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A Doll's House Essay

 

            Who is responsible for Nora's childish behavior, which lead to her departure? Surely she is part accountable, or is her husband and father fully to blame because they treated her like an infant? Though it is difficult to point the blame entirely on a specific character in play, it is easy to presume that everyone had a part in Nora's childish behavior. .
             Throughout the entire play Nora is constantly being treated as a young child. Torvald is the main character responsible for his wife's childish behavior. For example, he is always calling Nora by a "pet name", such as "little sky-lark" or "little squirrel", as though she is his daughter, rather then his spouse. He also restricts Nora from certain privileges, as a father would, like denying her the right to eat macaroons because it will ruin her teeth. Even Mrs. Linde, Nora's close friend, thinks she is a spoiled brat because Nora's father and husband have money. Mrs. Linde states that Nora has never had any problems because "daddy" always paid the bills and took care of her; through comments like, "I haven't any father I can fall back on for the money, Nora", and, "you haven't known much trouble or hardship in your own life.".
             Nora is also responsible for her childish behavior, not just her husband and father, like she states at the end of the play. Nora proves to be more of an "adult" then Torvald thinks her to be because of the loan she took out with Krogstad and the jobs she occupied to pay the loan back. Though Nora took out the loan and is paying it back, evening bragging to Mrs. Linde that she has a sense for business, she still seems to be childish in the way she is handing the loan. For instance, when Mrs. Linde asked how many payments she had left, she said, "I can't tell exactly." Also, when Nora forged her father's signature she did not take the time to use the correct dates, again showing her childish behavior. Deceiving her husband by hiding the loan, not keeping track of the amount, and using the wrong dates on the IOU proves Nora to be very immature.


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