A Hard Decision

  In Henrik Ibsen’s play, A Doll’s House, Nora is faced with one of the most important questions of her life. Should I leave my husband and children or not? Luckily for her, she decided to leave him and start her new life. Although A Doll’s House was written in 1879, its themes are still relevant today. Women were and still are oppressed and not given the same opportunities as men. Nora felt this deeply with Torvald as he would treat her like she was his servant and he was the household’s king. "Our home has been nothing but a playroom. I have been your doll-wife, just as at home I was papa's doll-child; and here the children have been my dolls."(Isben 148) She has felt like a toy her whole life just abiding by men. When she confronts him about feeling this way, Torvald proves her point by only caring about his reputation with his job and boss, instead of hearing her emotions and understanding where she’s coming from. That is no way to live. Self-realization and personal integrity are moral necessities. Nora feels as if she has no personal integrity. She states, “I believe that before all else I am a human being, just as much as you are—or at least that I should try to become one.” (Isben 144) This recognition of her own womanhood represents moral growth. She will not be able to grow as a person until she leaves an oppressive household that is holding her back. Since she has no opportunities herself, she thinks if she is in her children’s lives, they won’t either. "I can't be a proper mother to them while I'm like this."(Isben 147) Nora believes the biggest part of being a mother is educating her kids. Since she isn’t educated herself, and her husband is unable to help her with that because he simply cares about his own reputation and life more, she serves no purpose to her children. She believes the best thing for her is to find herself, and she is unable to do so as long as her family is still in her life. In making her “right decision” to leave her husband and begin her new life.