On Ibsens A Dolls House :: Ibsens A Dolls House

On Ibsen's A Doll's House Author: Ian Johnston Those of you who have just read A Doll's House for the first time will, I suspect, have little trouble forming an initial sense of what it is about, and, if past experience is any guide, many of you will quickly reach a consensus that the major thrust of this play has something to do with gender relations in modern society and offers us, in the actions of the heroine, a vision of the need for a new-found freedom for women (or a woman) amid a suffocating society governed wholly by unsympathetic and insensitive men. I say this because there is no doubt that A Doll's House has long been seen as a landmark in our century's most important social struggle, the fight against the dehumanizing oppression of women, particularly in the middle-class family. Nora's final exit away from all her traditional social obligations is the most famous dramatic statement in fictional depictions of this struggle, and it helped to turn Ibsen (with or without his consent) into an applauded or vilified champion of women's rights and this play into a vital statement which feminists have repeatedly invoked to further their cause. So in reading responses to and interpretations of this play, one frequently comes across statements like the following: Patriarchy's socialization of women into servicing creatures is the major accusation in Nora's painful account to Torvald of how first her father, and then he, used her for their amusement. . . how she had no right to think for herself, only the duty to accept their opinions. Excluded from meaning anything, Nora has never been subject, only object. (Templeton 142). Furthermore, if we go to see a production of this play (at least among English-speaking theatre companies), the chances are we will see something based more or less on this interpretative line: heroic Nora fighting for her freedom against oppressive males and winning out in the end by her courageous final departure. The sympathies will almost certainly be distributed so that our hearts are with Nora, however much we might carry some reservations about her leaving her children. Now, this construction certainly arises from what is in the play, and I don't wish to dismiss it out of hand. However, today I would like to raise some serious question about or qualifications to it. I want to do so because this vision of A Doll's House has always struck me as oversimple, as, in some sense, seriously reductive, an approach that removes from the play much of its complexity and almost all its mystery and power. On Ibsen's A Doll's House :: Ibsen's A Doll's House On Ibsen's A Doll's House Author: Ian Johnston Those of you who have just read A Doll's House for the first time will, I suspect, have little trouble forming an initial sense of what it is about, and, if past experience is any guide, many of you will quickly reach a consensus that the major thrust of this play has something to do with gender relations in modern society and offers us, in the actions of the heroine, a vision of the need for a new-found freedom for women (or a woman) amid a suffocating society governed wholly by unsympathetic and insensitive men. I say this because there is no doubt that A Doll's House has long been seen as a landmark in our century's most important social struggle, the fight against the dehumanizing oppression of women, particularly in the middle-class family. Nora's final exit away from all her traditional social obligations is the most famous dramatic statement in fictional depictions of this struggle, and it helped to turn Ibsen (with or without his consent) into an applauded or vilified champion of women's rights and this play into a vital statement which feminists have repeatedly invoked to further their cause. So in reading responses to and interpretations of this play, one frequently comes across statements like the following: Patriarchy's socialization of women into servicing creatures is the major accusation in Nora's painful account to Torvald of how first her father, and then he, used her for their amusement. . . how she had no right to think for herself, only the duty to accept their opinions. Excluded from meaning anything, Nora has never been subject, only object. (Templeton 142). Furthermore, if we go to see a production of this play (at least among English-speaking theatre companies), the chances are we will see something based more or less on this interpretative line: heroic Nora fighting for her freedom against oppressive males and winning out in the end by her courageous final departure. The sympathies will almost certainly be distributed so that our hearts are with Nora, however much we might carry some reservations about her leaving her children. Now, this construction certainly arises from what is in the play, and I don't wish to dismiss it out of hand. However, today I would like to raise some serious question about or qualifications to it. I want to do so because this vision of A Doll's House has always struck me as oversimple, as, in some sense, seriously reductive, an approach that removes from the play much of its complexity and almost all its mystery and power.

Loneliness of Curley’s wife Essay

The author never tells us the name of Curley’s wife in the novel, which could be for many reasons. E. g. she wasn’t important enough or even because she was a woman. But I think it was because she was regarded as one of Curley’s possessions, and because of this everyone approached her with haste. They were all afraid of Curley and didn’t want any bother from him so they left her alone. They didn’t speak to her and ignored her most of the time which could after a while make a person very lonely and feel unwanted. She didn’t like this so she tried to do something about it. She put on attractive clothes, and was heavily made up with full rouged lips and widely spaced eyes. Fingernails painted red and hair in little clusters like sausages. Obviously she wanted to attract some attention from the workers on the ranch, she just wanted somebody to notice her. But as in doing this she is labelled ‘a tart’ and ‘jailbait’. George doesn’t see past the outer cover when she comes back and sees a woman trying to get someone arrested or killed, so he strictly warns Lenny to keep away from her. Another reason for Curley’s wife’s loneliness could have been that she was the only woman on the ranch so she has no other female to gossip to, and all the men are ignoring her so she has absolutely nobody on the ranch to chat with except Curley. Curley isn’t a good husband as he regards her mainly as a possession and not his wife, and therefore doesn’t treat her all that well. He is one of the main reasons that she feels so unhappy. He forces his wife to stay at home alone every day as he forbids her to leave the house in fear that she might go and stray off with one of the ranch workers. He himself is not all that loyal either as he visits brothels with the other men at the end of the month even though he is married. She admits to us when chatting with Lenny that she doesn’t love Curley. She only married him because of her mother. She had met a film producer that had said he was going to put her in the movies, and when the letter didn’t come from him she thought her mother had stolen it. So she moved of and married Curley maybe as a way to get revenge on her mother. Whereas it is more likely that the man wasn’t a film producer and probably wanted just to get her to sleep with him. When talking with Lenny she also tells him all the things she wanted in her life. She wanted to wear nice clothes, stay in big hotels, have pictures taken of her and to be an actress. She even hinted that she was going to leave Curley someday by saying ‘maybe I will someday’ when talking about an acting career. Curley’s wife seems awfully lonely and gets great pleasure out of talking with Lenny in the barn. She even lets him stroke her hair causing a great ruckus and eventually leading to her violent death. But it was instantaneous and when Candy looked at her body he saw that her face was sweet and young. She hadn’t a care in the world. All the ache for attention and discontent were gone from her face and she was finally at peace. I personally don’t think she is the cause of all the trouble because she was only seeking a bit of company. She hardly talked to anyone on the ranch for ages and when she finally gets the chance, you can’t blame her for wanting to take it. It maybe is a bit her fault as she let Lenny stroke her hair, but she didn’t know what he was going to do when he wouldn’t let go and started to panic. She did initially get Lenny killed but I don’t think she did it intentionally as she speaks no desire to get herself killed. It is a bit of everybody’s fault, if the men had spoken to her she may not have wanted to go into the barn with Lenny and therefore not have been killed. Lenny and George’s dream may have came true if Curley’s wife had not been killed so in a way this major event changed all of their lives forever. 30/04/2007 Simon Gurney Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE John Steinbeck section.

The Reproductive Right Debate Essays - 2566 Words

No other element of the Women’s Rights Movement has generated as much controversy as the debate over reproductive rights. As the movement gained momentum so did the demand for birth control, sex education, family planning and the repeal of all abortion laws. On January 22, 1973 the Supreme Court handed down the Roe v. Wade decision which declared abortion fundamental right.† The ruling recognized the right of the individual â€Å"to be free from unwanted governmental intrusion into matters so fundamentally affecting a person as the right of a woman to decide whether or not to terminate her pregnancy.† (US Supreme Court, 1973) This federal-level ruling took effect, legalizing abortion for all women nationwide. In a 2006 study conducted by†¦show more content†¦495) Abortions were linked to low birth rates of American children, and fear was spread that with the continuing birth rates, the population would no longer be able to reproduce itself The fear w as that lower class and immigrant children would soon make up the majority. Abortion was seen as a privilege more available to the higher classes than the lower ones, thus explaining the imbalance in birth rates. (Linders, 1998) Another key issue in the argument to criminalize abortions was the attempt by doctors to establish exclusive rights to practice medicine. They wanted to prevent midwives, apothecaries, and other â€Å"untrained† practitioners from competing with them for patients and patient fees. Rather than openly admitting to such motivations, the newly formed American Medical Association (AMA) argued that abortion was both immoral and dangerous. By 1910, all but one state had criminalized abortion except where necessary, in a doctors judgment, to save the womans life. â€Å"Should the woman die in that situation, it would not be because of the abortion but in spite of it.† (p.494) In this way, legal abortion was successfully transformed into a physician s-only practice. (Linders, 1998) Unfortunately, the criminalization of abortion did notShow MoreRelatedUndue Burden : Obstacles Against Women s Reproductive Rights971 Words   |  4 PagesAgainst Women’s Reproductive Rights Undue Burden: Obstacles Against Women’s Reproductive Rights The topic of women’s reproductive rights has become a major, controversial issue in today’s society. Grounded in a history of opposition for religious, political, and moral reasons, reproductive rights have only legally been around for a short period of history. Specifically, the landmark case Roe v. Wade was the major stride that this country took towards enforcing women’s reproductive rights. The rulingRead MoreEssay on The Four Principles of Ethics in New Reproductive Technology802 Words   |  4 PagesThe Four Principles of Ethics in New Reproductive Technology Jamie Cormier Health Care Ethics Baker College January 14, 2014 How can the principles of ethics (autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice) assist in finding a middle ground on new reproductive technologies? The principles of ethics can assist in finding a middle ground on reproductive technologies by forcing the healthcare provider to consider first the patient and their well-being above all else, yet keeping in considerationRead MoreThe Debate Of Womens Reproductive Health1194 Words   |  5 PagesThe topic of women’s rights has always been one that has been discussed. Specifically, the topic of women’s reproductive health and rights has been the subject of controversial debate for many years. 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Wade decision on the premise that â€Å"a womans right to make decisions regarding her pregnancy, including a safe and legal abortion† forms the backbone of the Democrats stance and allows for them to defend women across the nation.(DemocraticRead MoreFurthermore, Reproductive Rights Cannot Be Discussed Without1698 Words   |  7 PagesFurthermore, reproductive rights cannot be discussed without additionally addre ssing the history of healthcare in the United States. Women are more likely to visit a physician than men, and do so more frequently (Mezey, 2011). They are also more likely to enter into nursing homes when they are older and live longer lives (2011). Despite these frequencies, women are not often considered or even included when planning healthcare. 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