January 24

First impressions of Nora Helmer

Nora Helmer

The first main female character we are introduced to in a Dolls House is Nora Helmer. She is the wife of Torvald Hemler and the main focus of the play.

Two main things that contribute to the character of Nora at the beginning of the play in act one are the nicknames her husband gives her and her fondness for “contraband” macaroons.

 

The nicknames that Helmer gives Nora are spindthreft, little skylark, little lark, little squirrel, miss sweeth tooth. Each showing that she is his possesion and something that he loves and looks after. They also revel that  Nora is looked down on by her husband as these names are all very little things or something you would say to a child. When Hemer uses them he is using them (most of the time) in either a Interrogative sentence or as a Possessive pronoun as they are often paired with my.

Nora also eats macaroons and then hides them from her husband. This interaction can be seen in the folwoing dialogue:

Hemler Hasn’t Miss Sweet Tooth been breaking rules in town today?
Nora No; what makes you think that?
Helmer Hasn’t she paid a visit to the confectioner’s?
Nora No, I assure you, Torvald.
act one, pg 7

This signifies that she is happy to keep secreats from her husband. Even though she has only has eatern a macaroon, she has still gone aganst what he wants for her. Suggesting two things, the first Nora is independent enough to make her own decisions and is not bound by her husband. The second is that she is not scaed of her husband and what he will do.

All of this shows that there are two sides to Nora. One is the loveling wife who is loved by her husband and put down (not conserred an equal).  The other side is a women that will go against her husband and do what she wants without care for the consequenses. She is very two faced from this degree, even if what she does if for the best intentions there is always a bit of sly dishonest side to her. So, from the first act we learn that Nora is not just what you see at the surface, there is a deeper and somewhat darker side to her.

 

 

 

January 24

Opinion on Act 1

Her husband’s nickname for her

In the first act of a ‘dolls house’ it is present that when the husband of Nora is talking with her he uses pet names. Helmer using words as a sign of endearment on the surface however has more disregarding her as an equal in their relation. Birds are a prominent scene throughout Helmers pet names as he describes her as a ‘sparrow’. This is significate as it shows that she is trapped and only used not from her personality or intelligence but is something visually appealing to the owner; the owner being Helmer. Another significant point is that bird is normally free spirted and should not be left in a cage; which Nora is doing being stuck in the house. The house is significate for the metaphor as it her cage that she feels as if she needs to perform instead of just living. Nora feels as

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if it is her obligation to attend the family correctly and sufficiently to the society standards such as a clean house, a well-organized house and as well and very visually appealing presentation of house and self. Helmer use of the word mine; is shown as if he owns her and is the dominate figure in the relationship. He has authority over her and uses this to show his ownership to her and the audience. Nora believe that these nicknames are endearing however is a backhanded complimented that seems innocent on the surface however is very negative. This shows that the characters has a lack of inner respect; by inner I mean that both character are nice to each other however he does not really understand her and therefore deceit his trust in small gesture and foreshadowing what will occur the future.

Decorating the Christmas tree

The Christmas tree presents a lot for the way a family is perceived to either peers. The push to become the perfect family with the perfect family life that has a lot of money and love in the family. Therefore, when Nora is decorating the tree she is trying to put up a front, so no person will suspect her. Artificial beauty as the reader has established that she is more complex than a standard character this is present at the end of act 1. There her wanting to distract herself from her conflict as a character is very present through act 1. She is also very anxious when Helmer arrives into the scene and begins to mess around and to take her mind off the subject that she does not want to fell.

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January 24

First Impressions of Nora Helmer

Initially, Nora Helmer is thought to be an ‘air-head’, with the message being reinforced by her husband, Torvald Helmer. He consistently ricochets any hint of endearment with back handed compliments, making sure to put NImage result for gillian anderson a doll's houseora in her place with belittling adjectives such as “little” and “small”.

Nora repeatedly refers to her husband by his first name, a taboo at the time in Norway, this due in largely to the fact that women were considered a lesser to men and so were forced to address them in a praising, God-like manner. The play was released several years before the first suffragette movement in Norway, and many believe that this was a power-play on Ibsen’s end that eventually influenced the empowerment of women, making it a pivotal piece of literature for the feminist revolution. Although this can be seen as merely a political stance and plea for awareness, it may hold importance towards the story line itself. Nora’s speech and actions throughout the first Act lay no judgment nor dismissal of Torvald’s position in society as a man, going as far as defending his name in front of Krogstad. The only faltering element is in her speech: her preference towards calling Trovald by his first name. This characteristic may be Nora’s guilty pleasure: regarding her husband as on a level playing field may delight her. This is abnormally juxtaposed by her otherwise appraisal and respect towards him.

 

Nora’s fondness towards ‘contraband’ macaroons may be in reference to her secret desire to be superior. The act of eating the macaroons despite her husbands ban on them shows natural rebellion, mostly seen in teens and children, who are only beginning to find themselves. For Nora, however, the search continues as long as she is subordinate to others. Her child-like nature is due largely in part to her never being allowed to, or never being taught how to, find her place in this world. She is stuck in time because she feels that this is what is expected of her.

I feel that she will soon realise her intrinsic value in other’s lives.

January 24

Nora Act I

At a first glance, I thought Nora’s character was childish, and quite simplistic. She seems to be dominated by her husband in the house as he seems to control everything. Helmer (her husband) has several nicknames for her, which are all almost the same with names such as my little squirrel, and my little skylark. There are more nicknames, similar to these with the same sort of idea. He is quite possessive and by using small, weak animals to name his wife, we have the general feeling that he is more dominant than her. Nora’s husband’s full name is Torvald Helmer and at that time in Norway it was taboo to call your husband by their first name, meaning that she should call him Helmer. This is not what happens though, and on numerous occasions in their conversations, we see Nora call him Torvald. This personally showed me that her character isn’t as transparent as I first thought. Calling him Torvald once or twice could be explained as an accident, however she decides to call him Torvald multiple times throughout Act I even though it is considered taboo, showing that she doesn’t actually care about the rules other make as long as she has a reason. Although she can have many serious moments, she also shows her childish side many times throughout Act I. First, she buys macaroons, which she shouldn’t have, and hides it from Helmer showing her childish nature, and her sweet tooth. Later on in the act, she plays games such as hide and seek with her children. This was mainly done to juxtapose with the next scene as Nora talks with Krogstad. Here she is very serious and this is quite different to most of the scenes that she is in; further emphasizing the idea that she has a double character and isn’t as transparent as she seems.

January 24

Nora Helmer- First Impressions

Consider how the following contribute to characterizations of Nora at the beginning of the play: 

1. Her husband’s nicknames for her

2. Her desire to say “hell and be damned” 

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When I first started reading ‘A Dolls House’ by Henrik Ibsen, Nora Helmer caught my eye as a character with two very different sides. At first, she seemed extraordinarily childish and made me think that she was a character who relied solely on her husband, only wanting and asking for money despite Torvald Helmer constantly trying to explain to her that they needed to save. She seemed reckless and inconsiderate to the situation they were in, which made her character seem naive and young. This was mostly brought on by her husband’s use of nicknames. Their relationship is one that is quite strange, considering that Torvald speaks to Nora (and calls her names) as one would with a child, however at the same time they are both fond and affectionate with each other. For example, in the book, Torvald says, “And I wouldn’t wish you any other way than exactly as you are, my sweet little songbird”. He appreciates his wife, however, it is evident that he looks down on her- he often calls her ‘my’ or ‘my little’ which creates a sense that she is inferior to him. He is possessive, and through using nicknames like ’songbird’, ’squirrel’, or ‘spending lark’, he is establishing dominance. Therefore, Torvald’s use of nicknames characterizes Nora as a person who is lesser than him. He is the head of the house, and in turn, doesn’t take her very seriously. On the other hand, Nora takes care of the house, plays with their children, she never goes against him, and is completely obedient. However, the second side of Nora is unexpected- and her desire to say “hell and be damned” shows a part of her that wants to rebel and not completely comply with societal standards. Near the beginning of the first act, Nora says ‘whenever Torvald gave me money for new dresses and the like, I never used more than half of it; always bought the plainest and cheapest things…’ Though she was helping her husband, this line reveals that Nora has a secretive side and that she doesn’t want to show, which further foreshadows her conflict with Krogstad as she signed a contract in behalf of her father and doesn’t want her husband to find out. Therefore, the readers discover that Nora’s character has more dimensions than it first seems, and that she is a very different person when she is with her husband, compared to when she is alone.