Literary+elements

=Literary Elements=

In the play, //A Doll House//, Ibsen uses irony to develop the conflict of the story. The examples of [|irony] include:


 * · Nora commits a crime that no one knows about, but Krogstad commits the same crime and he is shunned and rejected by society.


 * · Nora gets away with the crime but then decides to tell her husband.


 * · Nora committed a crime to save Torvald’s life, but he is furious with her.


 * · Torvald treats Nora like a child, but she is a strong woman.

The play is set during the holidays, and Ibsen uses the [|symbolism] of Christmas and New Years to help identify the changes that the characters experience.


 * · Christmas and New Years are associated with rebirth and renewal.
 * · When Nora leaves her husband and slams the door, it is like being reborn to a new life.


 * · When Torvald realizes that he has been unfair he has a chance to be reborn.


 * · Krogstad and Mrs. Linde renew their love and hope that both their lives will change for the better.

The Christmas tree is also symbolic to what is happening to Nora. The tree seems to parallel Nora’s state of mind.


 * · The tree is decorative and so is Nora in her household. She decorates the tree just like Torvald dresses her.


 * Nora uses pretty decorations to hide her deceit.


 * When things start to fall apart for Nora, the tree is described as a mess and stripped of its decorations.