@elisarodriguez19
Gender roles have always played a tyrannical role throughout history. Society tends to establish which behaviors, attitudes and roles each sex should follow in order to be accepted by society, no matter of the circumstances or preferences of the people. Throughout the Victorian Age, according to Gender Ideology and Separate Spheres women were seen as “physically and intellectually the ‘weaker’ sex”, they were regarded as unable and inept to do more than household work and take care of children, oversee the money and have a job. On the other hand, the man possessed freedom and controlled all aspects of the family's aspects, “dominating all decision making in political, legal and economic affairs”. In the novel, A Doll’s House, written by Henrik Ibsen, the author emphasizes the Victorian Age as a society built on erroneous gender role stereotypes with mistaken social and cultural criterias through the characterization of the main character, Nora. Ibsen conveyed his message by portraying Nora as an unconventional, independent and liberal woman capable enough to make her own decisions, not allowing herself to be carried by society’s judgements and stereotypes or being dependent on a marriage and/or men.
Ibsen challenges the traditional representation of gender roles during the Victorian Age in Nora’s character development enhancing women’s struggles seeking independence and pursuing self expression, transforming her character from a submissive to an independent woman. First of all, Nora was displayed as a timid and sensible young woman who most of the time had no opinion and was unaware of her surroundings, Ibsen conveyed this message by portraying her as a doll figure and by giving her a childlike image. She was an obedient wife with childish characteristics that appeared when she was around her husband. She doubtlessly obeyed Torvald restrictions such as mentioning old friends because it made him “sort of jealous”, consequently Nora thought it was all right to “stop doing it” (38). He thinks that Nora is a doll which he can use to his advantage and willingness, therefore, he uses epithets such as “little sweet-tooth” (5), “little squirrel” (2) “little sky-lark” (1) and “little singing bird” (3) to describe her. The usage of the word little in how Torvald calls her wife is intended to make her be seen as a cute, dollish object, effortless to control. However, Nora expresses signs of change and boredom towards her life, as she feels unspeakably empty. She demonstrates her progressive awakening to pursue her wellness and change her submissive behavior towards Torvald, developing a strong personality becoming a risk taker, not caring about laws or society. Nora contradicts Victorian Age standards by falsifying her father’s signature, borrowing a large sum of money so her husband, Torvald, could recuperate from a grave illness. Torvald thinks Nora is a “little spendrifther” (2) as she seems to not know how to manage money and use it in insignificant stuff, even though she has been secretly saving this money in order to pay back the loan. She was taking care of a portion of the incomes and outputs of the family, something that was unacceptable during the Victorian Age. Nora claimed that “it would be terribly embarrassing and humiliating” (15) for Torvald to know that he owes money to her wife, proving that their relationship is only based on traditional representations of the Victorian Age gender roles. She portrayed herself as powerless and helpless, through her characterization and personality, in order to control Torvald so that he wouldn’t suspect her of borrowing money as he sees her as a child who does not understand finances. Nora’s struggle pursuing self expression led her to become an uncontrollable woman that did not depend on a male figure.
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