Duty and Self

Paper Summary:

The paper analyzes the psychological dictates of self and duty in the Victorian patriarchal household of "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen. The paper discusses how one of the conflicting aspects of the play involves Nora questioning her duty to her husband, Torvald, but it is the feminist duty to self that truly forces her to leave. The paper explains that the Freudian aspects of penis envy in relation to her unconscious rebellion, relate her identity as a housewife.

From the Paper:

"This drama analysis will examine the nature of psychology and the self in regards to Nora's departure from Torvald in the play "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen. The paper shows the other aspects of sociological and personal reasons for Nora's departure and Nora's lack of self-identity in a Freudian psychological perspective. However, it is Nora's sense of self as a feminist that has her reject her sense of patriarchal `duty' to her tyrannical husband. In essence, this analysis will focus on the duty to self versus duty to others conflict that arises within the psychological issues that arise within Ibsen's "A Doll's House." In regards to the feminist `self', Nora can be seen as a social rebel to the patriarchal social norms of her times."

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