torvald uses histrionic language to underline his deep disdain for Krogstad and to make clear that he views dishonesty as a type of poison that taints home life’s chastity. Once more, this passage has two meanings; like Krogstad, Nora too committed a crime and is required to hide it from her family. Torvald unintentionally exposes his ignorance once more by denying that his home is a “fog of lies” or that his children are breathing “bad germs.”
Nora finds Torvald’s remark that Krogstad “can never drop the mask” to be accurate. Ibsen has already demonstrated that, despite her pretence of obedience, Nora actually disobeys and lies to Torvald. As the play goes on, Nora begins to feel the pressure of this double life quite severely. Ibsen contends that even putting lying aside, Nora must put on the part of the ideal wife because Torvald holds her to unattainable standards and forbids her from acting authentically. Thus, the word “mask” in this paragraph is connected to the doll’s house symbol, hinting at Nora’s assertion that Torvald treated her like a doll at the play’s conclusion.
I must stand on my own two feet if I’m to get to know myself (Nora to Torvald)
Love. Power. Sacrifice. Gender roles. Marriage.
After Nora says this to Torvald, we understand that she is now aware of the need to see the outside world with her own eyes, instead of just listening to the words fed to her. She chooses to leave Torvald to become an independent woman.
Nora’s been tamed all her life and was expected to behave a certain way. She is now rebelling against societal expectations by leaving her husband.
Whether intentional or not, at this moment Ibsen invites the audience to question societal norms and consider women’s role in a marriage.
I believe that first and foremost I am an individual
I’m not content anymore with what most people say, or what it says in books (Nora to Torvald)
Love and Marriage, Gender, Individual vs society, Power
After hearing about her decision to leave, Torvald brings up her responsibility as “a wife and mother”. Nora rejects this by saying that she is an individual before she is anything else. Here we observe how Nora, rejects three major sources of knowledge about how she should choose to conduct her life: the opinion of her husband, the opinion of society as a whole, and the knowledge to be found in books. While also acknowledging that most people remain committed to societal norms about gender and the family. The last of the three is especially significant as it emphasizes the fact that Nora believes that the truth about how she should live can only be found within herself. Nora’s speech thus confirms the extent to which “A Doll’s House” was ahead of its time, foreshadowing debates about gender and autonomy that would not emerge until many decades later.
I have been your doll wife, just as at home I was Daddy’s doll child. (Nora to Torvald)
Love and Marriage, Gender, Individual vs society, Power
Nora compares her life to a doll’s house and accuses her father and Torvald of treating her like a doll. The entire significance of the play’s title is now understood. Nora admits that she enjoys her life as a doll, particularly the times when Torvald chooses to “play” with her and when she chooses to interact with the kids. Ibsen has provided evidence of this, particularly at the play’s opening when Nora took great pleasure in entertaining Torvald and portraying the role of the ideal, submissive wife. The fact that Nora now sees her life from a different, much more critical perspective indicates that she has changed. It’s interesting to note that, despite Torvald’s mistreatment of her, Nora does not point to this behaviour as the primary cause of their marriage problems. Instead, she suggests that because Torvald does not view her as an independent individual but rather as a possession that he can control, their relationships are destined to be meaningless and shallow. Nora seems to have learned that the only reasons Torvald value her are his power over her and the public perception of their marriage.
It’s as though it made her his property in a double sense
and she becomes in a way for both his wife and at the same time his child. (Torvald to Nora)
Love and Marriage, Individual vs society, Power
Torvald has stopped Nora from leaving the room as he continues to exclaim how wonderful it is that he has forgiven her. When he claims that Nora is now “his property in a double sense” because he has given her a new life through forgiveness, the speech takes a strange turn. Torvald’s usage of this metaphor suggests that he views himself as a god, which is an extreme application of patriarchal logic.
Even more disturbingly, Torvald then remarks that this double ownership means that Nora is simultaneously his wife and also his child. It is obvious that Torvald never desired an equal and respectful relationship with Nora. In fact, his happiness appears to come from his conviction that, as a result of learning about her hidden debt, he will always have uncontested moral superiority and power over his wife. Despite Torvald’s constant attempts to exert control over Nora, it is not until this point in the play that he truly displays his infantilizing sentiments toward her.
I wouldn’t be a proper man if I didn’t find a woman doubly attractive for being so obviously helpless. (Torvald to Nora)
Love and Marriage, Individual vs society, Power
Torvald instantly forgives Nora after reading the second letter from Krogstad, in which he retracts his earlier threat of blackmail, as he is relieved that his reputation is no longer in danger. It is significant to note the difference in Torvald’s treatment of Nora before and after reading Krogstad’s second letter, even though this complete reversal makes sense because Torvald only genuinely cares about society’s acceptance.
Torvald accuses Nora of being the cause of everything, labelling her a hypocrite, liar, criminal, and a “miserable… feather-brained lady,” even though he still thinks Krogstad would use blackmail to get what he wants from him. Torvald, calling Nora “helpless,” admits that she failed without his instruction but maintains that she is not at fault as soon as he realizes his reputation is secure. This stark contrast highlights how Torvald only truly loves Nora while she is acting passively and childishly, exposing the shallowness of his affection. His admission that he loved her despite her weakness demonstrates how common it was for men to treat their wives like children in Victorian society.
