Book Review - A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen

A 19th Century domestic drama with a surprisingly progressive ending.

Though I haven't read many play scripts prior to the 21st Century, A Doll's House feels of its time for the most part. The plot focuses on Nora, a housewife who is adored and patronised by her successful husband Helmer. When tragedy struck in her past, she borrowed money from Krogstad, a disreputable colleague of Helmer's, and now the embittered man has come to claim something from her in return. While Nora desperately tries to keep this shame from her husband, she has the support of Mrs Linde (a wise widow turned confidante) and Rank (a depressed doctor who is smitten with our protagonist). Over the course of three acts, the dilemma intensifies until a letter is read and all hell breaks loose.

While the character interplay generally lacks dimension for me, I was nevertheless blown away by the final dozen pages of the script. Not only does Nora come clean about the situation, she comes to a powerful realisation as a result. These days one would hope a woman who has been mistreated by her husband would walk out on him, but such an act was downright remarkable in the 19th Century. Nora's decision is thoroughly satisfying and shows much better character growth than the fates of all the other characters. In fact, I worry about the implications of Rank's black mark ending.

If Ibsen is half as forward-thinking with the rest of his plays, I will undoubtedly seek out more from him. For now though, I recommend A Doll's House to fans of kitchen sink dramas with feminist flair.