A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen
A Doll's House is a three-act play in prose by Henrik Ibsen. It premiered at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 December 1879, having been published earlier that month.The play is significant for its critical attitude toward 19th century marriage norms. It aroused great controversy at the time, as it concludes with the protagonist, Nora, leaving her husband and children because she wants to discover herself. Ibsen was inspired by the belief that a woman cannot be herself in modern society, since it is an exclusively male society, with laws made by men and with prosecutors and judges who assess feminine conduct from a masculine standpoint. Its ideas can also be seen as having a wider application: Michael Meyer argued that the play's theme is not women's rights, but rather the need of every individual to find out the kind of person he or she really is and to strive to become that person. In a speech given to the Norwegian Association for Women's Rights in 1898, Ibsen insisted that he must disclaim the honor of having consciously worked for the women's rights movement, since he wrote without any conscious thought of making propaganda, his task having been the description of humanity.In 2006, the centennial of Ibsen's death, A Doll's House held the distinction of being the world's most performed play for that year. UNESCO has inscribed Ibsen's autographed manuscripts of A Doll's House on the Memory of the World Register in 2001, in recognition of their historical value.Many a husband reeled back in horror after the premiere of Ibsen's marriage-shaking play in 1879The fellow was actually challenging the sacred values of family life by suggesting a woman could break free of the marital gilded cage. What next? They will want the vote. * Daily Express *
Ibsen's drama is a powerful statement of his radical beliefs about gender, the folly of idealism and the nature of modern love. In essence, it is the story of woman who wakes up to reality. * Evening Standard *
Ibsen caused a storm with the notion that women were as entitled as men to think and live for themselves. * Jewish Chronicle *
Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) was a Norwegian playwright and poet whose realistic, symbolic and often controversial plays revolutionised European theatre. He is widely regarded as the father of modern drama. His acclaimed plays include A Doll's House, Ghosts, Hedda Gabler, An Enemy of the People and The Pillars of the Community.
Sophie Duncan is a Fellow of Christ Church, University of Oxford. She received her DPhil from Brasenose College, Oxford, where she was Senior Hulme Scholar, in 2013. She then became Stipendiary Lecturer at St Catherine’s and Supernumerary Fellow in English at Harris Manchester College, before returning to full-time research at Magdalen. She has been a guest lecturer at King’s College London and the Bread Loaf School of English. In 2013, she became Editor of Victorian Network. Her research includes longstanding links with the world of professional theatre, and she works regularly as a historical advisor/dramaturg in theatre, television, radio and film. Her publications include Shakespeare’s Women and the Fin de Siècle (Oxford University Press) and she has published on the African American actor Ira Aldridge, the bibliographical history of Oscar Wilde, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897).
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781350116788 |
| ISBN 10 | 1350116785 |
| Title | A Doll's House |
| Author | Henrik Ibsen |
| Series | Student Editions |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing PLC |
| Year published | 2020-10-01 |
| Number of pages | 136 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |