Parallels between Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House and...

Parallels between Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House and Ghosts Rebekah Bak Henrik Ibsen wrote a variety of controversial literature with many recurring themes appearing throughout each of them. Through his trite yet thought-provoking writing style, Ibsen presents many issues which are still discussed today. One of these controversial themes consistently appears in both A Doll’s House and Ghosts. Ibsen shows the sins of parents being passed on to their children. Primarily, in A Doll’s House, Ibsen shows the sins of parents being passed on to their children in three different ways: through Dr. Rank’s hereditary health issues, through Nora’s behavior apparently inherited from her father, and through her children’s behavior similarly†¦show more content†¦Caught in her deceit, Nora is trapped as Torvald questions her. ...And to tell me a lie into the bargain? A lie—? Didn’t you tell me no one had been here? (A Doll’s House 26) Just as Nora lies to Torvald, she instructs her children to do so also, saying, â€Å"Yes, dears, I know. But, don’t tell anyone about the stranger man. Do you hear? Not even papa† (A Doll’s House 25). In this case, Nora is leading her children toward wrongdoing. Yet it still doesn’t compare to the extent to which Torvald believes that the deceit of all women is the cause of all sin. Torvald even goes so far as to compare the deceitfulness of women to poison, saying, â€Å"Because such an atmosphere of lies infects and poisons the whole life of a home, each breath the children take in such a house is full of the germs of evil† (A Doll’s House 27). This quote shows how his contempt toward women mirrors the attitude of a child. It is like a little boy who won’t go near â€Å"girl cooties.† With the title, A Doll’s House, this childlike element adds to the entire concept of the play. Secondly, in Ghosts, Ibsen shows the sins of parents being passed on to their children through â€Å"ghosts,† or what is conceived to be the repetition of the past. Past sins repeat themselves as Oswald inadvertently mirrors some of his late father’s characteristics, which includes: smoking, drinking, suffering from syphilis, and presumably having sex with the servant girl. Oswald’s father, Mr. Alving, was perceived as aShow MoreRelatedMrs Alving in Ghosts by Ibsen1187 Words   |  5 Pagesreference to â€Å"ghosts,† Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen portrays a view on the rewards of duty that clashes sharply with the accepted views of the time. In his native country of Norway, and indeed all around the world in the year 1881, ‘duty’ was seen as a powerful motivator in both religion and society. The abstract concept of duty was what constrained society into ‘acceptable’ boundaries, and people without a sense of duty were often sh unned and rejected by their fellow citizens. Henrik Ibsen wasRead MoreGender Roles Of A Doll s House And Ghosts Essay2281 Words   |  10 PagesGender Roles in A Doll’s House and Ghosts Throughout much of English language literature, gender and sex are equated with specific human traits. Strength is male and weakness is female. Men are stable and women are capricious. Logic is masculine and imagination is feminine. Ibsen uses stereotypical gender attributes in his characterization of Nora and Torvald throughout A Doll House, and then abruptly reverses the stereotypes in the final moments of the play to show that inner strength and weakness