Detailed Analysis of Characters and Themes in A Doll's House Act 2

This assignment analyzes Act 2 of Henrik Ibsen's 'A Doll's House,' focusing on the significance of the Christmas tree as a symbol of Nora's state and foreshadowing the play's events. It explores Kristine's suspicions about the loan, highlighting instances of hiding and deception. The analysis delves into Dr. Rank's character, revealing his love for Nora and his relationship with Helmer, as well as his kindness and professionalism. The document also assesses the relationships between Nora and the male figures in her life: Torvald Helmer, Dr. Rank, and Nils Krogstad. The analysis uses textual evidence to evaluate the nature of these relationships, particularly the lies and power dynamics at play, providing a comprehensive understanding of the characters and their interactions within the context of the play.

Running head: A DOLL’S HOUSE
A Doll’s House
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

A DOLL’S HOUSE 2
A Doll’s House
The Christmas tree is significant as it acts as a representative of Nora herself. Under
normal circumstances a Christmas tree is used as a decoration during times of celebration. At
this point, the tree is quite significant as it might allude to the mental state that Nora is in. As
seen above, the tree is usually used as an object of festivities. In this scenario, it represents
the value that Nora has towards Torvald, that is, Nora is a pretty lady who is there to entertain
Torvald. The tree overshadows a bitter ending for the relationship between Nora and Torvald.
Nora instructs the maid to keep the tree as a secret. This represents the kind of lies (which
must be kept secret) that she uses to maintain the stability of her marriage. Later, when the
marriage is stumbling, the tree stats to wither.
Nora talks to Kristine about some loan that she took to help her ailing husband.
According to Nora, she and her husband used the loan to travel to Southern Europe to seek
medical help for her husband. There are two main reasons why Kristine is quite suspicious
about this loan. First, Nora states in a vague way that she obtained the loan from her father.
Nora then contradicts herself by stating that she raised the money on her own. The second
reason for Kristine’s suspicion is that Nora claims to have repaid all of the loan by herself
using the proceeds of her small jobs. Judging from the nature of her jobs, it is rather
impossible for her to raise the money to repay the loan.
There are several instances of hiding that are evident in this act. Following are some
examples. Nora explains to Dr Rank that when she was young, she loved her father but
preferred to hide among the maids since the maids did not make any attempts to dictate to her
how she should behave. Secondly, Nora hides from her husband, the means she used to
acquire the loan. Thirdly, we see Nora hiding her fancy-dresses. These elements mainly show
that Nora is working so hard to hide from reality. She is especially cautious to hide a great

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deal of information from her husband in a bid to maintain stability in her marriage. The main
unique thing that the audience learns about Dr Rank is that she loves Nora. When Nora asks
Rank a favour concerning the stockings, the doctor declared his love for her. The audience
also learns that Rank is a close associate of Nora’s husband. It is through his friendship with
Helmer that Rank becomes a friend of the family. It is also evident that Rank is a kind man.
For instance, when Helmer is unwell, he is very supportive to the family. Therefore, although
Rank betrays his friend Helmer by declaring love to Nora, he is generally a kind man. In
addition to these characteristics, Rank is very professional at his work. Despite knowing that
Helmers condition may not improve, he acts ethically by providing great support to him and
his family.
Relationships between Nora and the male figures in her life
Character Evaluation of the relationship with
Nora
Textual Evidence
Torvald Helmer Although married to Helmer, the
relationship between the two could be is
founded on lies. Nora behaves in a
manner that pretends that she respects
everything her husband commands but
actually disobeys her in many ways.
Some good example to this
relationship is when we see
Nora eating cookies when
she is alone only to learn
later that her husband
disapproves of such
behaviour (A Doll's House,
2020).
Dr Rank Nora treats Dr Rank as a friend to the
family. She does not hold any other
It is evident from the text
that when Dr Rank declares

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kind of relations with Dr Rank. her love for Nora, she does
not want to go into that
direction.
Nils Krogstad Nora and Krogstad appear to have been
wronged by the society. They also share
commonalities in the kind of crimes that
they have committed.
Both Krogstad and Nora
have forged signatures.
Reference

A DOLL’S HOUSE 5
A Doll's House, by Henrik Ibsen. (2020). Retrieved 17 March 2020, from
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2542/2542-h/2542-h.htm