A Doll's House: Act 4

[irenicObserver]

For my English class, we read "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen. After reading we were seperated into groups and tasked with writing Act 4. My group spent some time arguing but eventually decided on writing Nora and Torvald back together. The problem I have with that is I think my group is completely missing Ibsen's point. They're going for the same generic happy ending all of his critics pushed him to write, the same happy ending he was realistically averting. I'm fine if they manage to write it sensibly, where it makes sense for them to get back together, I just think the themes are compromised by doing so.

What I would like to ask the Playground is what would you do for Act 4 of A Doll's House? What are your interpretations of Ibsen's themes?

[Dienekes]

That's kind of funny actually, considering the big climax of the play is her stomping out on him. Personally, since the play already is a love letter to individuality I would have focused on both the positive and negative parts of Nora's decision.

Essentially, her only form of income is supplementary in nature and wouldn't be able to support her. She is also leaving her children behind.

I'd set Act IV years in the future. Torvald is successful, remarried, and has supported their children rather well. Nora, after years of being refused to see her children by Torvald has aged considerably since she has had to work hard just to sustain herself. Eventually she does finally get a chance to see her children again only for them to literally shut the door on the mother that left them. But then, I do so love to add depressing twists to things.

[irenicObserver]

What I imagined was a flash forward with Torvald an old man, they never got back together. Torvald still does not understand why Nora left, but he's starting to see similar flaws in the relationship of a younger couple that is worse than his (i'm on the fence about it being with his kids). There are intermittent flashbacks to Nora struggling on her own, because honestly a tragedy is the most likely result, being a women of that time who ran out on her family.

EDIT: But this is more in line of a sequel rather than the next act.

[Lord Seth]

The problem I have with that is I think my group is completely missing Ibsen's point.I think the assignment is missing the point. The play was written to end where it ended. The simple attempt to make it longer is undermining the original.

Granted, I don't necessarily care that much whether it's being "undermined" because I seem to remember finding it boring, but I do feel my point stands.

For the record, if I did have to write an Act IV for an assignment, I'd have the characters realize they're in a play and ponder the philosophical ramifications of this knowledge. That or somehow involve things like aliens or time travel.

[VanBuren]

Ick. There is no way on earth that I could possibly take that assignment seriously.

Rocks fall, everyone dies.