The Doll's House

The character Nora in the Doll House amuses me. She is a very deep character who is confusing to understand. To most people, Nora is just a childish woman who is the typical mother. She is beautiful and she knows this as well. She uses her beauty to act like a child so that she can get what she wants from Torvald. However, beneath her superficial surface lies a deeper side of her. During the play, it is revealed that she committed forgery to save her husband’s life. She borrowed a large sum of money from the bank by forging her father’s signature. Her action can be seen as both a noble and foolish one. Her desire to save her husband’s life at the cost of breaking the law can be seen as a loyal and passionate action. However, it is revealed in the play that at the time Nora borrowed the money, she did not know of the financial terms that were within the loan agreement. She had no idea that the money she borrowed would grow exponentially due to interests. In this financial sense, Nora can be seen as a childish and foolish character. Her complexion arises out of cases like this where her actions are ambiguous; whether the actions are noble or foolish.
Her husband Torvald is beginning to become too creepy for me. It seems like he is a demented character who treats Nora as a little doll he likes to play with. He does not genuinely love Nora and considers her his trophy. This view of her can be seen when at the dance party he made Nora perform the tarantulla dance. After she dazzled the crowd, he quickly departs with Nora despite her objections. Then he proceeds to say that if they lingered any more, the effect would wear up. His response reveals the fact that Torvald’s male dominance is expressed through him showing his trophy wife Nora to the public. He even goes on to claim that Nora is his greatest prize. In essence, Torvald does not consider Nora as even a human being let alone his love. Nora is like a doll he loves to play with. He can dress her in anything he wants, play with her whenever he wants, and show off his pretty doll to the public. The initially humorous conversation between Torvald and Nora is definitely becoming twisted and demented now. I initially thought that the reason why they talked to each other in such a bubbly and superficial way was because of the fact that they were in the puppy dog love stage in their relationship. But it is clear that this is not the case and that the reason is something much more demented. Torvald’s desire to make Nora his Barbie doll is the real reason why they talk to each other in such a superficial fashion. I become creeped out whenever they talk now because I realize that Torvald is twisted in the brain.