Why did A Dolls House cause such controversy when it was first performed?
Give your own view of the argument. When the play was first performed in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1879, it provoked a storm. The theme of the play, a woman’s right to individual self-fulfillment, was considered highly subversive in an age when women were not allowed to conduct business without the authority of a father or husband, and were considered to be their property. Women were not allowed to vote, and divorce, though allowed, carried a heavy social stigma and was available only when both partners agreed. The row about the play centered on whether Nora was right to leave her husband and children. Critics claimed that her decision to leave was unrealistic, since no “real” woman would do such a thing. Ibsen was forced to write a second ending, in which Nora decides that her children need her more than she needs her freedom, and stays with Torvald. Ibsen called it “a barbaric outrage,” and insisted that it must only be used when necessary. Ibsen’s views differed from those held by many
