Critical Perspectives a Dolls House the Crucible

Critical Perspectives - A Doll’s House Feminist Theory ●

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Roles of women in society articulated through Torvald’s character: ● Women were to be a good wife and mother. ● Women are responsible for the morality of their children. ● Seen as childlike, helpless creatures with low intellectuality, as seen through Torvald’s endearing comments ● Women weren’t allowed to manage the family’s money, as they were thought to be incapable of being frugal ● Superiority of husband over wife is emphasised through Ibsen’s use of bird metaphors and references to small and frail creatures. ● Nora defies her prescribed role as a dependent, weak and suppressed wife. From the rebellious act of eating the macaroon foreshadows her leaving the house at the end. Defying her pre-set roles shows that she does not want to conform to a “doll’s house”. Ibsen does this to show society at the time Nora is empowered through her knowledge of societal expectations of her. She knows how her relationship with Torvald works, therefore knowing how to manipulate him into doing things for her Nora is also empowered by procuring the money for the loan, due to the fact she is going against societal norms and establishing her individuality Nora’s individuality is also established through her “wildly” and “violently” dancing the Tarantella without following Torvald’s instructions Use of props by Ibsen such as the macaroon to symbolise Nora’s small acts of rebellion, but also to to show that she is silenced. Nora’s lack of house or mailbox key shows again that she is oppressed by Torvald.

Psychoanalytic / Freudian Theory ● ● ● ● ● ●

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theory of personality based on subconscious desires ID basic desire, “inner child”, immediate gratification of their needs and desires EGO reality, balance between id and superego. mediates between the two and filters the wants of the id through the requirements and rules of the superego. SUPEREGO learned through parental instruction + living in society. rules and socially imposed behaviour. The macaroon she eats in Act I symbolizes her ID and represents her inner desire – freedom/individuality, existential in order to understand the work, one must fully understand the author’s life and stance on beliefs and values, although a work may not be autobiographical, psychoanalysts argue that some things can be submized from knowing the background of the author, often authors will satirize people they dislike or be overly sympathetic to people they do like, this author bias influences the audiences perceptions of characters. By analysing the work, one may surmise the author’s beliefs and values, and political stances. An author may put repressed desires in their work in the form of actions/ dialogue performed by characters.

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The meaning and interpretation of dreams- Emphasis is placed on dreams having significance and it is believed dreams are where subconscious desires are revealed. What a person cannot express or do in the public sphere as a result of taboo and social conventions is expressed or done in dreams, where there are no rules. Usually individuals do not know what they desire, but it is known subconsciously. When Torvald is drunk, he tries to teach Mrs Linde how to knit. While this has humorous intent, it also suggests a latent, subconscious desire of Torvald’s to act freely and independently of the phallocentric society in which they live, determining how men should act in a ‘manly’ way and do ‘manly’ things. Inversely, it could also suggest Ibsen’s desire for it to be more socially acceptable that men do things stereotypically assigned to women’s interests. Torvald treats Nora like a daughter: The use of evocatives and affectionate terms and patronising actions suggests Torvald’s desire to have control over a woman and be in control. Nora’s desire to break free and her departure at the end mirrors Ibsen’s own cold relationship with his mother and sisters- While the ending of A Doll’s House may be shocking to audiences with close relationships with family, for Ibsen it may have little significance.

New Historicism ● ● ● ●

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Impossible to assume a direct comparison between the culture presented in the text and as the culture really was “Actual” history of culture cannot be shown as history is written by the winners, therefore the loser’s perspective is neglected - the culture presented in the play is always affected by the author’s perspective and the themes Ibsen is trying to show Text may also affect the culture that it is supposedly written in - A Doll’s House wanted to show need for individuality + existentialism in society Ibsen was a realist due to early life marked by poverty and troubles (initial lack of success in the theater) - therefore bringing out realism in his plays which society preferred to ignore e.g. Nora and Torvald's relationship with the lack of trust, Mrs Linde’s issues with marriage + economical issues Highly aware to social developments in Norway (and largely Europe) despite leaving the country a while ago - heavily influenced by Victorian England with a standard of middle-class propriety (social life based on the home, and men being superior in the household) - stock characters of Nora and Torvald portrayed in the household When A Doll’s House was written women’s suffrage was at a high point - Ibsen focuses on the ideas of status of women in marriage (Nora defined by her relationship with Torvald), equal divorce laws (hard for women to “divorce” her husband) and gaining employment rights (Nora was not expected to work; even if she would have wanted to as a middle-class wife) The plot of “A Doll’s House’ may be influenced by an event that happened in Ibsen’s life. Laura Kieler (one of Ibsen’s friends) attempted to finance a vacation by secretly borrowing money. When her husband found out, he demanded a separation and removed the children from her care. In “A Doll’s House”, it is Nora who leaves. In reversing the roles, Ibsen empowers women. Nora and Torvald’s relationship based on Ibsen’s fascination with his parent’s “strange” marriage Henrik's sister Hedvig would write about their mother: "She was a quiet, lovable woman, the soul of the house, everything to her husband and children. She sacrificed herself time and time again.” Nora seems to be a caring mother - doesn’t want to go near her children since she’s scared of passing on her “poison” due to the idea of heredity

Critical Perspectives - The Crucible Feminist Theory: -Men have power over women, unfairness towards women IN THE BEGINNING OF THE PLAY -Females - servants or townsmen, until married off to higher social status - Mrs Putnam -Males - breadwinner, high ranking occupations associated with the church or the court. -Abigail has a manipulative mind - change in power - negative portrayal -Abigail is percepted as a girl who damages the idea of an woman who of course influences the perception of women in general. -Her love for Proctor has made her want to get rid of Elizabeth but as a result, like a snowball effect, causing many false accusation. FEAR -Just through her stage directions “crying,” she is able to accuse many innocent people just for her own benefits, to get closer to her target. -Mrs Putnam; -Elizabeth’s change in status -- seen in a more positive light - as she was taken away by government -The feminist idea can be seen in two perspective: -Females gaining power privately - Elizabeth, owning Proctor and able to have a voice within her relationship with Proctor -Females gaining power negatively - Abigail, gaining power through accusations of witchcraft. -Power that is given to young female children (Power of the collective - they are all girls)

Psychoanalytic Theory Deconstructionist Perspective ● ●

The conventional reading of The Crucible features John Proctor as the hero, but what if we read the play in an entirely different way which makes Abigail the hero? Abigail is a young orphaned girl who is seduced by her boss and deflowered in an age when virginity was a prerequisite for marriage. Then she gets thrown out of the house on orders from his wife and utterly rejected. Abigail is constantly rejected by Proctor, and she resorts to trying to frame Elizabeth

Mythological/ Archetypal Approach ● ● ○ ○ ■ ■ ■

Characters Use of archetypes and mythological characters and creatures to accelerating understanding of the story - imagine if every single character had to be explained in detail -- stereotypes to take shortcuts Proctor -- the HERO -- search for self-identity (‘what is John Proctor?’, ‘because it is my name!’ Act IV, denouncement, pages from the end of the play) and also the inevitable destruction CONTRAST WITH ARCHETYPE -- archetypal hero -- search for self-identity causes destruction, BUT THIS IS NOT TRUE FOR JOHN PROCTOR Also, Proctor is the LONER OR OUTCAST symbolised by the distance of his home from the village the various situations where Proctor is seen to be superior or distant GUILT RIDDEN FIGURE IN SEARCH OF REDEMPTION

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Aristotle version of the tragic hero -- born into nobility, but Proctor is a common man, fighting to maintain his own dignity Abigail -- the VILLAIN -- personification of evil, conflicts with the protagonist and is motivated by a wrong (though not necessarily her wrong); limitless malice. Femme Fatale -- beautiful, seductive, but mischievous and troublesome, though Abigail does not make use of her beauty to manipulate others. (Troubled Teen). Danforth -- The Boss -- (morally impaired) Miller plays with various archetypes to show the dangers of blindly following the law Parris -- The Rake -- habituated to immoral conduct -- situational irony as he is a religious officer Rebecca Nurse -- SAGE -- THE WISE OLD WOMEN -- wisdom from experience, nature, associated with witchcraft.  motives? Tituba -- the SCAPEGOAT -- takes the blame for Abigail -- double oppression (because she is a black and a woman) Images LIGHT AND DARKNESS -- sunlight breaking to how the truth NEW DAY -- end of the play, Act IV, when Proctor’s hanging is symbolized by sunrise -- new beginnings -- optimistic future. Lack of grass and vegetation throughout the play -- lack of life in the play -- both gives a literal understanding of the situation (it is difficult to farm and live in Massachusetts) and ALSO represents the difficult life in the theocratic state