Women's Role: Expectation, Sacrifices by SZE WING WONG

Macarons

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 18:22:55 UTC

Despite all the restrictions and limitations that Torvald placed on Nora, she still had a desire and a slip of disobedience and deceit. As Nora already acknowledged, macarons had been "forbidden" by Torvald. Yet, she still eats several behind his back, breaking free from the expectation and appearance of an obedient doll. These macaroons are the symoblization of the little ways she deceive Torvald, and this symbol became more and more open as the story progresses. Originally, she would just eat a few when she is out on a walk. Then, she becomes more bold, eating and offering them to Dr. Rank and Mrs. Linde. Eventually, she askes the maid to bring some for the party in front of Torvald. The macaroons represent her increasing courage to go against Helmer and his limitations.

Other Sources of Income

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 18:28:00 UTC

Ensuring Helmer's good health, Nora had to take out a loan of two hundred and fifty pounds. Keeping the loan a secret from Helmer and with her father dead, Nora needed to learn how to pay back the loan without any help from anyone. With the societal expectations that the man in the household is supposed to provide for the family, Nora is unable to find work in order to maintain Helmer's reputation and ego but still needed to find a source of income. Therefore, she resorted to little trinkets or efforts like needlework, crotchet, and embroidery to make as much money as she can. These are just one of the many sacrifices that Nora had to make for her family.

Hide and Seek

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 18:30:31 UTC

Another societal expectation of a woman is to take care of her family and nurse her husband and children. Although this is one of the few interactions that Nora has with her children, Nora tends to her children by playing hide and seek with them. As demonstrated in a picture that may be relatively similar to the Helmer's house, there is no one in sight to best demonstrate the game the mother and children are playing.

£250 Loan + Forgery

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 18:33:39 UTC

In order to ensure Helmer's life and safety, Nora needed to get her hands on a large sum of money with any means necessary. Despite Torvald's strong dislike for loans, Nora went against Torvald behind his back to take out a loan of two hundred and fifty pounds. However, due to the restrictions during the time period, this would require the signature and consent of either her husband or her father. Ensuring Torvald keeps his honor and planning to keep this matter a secret from him, Nora went as far as committing a serious crime by forging the signature of her dying father. If word were to get out about Nora's wrongdoing, her honor and reputation would have been completely ruined. Nevertheless, she puts her life and honor on the line for the sake of Helmer.

Tarantella

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 18:37:45 UTC

In this period, the wife is supposed to be obedient to the husband. Here, when Torvald mentions that he wanted Nora to go as "a Neapolitan fisher-girl," she willingly takes up the role of the character with no hesitation. Along with the Tarantella dance and the Tambourine (as shown in the picture), Nora did not question or reject the idea at all, fulfilling the role of an obedient girl to her husband.

Squirrel, Skylark, Songbird...

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 18:39:36 UTC

Throughout the story, Helmer has little nicknames for Nora: "skylark," "squirrel," "songbird," and etc. All are names of little, powerless creatures that require someone to rely on. This was the societal image of a family: a weak, dependent woman on a man that provides for his wife and family. Nora continues to put up with these little nicknames that Helmer gives her and expresses her dislike for these undermining words at the end of the story.

Fancy-Dress Ball

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 18:48:17 UTC

Similar to the normal controlling expectations of Torvald domestically, this same control especially applies in public spaces. Nora, at the time, did not want to leave the ball so soon to try to hold Torvald there for as long as possible, dreading the moment he read the letter at the mail box. However, she had to obey Torvald, his instructions, and his desires at the ball to keep up with the societal expectations and Torvald's reputation as a good husband.

Book Keeping

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 19:15:02 UTC

Despite lacking the knowledge for book keeping and finances, Nora tries her best to repay the loan she took out little by little. Nevertheless, at the same time, she is responsible for taking care of her children overall, as expected by Torvald and overall society. Even though she could have been saving up the household money Torvald gave her for the repayment of her loans, she instead is willing to keep the burden of the loan and its quarterly interest to herself in order to keep the children well-dressed and well-presented.

Family Over Love

swong25_5 — 2023-12-05 19:16:44 UTC

This poem is a classic read by all students in either middle-school or high-school, a letter a mother writes to her son. The poem displays the immense and indefinite amount of love that a mother has to her children, in addition to the sacrifices that she is willing to make for them. Reading A Doll's House and Mrs. Linde's sacrifices for her family, memories of this poem sparked up in my mind. Mrs. Linde, despite previously loving Krogstad, had to give up true love for the desperate financial needs of her family. Although a woman is expected in society to care for those in her family, Mrs. Linde did this out of the love for her children. Moreover, she works restlessly to provide for them, her mother, and her brother. Furthermore, this motherly love was also seen in Nora as she deliberately isolated herself from them to any negative influence or harm upon them.

Trapped, Freed

swong25_5 — 2023-12-08 01:42:44 UTC

With all these expectations and limitations set by Torvald, Nora finally steps up to address her feeling of being trapped to Helmer. She explains that she feels like a doll in "A Doll's House," being forced and instructed to do things that she might not want to do. This is similar to a "songbird"—as one of the nicknames that Torvald has for Nora—trapped in a cage and unable to get out and be free. Nora feels that she is merely there as the image of a wife with a one-sided love and care for the family and the other. Fortunately, her courage to have this conversation with Torvald resulted in her breaking off the relationship with Helmer, finally breaking free of the doll's image and the cage she is in.