Ibsen’s Nora is Entrapped

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to explore the theme of interpersonal alienation in Ibsen’s A
Doll’s House (1879). The interpersonal alienation is the kind of alienation that prevails between
partners and leads to self-alienation. As partners in marriage, Nora and Thorvald in A Doll’s
House live like strangers. When she discovers the truth about her marital life, Nora decides to
leave Thorvald and live for herself. In a patriarchal society, however, Nora’s step implies
becoming socially alienated. Ibsen shows that Nora is entrapped. In the masculine society Nora
lives in, she has to choose between being self-alienated or socially ostracized. There is no third
choice.