2nd Response

2nd Outside Reading Response

Continuing reading this play it keeps getting more interesting. I have now reached a point in the play where Mrs. Linde and and Nora are having a discussion about what has been going on in their lives since they had last seen each other. for example their good doings, accomplishments, and other details in between. At first it seemed as though Nora did not really have much to say, but Mrs. Linde on the other hand did. As I kept reading though Nora poured out one of her deepest secrets to Mrs. Linde. She had told her about when her and her husband were stuck in Europe for a really long time (Isben 15-21). They could not leave Europe due to her husband Helmer's illness.  For them to leave they had to pay a great deal of money, that they did not have at that time. Nora did confess to using all their money for her needs. So, Nora told her that they had to go through a very risky procedure to get the money they needed. I found it to be quite interesting that she would forge her own father's signature to access money. Her father was ill, and he could not sign but still the fact that she didn't even ask his permission, or even tell him was kind of surprising. That is a very dangerous, and illegal thing to do. When explaining the story to Mrs. Linde, Nora explained that she thought it was a risk worth taking, even know all the repercussions that could happen to her. To this day, her husband does not know that she had done this for him. the only person who now knows is Mrs. Linde. My overall reaction to this was I was kind of surprised, and I thought it was a little weird. I feel like she should have at least to her father, and if not him than her husband so that incase she did get into trouble someone else but her knew what was going on. Lets say she did get in trouble for forging the signature, and she had told her husband, he could defend her and help her get out of the situation, rather then her having to go through it alone. 

After Nora had told Mrs. Linde all of this, she barely had a reaction. Instead she just brought up the fact that she needed to fins a job, now that she was on her own. After reading this section I kind of feel like maybe the only reason that Mrs. Linde came to see Nora, was for Nora to help her find a job. I think that Mrs. Linde is not a genuine person, and she is just using Nora.
http://www.enotes.com/dolls-house-text/act-i

1st Response

A Dolls House Act One First Response

The first Act of a dolls house introduces some of the main characters in the story. The first person you meet is Nora and she seems like a sweet innocent lady who is kind of a shopoholic. The we meet her husband Helmer who seems like a man who wants everything under control. He also got a a new job at a bank, and is making much more money now, which seems to make Nora extremely happy.A Dolls House begins with the husband and wife Nora, and Torvald, having a discussion. While they are talking you first think that Torvald Helmer is talking to his daughter but then later you realize it is his wife.  Another question I would love to ask the author is, is why he would have the dialogue like this. Did he want to make Helmer seem like the head of the house, or like he was superior to women. This is how certain parts of the dialogue between the husband and the wife came across to me. It was not the actual words he was saying, it was the way it seemed he said creation things to her. but then again it is a play this is just the way that i interpreted the conversation between the two of them. Later on we also meet the character Mrs. Linde who we do not know really much about other than she is a widow, her mother died, and she has two younger brothers who she no longer has to take care of or provide for (Isben 14). So another question that i would have for the author would be about Mrs. Linde. She kind of just came into the story with really knowing much about her, and every time we start to find something out it seemed like Nora would interrupt her and tell more about herself. Why would the author not really let us know who she really is? Act one of the play does not really tell us where she came from or really who Mrs. Linde is. Hopefully reading on there will be an explanation of how Mrs. Linde ended up at Nora's house. The first act of the play definitely leaves more to come, and also many more questions to be answered based on what this play is about. But, as far as everything has gone up, to this point in the story, i am definitely enjoying it!
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/840229/a_dolls_house_literary_analysis_.html