Briefly doll house. The doll's house book read online

31.07.2019

Current page: 1 (total of the book has 5 pages)

Henrik Ibsen
Dollhouse

Henrik Johan Ibsen

* * *

Characters

Helmer lawyer.

Nora, his wife.

Dr. Rank.

Fru Linne.

Private attorney Krogstad.

Three small children of the Helmer couple.

Anna Maria, their nanny.

Maid in Helmer's house.

Messenger.

Action one

There is a bell in the front. After a while, you can hear the door being unlocked. From the hall he enters the room, humming merrily, Nora, in outerwear, loaded with a heap of packages and parcels, which she puts on the table to the right. The door to the front remains open, and there you can see messenger who brought a tree and a basket, which he gives maid who opened the door.

Nora... Hide the tree well, Elene. Children should not see her until evening when she is decorated. (To the messenger, taking out a purse.) How many?

Messenger... Fifty ere!

Nora... Here is the crown ... No, keep everything for yourself.

The messenger bows and leaves. Nora closes the door to the hallway, takes off her outer dress, continuing to chuckle in a quiet, contented laugh. Then he takes a bag of macaroons from his pocket and eats a few. Gently walks to the door leading to her husband's room and listens.

Yes, he's at home. (He hums again, heading for the table.)

Helmer (from the office)... What is it, the lark is singing?

Nora (expanding purchases)... He is.

Helmer... Is the squirrel busy there?

Nora... Yes!

Helmer... When did the squirrel return?

Nora... Just now. (Hides the bag of cookies in his pocket and wipes his lips.) Come here, Torvald, look what I bought!

Helmer... Wait, don't bother. (After a while, he opens the door and peers into the room, quill in hand.) Bought it, you say? All this? .. So the bird flew away again to waste money?

Nora... You know, Torvald, it's time for us to finally unwind a little. This is the first Christmas, we don't need to embarrass ourselves so much.

Helmer... Well, we can't wind up either.

Nora... A little bit you can! Truth? Just a little bit! You have now been given a large salary, and you will earn a lot, a lot of money.

Helmer... Yes, since the new year. But they will give me a salary only after three months.

Nora... Trivia! You can take it for now.

Helmer... Nora! (He comes up and playfully takes her by the ear.) Again, our frivolity is right there. Just imagine, today I will borrow a thousand crowns, you will spend it on the holidays, and on the New Year's Eve, a tile from the roof will fall on my head - and you're done.

Nora (covering his mouth with his hand)... Ugh! Don't say such nasty things.

Helmer... No, imagine a similar case - then what?

Nora... If such a horror happened, then for me it would be all the same whether I have debts or not.

Helmer... But for people from whom I would borrow?

Nora... For them? Why think about them! After all, these are strangers!

Helmer... Nora, Nora, you are a woman! But seriously, Nora, you know my views on this matter. No debt! Never borrow! On a home based on loans, on debts, some kind of ugly shadow of dependence falls. You and I have held out bravely to this day, so we will endure a little more - not for long, after all.

Nora (going to the stove)... What do you want, Torvald.

Helmer (behind her)... Well, well, here's the bird and lowered its wings. A? The squirrel pouted. (Takes out a wallet.) Nora, what do you think I have here?

Nora (turning around, quickly)... Money!

Helmer... It is for you! ( He gives her some pieces of paper.) Lord, I know, you never know if the house is spending on the holidays.

Nora (counting)... Ten, twenty, thirty, forty. Thank you, thank you, Torvald. Now I have enough for a long time.

Helmer... Yes, you really try.

Nora... Yes, yes, absolutely. But come here, I'll show you what I bought. And how cheap! Look, here's a new suit for Ivar and a saber. Here's a horse and a pipe to Bob. And here is the doll and doll bed for Emmy. Unpretentious, but she will soon break them. And here on the dresses and aprons of the servants. Old woman Anne-Maria should, of course, have given more as a present ...

Helmer... What's in this package?

Nora (jumping up)... No, no, Torvald! You can't see this until evening!

Helmer... Oh well! Tell me what, little reel, what have you looked after yourself?

Nora... Eh, I don't need anything at all.

Helmer... Of course you need to! Now tell me something so reasonable that you would like most of all.

Nora... Really, don't. Or ... Listen, Torvald ...

Helmer... Well?

Nora (fingering the buttons of his jacket and not looking at him)... If you really want to give me something, then you would ... you would ...

Helmer... Well, well, speak up.

Nora (quickly)... You would give me money, Torvald. As much as you can. I would later, one of these days, and buy myself something with them.

Helmer... No, listen, Nora ...

Nora... Yes, yes, do it, dear Torvald! Please! I would wrap the money in a gold piece of paper and hang it on the tree. Wouldn't that be fun?

Helmer... And what are the names of those birds who are always littering with money?

Nora... I know, I know - with reels. But let's do as I say, Torvald. Then I will have time to think about what I especially need. Isn't that prudent? A?

Helmer (smiling)... Of course, that is, if you really could hold that money and then really buy something for yourself with it. And then they will go to the farm, on various unnecessary trifles, and again I will have to fork out.

Nora... Ah, Torvald ...

Helmer... There is no need to argue here, my dear. (Hugs her.) The bird is cute, but she spends an awful lot of money. It’s incredible how much such a bird costs a husband.

Nora... Ugh! How can you say that! I save as much as I can.

Helmer (funny)... This is really true! As much as you can. But you can't at all.

Nora (hums and smiles)... Hm! If you only knew how many larks and squirrels we have, all kinds of expenses, Torvald!

Helmer... You little freak! Two drops of water are your father. All you want is to get some money. And how you get it - lo and behold, they passed between your fingers, you yourself never know where you put them. Well, we have to take you for who you are. It's in your blood. Yes, yes, it's hereditary in you, Nora.

Nora... Ah, I wish I could inherit more of his qualities from my dad!

Helmer... And I would not want you to be different from what you are, my dear lark! But listen, I think you… you… how can I put it? You look suspicious today.

Nora... I have?

Helmer... Well, yes. Look me straight in the eye.

Nora (looks at him)... Well?

Helmer (shaking his finger)... Gourmet didn’t go to town a little bit today?

Nora... No, what are you!

Helmer... As if the gourmet didn’t run into the pastry shop?

Nora... But I assure you, Torvald ...

Helmer... And haven't you tasted the jam?

Nora... I didn’t think so.

Helmer... And didn’t nibble on the macaroons?

Nora... Ah, Torvald, I assure you ...

Helmer... Well well well! Naturally, I'm just kidding ...

Nora (going to the table to the right)... It would never have occurred to me to do anything against you.

Helmer... I know I know. You gave me your word. (Approaching her.) Well, keep your little Christmas secrets with you, my dear Nora. They will surely float out the same evening when the tree is lit.

Nora... Did you forget to invite Dr. Rank?

Helmer... Didn't invite. Yes, it is not necessary. Of course, he dines with us. However, I still have time to remind him: he will come before dinner. I ordered good wine. Nora, you won't believe how happy I am tonight.

Nora... And I! And the children will be so happy, Torvald!

Helmer... Oh, what a pleasure it is to know that you have achieved a correct, secure position, that you will now have a solid income. Pleasant consciousness, isn't it?

Nora... Oh, wonderful!

Helmer... Do you remember last Christmas? For three whole weeks you shut up in your evenings and until late at night you made flowers and some other delights for the Christmas tree with which you wanted to amaze us all. Ooh, I can't remember a more boring time.

Nora... I wasn't bored at all.

Helmer (with a smile)... But it didn't help much, Nora.

Nora... Are you going to tease me with that again? What could I do if the cat climbed in and tore everything to pieces!

Helmer... Well, of course I couldn't help it, my poor dear. You wholeheartedly wanted to please us all, and that's the whole point. But it's good that these difficult times are over.

Nora... Yes, just wonderful!

Helmer... No longer do I need to sit alone and be bored, or you spoil your lovely, glorious eyes and gentle hands ...

Nora (clapping hands)... Don't you need more, Torvald? Oh, how wonderful, delightful to hear that! (Takes his arm.) Now I will tell you how I dream of getting a job, Torvald. Now, as soon as the holidays are over ...

Call in the front.

Ah, they are calling! ( Tidies up a little in the room.) Right, somebody come to us. It's a shame.

Helmer... If someone is visiting, I am not at home, remember.

Maid (in the front door)... Lady, there is an unfamiliar lady.

Nora... So ask here.

Maid (Helmer)... And the doctor.

Helmer... Walked straight to me?

Maid... Yes Yes.

Helmer goes into the study. The maid enters Fru Linne dressed for the road, and closes the door behind her.

Fru Linne (embarrassed, stammering)... Hello Nora.

Nora (uncertainly)... Hello…

Fru Linne... You don't seem to recognize me?

Nora... No. I don't know ... Yes, it seems ... (Impulsively.) How! Christina ... Really you ?!

Fru Linne... I AM.

Nora... Kristina! And I didn't recognize you right away! And how it was ... (In a lower voice.) How you have changed, Christina!

Fru Linne... Still would. For nine to ten long years ...

Nora... Haven't we seen each other for so long? Yes, yes, it is. Ah, the last eight years - that, really, it was a happy time! .. So you came here, to our city? Embarked on such a long journey in winter! Brave!

Fru Linne... I just arrived today with the morning steamer.

Nora... To have some fun during the holidays, of course. Oh, how glorious! Well, let's have some fun! Take off your clothes. You're not cold, are you? (Helps her.) Like this. Now let's sit comfortably near the stove. No, you're in a chair! And I'm on the rocking chair! (Takes her hands.) Well, now you have your old face again. This is only in the first minute ... Although you still turned a little pale, Christina, and, perhaps, lost a little weight.

Fru Linne... And much, much older, Nora.

Nora... Perhaps a little, a little, not at all. (Suddenly he stops and becomes serious.) But what an empty head I am - I sit here chatting! Dear dear Christina, forgive me!

Fru Linne... What's the matter, Nora?

Nora (quiet)... Poor Christina, you are a widow.

Fru Linne... Three years ago.

Nora... Yes I know. I read in the newspapers. Oh, Christina, believe me, I was going to write to you so many times at that time, but I postponed everything, everything got in the way.

Fru Linne... Dear Nora, I understand perfectly.

Nora... No, that was disgusting of me, Christina. Oh, poor thing, how much you must have endured. And he left you no funds?

Fru Linne... None.

Nora... No children?

Fru Linne... No children.

Nora... Nothing, then?

Fru Linne... Nothing. Not even grief, no regrets, which could feed the memory.

Nora (looking at her incredulously)... But how can this be, Christina?

Fru Linne (with a bitter smile, stroking Nora's head)... Sometimes it happens, Nora.

Nora... So, one is alone. How awful hard it must be. And I have three lovely children. You won't see them now. They are walking with the nanny. But by all means tell me everything ...

Fru Linne... No, no, no, you better tell me.

Nora... No, you first. Today I don't want to be selfish. I only want to think about your business. But one thing all the same I have to tell you. Do you know what happiness came to us the other day?

Fru Linne... No. Which?

Nora... Imagine, my husband became the director of the Joint Stock Bank!

Fru Linne... Your husband? Good luck! ..

Nora... Incredible! The legal profession is such an unfaithful bread, especially if you want to take on only the purest, good deeds. And Torvald, of course, never took others, and, of course, I completely agree with him. Oh, you know how glad we are. He will take office from the new year and will receive a large salary and good interest. Then we will be able to live in a completely different way than until now - completely to our liking. Oh, Christina, my heart felt so light, I am so happy! After all, it's wonderful to have a lot, a lot of money and not know any need or worries. Truth?

Fru Linne... Yes, anyway, it must be wonderful to have everything you need.

Nora... No, not only necessary, but a lot, a lot of money.

Fru Linne (smiling)... Nora, Nora! You still haven't gotten any smarter! At school, you were a big reel.

Nora (chuckling softly)... Torvald still calls me that now. (Shaking his finger.) However, "Nora, Nora" is not so crazy as you imagine ... We, really, did not live so well that I could wind. We both had to work!

Fru Linne... And you?

Nora... Well, yes, there are various little things about needlework, knitting, embroidery and the like. (In passing.) And ... something else. You know Thorvald left the ministry when we got married? There were no plans for promotion, and you had to earn more than before. Well, in the first year, he worked beyond all his strength. Just awful. He had to take all sorts of extra classes - you know - and work from morning to evening. Well, he could not stand it, fell ill, was dying, and the doctors announced that it was necessary to send him to the south.

Fru Linne... Did you spend a whole year in Italy then?

Nora... Well, yes. And it was not easy for us to get up, believe me. Ivar was just born then. But it was still necessary to go. Oh, what a wonderful, wonderful trip it was! And Torvald was saved. But how much money went - passion, Christina!

Fru Linne... I can imagine.

Nora... One thousand two hundred daler spices. Four thousand eight hundred crowns. Big money.

Fru Linne... Yes, but, in any case, it is a great happiness if there is somewhere to get them at such a time.

Nora... I gotta tell you, we got them from Dad.

Fru Linne... Oh, so. Yes, it seems your father died just then.

Nora... Yes, just then. And think, I could not go to him, follow him. I was expecting little Ivar from day to day. And on top of that I had my poor Thorvald in my arms, almost dying. Dear dear dad! I never had to see him again, Christina. This is the worst grief that I have experienced as a married.

Fru Linne... I know you loved your father very much. So after that you went to Italy?

Nora... Yes. After all, we had money, but the doctors were driven away. We left a month later.

Fru Linne... And your husband returned completely healthy?

Nora... Absolutely!

Fru Linne... A ... doctor?

Nora... That is?

Fru Linne... I think the girl said that the gentleman who came with me is a doctor.

Nora... Ah, this is Dr. Rank. But he doesn’t come on a doctor’s visit. This is our best friend, and he will come to visit us at least once a day. No, Torvald has never even fallen ill since then. And the children are vigorous and healthy, and so am I. (Jumping up and clapping her hands.) Oh my God, Christina, how wonderful it is to live and feel happy! No, it’s just disgusting of me - I’m talking only about myself. (Sits on a bench next to Frou Linne and puts his hands on her lap.) Don't be angry with me! .. Tell me, is it true: did you really not love your husband? Why did you marry him?

Fru Linne... My mother was still alive, but so weak, helpless, she did not get out of bed. And I also had two younger brothers in my arms. I did not consider myself entitled to refuse him.

Nora... Yes, yes, perhaps you're right. So he was rich then?

Fru Linne... Quite wealthy, it seems. But his case was not firmly established. And when he died, everything collapsed and nothing was left.

Nora... AND?..

Fru Linne... And I had to deal with petty trade, a small school, and in general what I have to do. These last three years have dragged on for me like one long, continuous working day without rest. It's over now, Nora. My poor mother does not need me anymore - she is dead. And the boys got on their feet, they can take care of themselves.

Nora... You feel so light now ...

Fru Linne... I will not say. On the contrary, it is terribly empty. There is no one else to live for. (Rises in excitement.) That is why I could not stand it there, in the bear's corner. Here, it is true, it will be easier to find what to apply strength to and how to occupy thoughts. I would only be able to get some kind of permanent service, some kind of office job ...

Nora... Ah, Christina, this is so terribly exhausting, and you already look so exhausted. You'd better go swimming somewhere.

Fru Linne (going to the window)... I don't have a dad to provide me with money for the trip, Nora.

Nora (getting up)... Ah, don't be angry with me!

Fru Linne (walking towards her)... Dear Nora, don't be angry with me. The worst thing about my situation is that so much bitterness is deposited in my soul. There is no one to work for, but still you have to bother and fight in every possible way. You have to live, so you become selfish. You just told me about the happy change in your circumstances, and I - believe me - was delighted not so much for you as for myself.

Nora... How so? Ah, I understand: do you think Torvald can do something for you?

Fru Linne... I thought that.

Nora... He will, Christina. Leave everything to me. I’ll prepare everything so subtly, I’ll come up with something so special than to appease him. Ah, I would like to help you from the bottom of my heart.

Fru Linne... How sweet of you, Nora, that you take up my business so ardently ... It is doubly sweet of you - you yourself are so little familiar with everyday worries and hardships.

Nora... To me? Are they little familiar to me?

Fru Linne (smiling)... Well, my God, some kind of handicraft and the like ... You are a child, Nora!

Nora (throwing his head back and walking around the room)... You shouldn't be speaking to me in that tone.

Fru Linne... Yes?

Nora... And you are like others. You all think I'm not good for anything serious ...

Fru Linne... Oh well?

Nora... That I have never experienced anything like that in this difficult life.

Fru Linne... Dear Nora, you just told me all your trials.

Nora... Eh, nothing else! (Quiet.) I haven't told you the main thing.

Fru Linne... The main one? What do you want to say?

Nora... You all look down on me, Christina. And this is in vain. You are proud that you carried such hard, long work for the sake of your mother ...

Fru Linne... I really don't look down on anyone. But it’s true - I’m proud and glad to remember what I had to do to make the rest of my mother’s days easier.

Nora... You are also proud when you remember what you did for the brothers.

Fru Linne... I think I have the right.

Nora... And so it seems to me. But listen, Christina. And I have something to be proud of, something to be happy about.

Fru Linne... No doubt! But in what sense?

Nora... Speak quietly. Suddenly Torvald hears! There is no way for him in the world ... No one should know about this, Christina, no one but you.

Fru Linne... What's the matter?

Nora... Come here. (Draws her to the sofa next to him.) Yes, you see ... and I have something to be proud of, something to be happy about. I saved Thorvald's life.

Fru Linne... Saved? How did you save?

Nora... I told you about a trip to Italy. Torvald would not have survived if he hadn't made it south.

Fru Linne... Well, yes. And your father gave you the tools you need.

Nora (with a smile)... It is Torvald who thinks so and all the others, but ...

Fru Linne... But…

Nora... Dad didn't give us a penny. I got the money.

Fru Linne... You? All this large sum?

Nora... One thousand two hundred spices. Four thousand eight hundred crowns. What do you say?

Fru Linne... But how is this possible, Nora? Won the lottery, or what?

Nora (scornfully)... The lottery! (Snorts.) It wouldn't be a thing!

Fru Linne... So where did you get them?

Nora (humming and smiling mysteriously)... Hm! Tra-la-la-la!

Fru Linne... You couldn't take it.

Nora... Here? Why is that?

Fru Linne... Yes, a wife cannot make debts without the consent of her husband.

Nora (throwing his head back)... Well, if the wife knows a little about business, if the wife understands how to get down to business cleverly, then ...

Fru Linne... Nora, I absolutely don't understand anything.

Nora... And you don't need to understand. I didn’t say I borrowed money. I could have gotten them in another way. (Leans back on the back of the sofa.) Could get it from some fan. With such an attractive appearance as mine ...

Fru Linne... You are crazy.

Nora... Now, don't you really want to know everything, Christina?

Fru Linne... Listen, dear Nora, have you thrown something reckless?

Nora (straightening on the couch)... Is it reckless to save your husband's life?

Fru Linne... In my opinion, it is reckless if you are without his knowledge ...

Nora... Why, he could not know about anything! Lord, how do you not understand this? He shouldn't have suspected how dangerous he was. It was the doctors who told me that his life was in danger, that the only salvation was to take him south. Do you think I didn’t try to extricate myself at first? I started talking about how I would like to go abroad, like other young ladies. I cried and asked; she said that it would not be bad for him to remember my "position", that now he had to please me in every possible way; hinted that you can borrow money. So he almost got mad, Christina. He said that I had a wind in my head and that it was his duty as a husband not to indulge my whims and whims, so he seemed to put it. Okay, okay, I think, but I still need to save you, and I found a way out ...

Fru Linne... And your husband never found out from your father that the money was not from him?

Nora... I never found out. Daddy died just these days. I wanted to initiate him into the business and ask him not to betray me. But he was already so bad - and, unfortunately, I did not need to resort to this.

Fru Linne... And you still haven't confessed to your husband?

Nora... No, God forbid that you! He's so strict about this. And besides, with his male pride ... It would be so painful, humiliating for him to know that he owes me something. This would turn our relationship upside down. Our happy family life would then cease to be what it is.

Fru Linne... And you will never tell him?

Nora (thinking and smiling slightly)... Yes ... someday, perhaps ... when many, many years have passed and I will no longer be so pretty. Don't laugh. I, of course, want to say: when I will no longer like Thorvald so much as now, when he will no longer be entertained by my dances, dressing up, recitations. Then it will be good to have some kind of help ... (Cutting off.) Nonsense, nonsense, nonsense! This will never happen! .. Well, what do you say about my great secret, Christina? Am I good for anything? Do not think that this case does not cause me much trouble. Indeed, sometimes it is not at all easy for me to justify my obligations on time. In the business world, I tell you, there is a third-interest installment and a debt-relief installment, as they call it. And money is always terribly difficult to get. So you had to save on what you can ... you know? I couldn't save too much money for the household - Torvald needed a good table. And the children were not allowed to dress somehow. What I got on them, it went entirely on them. My dear crumbs!

Fru Linne... So you, right, had to deny yourself, poor thing?

Nora... It's clear. After all, I was the most interested! Torvald used to give me money for a new dress and the like, and I always spend only half. I bought everything cheaper and easier. It is also fortunate that everything suits me and Torvald never noticed anything. But sometimes it was not easy for me myself, Christina. It's such a pleasure to dress well! Truth?

Fru Linne... Perhaps.

Nora... Well, I had other sources, of course. Lucky last winter, I got a ton of correspondence. Every evening she locked herself in her room and wrote, wrote until late at night. Ah, sometimes you get tired before that! But all the same it was terribly pleasant to sit and work, to earn money. I almost felt like a man.

Fru Linne... But how much did you manage to pay in this way?

Nora... I can't tell you exactly. In such cases, you see, it is very difficult to understand. I only know that I paid as much as I could put together. But often my hands dropped straight. (Smiling.) Then I used to sit down and begin to imagine that a rich old man has fallen in love with me ...

Fru Linne... What? What old man?

Nora... Oh, no! .. That he is dying, his will has been opened, and there it is written in large letters: "All my money is received immediately and in cash by the most dear Mrs Nora Helmer."

Fru Linne... But, dear Nora, who is this old man?

Nora... Lord, how do you not understand? There was no old man at all. It's just my imagination. I just consoled myself with this when I didn't know where to get money. Well, God bless him at all, with this boring old man. Now I don't care. I don't need him or his will anymore. Now I have no worries, Christina! (Jumps up.) Oh my God, what a delight! Just think: no worries! Know no worries, no hassle! Live for yourself and live, mess with the kids! Furnish your home as beautifully, gracefully as Torvald loves. And there, think, spring is not far off, blue sky, open space. Maybe we can ride somewhere. Perhaps to see the sea again! Oh, really, how wonderful it is to live and feel happy!

A bell is heard in the hall.

Fru Linne (stands up)... They call. I think I'd better go.

Nora... No, stay. Hardly anyone will come here. That's right to Thorvald ...

Maid (in the front door)... Excuse me, lady, here a gentleman wants to talk to a gentleman lawyer.

Nora... That is, with the director of the bank, you want to say.

Maid... With Mr. Director. But I don't know - after all, there is a doctor ...

Nora... And who is this gentleman?

Krogstad (in the door)... It's me, Frau Helmer.

Fru Linne, startled, flinches and turns to the window.

Nora (taking a step towards the newcomer, with excitement, lowering his voice)... You? What does it mean? What do you want to talk to my husband about?

Krogstad... Banking, in a way. I occupy a small position at the Joint Stock Bank, and your husband will now be our director, as I heard ...

Nora... Means…

Krogstad... On a personal matter, Fra Helmer. Nothing more.

Nora... So please go to his office. (He bows indifferently, closes the door to the hallway, then goes to the stove to see if it is well heated.)

Fru Linne... Nora ... who was that?

Nora... Private attorney Krogstad.

Fru Linne... So he really is.

Nora... Do you know this person?

Fru Linne... I knew ... Several years ago. After all, he did business in our area at one time.

Nora... Yes, truth.

Fru Linne... How he has changed!

Nora... He seems to have been very unsuccessfully married.

Fru Linne... He's a widower now, isn't he?

Nora... With a bunch of children ... Well, it flared up. (Closes the stove door and slightly pushes the rocker aside.)

Fru Linne... He, they say, is engaged in all sorts of things?

Nora... Yes. It is very possible. I don't know at all. But it is enough for us to think about business. It's boring.

Helmer's office leaves Dr. Rank.

Dr. Rank (still at the door)... No, no, I don't want to get in the way. I'd rather drop by your wife. (He closes the door behind him and spots Fra Linne.) Oh sorry! I seem to be in the way here too.

Nora... Not at all. (Introduces them to each other.) Dr. Rank - Fru Linne.

Rank... Here's how. I often heard this name here in the house. I think I overtook you on the stairs when I walked here.

Fru Linne... Yes! .. I climb very slowly. It's hard for me…

Rank... Yeah ... Little damage to the internal mechanism?

Fru Linne... Rather, simple overwork.

Rank... Only? So, right, we came to the city to relax ... running among the guests?

Fru Linne... I came here to look for work.

Rank... Well, is this a particularly sure remedy for overwork?

Fru Linne... You have to live, doctor.

Rank... Yes, it is somehow customary to think that this is necessary.

Nora... Well, you know, doctor! .. And you, too, would not mind living.

Rank... Well, yes, let's put it. No matter how bad I feel, I am still ready to live and suffer as long as possible. And so are all my patients. And all moral cripples are the same. Now there is one like this sitting at Helmer's ...

Fru Linne (quiet)... A!..

Nora... Who do you mean?

Rank... A private attorney for Krogstad, a person you don't know anything about. His very roots of character are rotten, madam. But there, too, he began to assert as something immutable that he too had to live.

Nora... Yes? What did he come to talk to Thorvald about?

Rank... I really don't know. I only heard something about the Joint Stock Bank.

Nora... I didn't know that Krog ... that this private attorney Krogstad was involved in the bank.

Rank... Yes, he holds some position there. (To Fru Linnae.) I don’t know if there are people of this kind in your area who, as if in a fever, prowl everywhere, sniffing out the smell of moral decay, in order to then be in plain sight to be assigned to some lucrative position. The healthy have to humbly stay behind the flag.

Fru Linne... Why, the sick are the ones who need care most of all.

Rank (shrugging)... That's it and that's it. Thanks to such views, society turns into a hospital.

Nora, preoccupied with her own thoughts, suddenly bursts into low laughter and claps her hands.

Why are you laughing at that? Do you know, in essence, what society is?

Nora... I really need your boring company! I laugh completely differently ... Terribly funny! Tell me, Doctor, are all the employees in this bank now subordinate to Thorvald?

Rank... Is that something that amuses you so terribly?

Nora (smiling and humming)... This is my business. My business. (Walks around the room.) Yes, in fact, it is terribly pleasant to think that we ... that is, Torvald has acquired such an influence on many, many people. (Takes a bag out of his pocket.)

Rank... Those, those, those! Macaroons! I thought it was your forbidden fruit.

Nora... Yes, but Christina brought me a little.

Fru Linne... What am I?..

Nora... Well, well, well, don't be scared. You couldn't have known what Torvald had forbidden. I must tell you, he is afraid that I will ruin my teeth. But what a misfortune - just once! Really, doctor? Excuse me! (Puts a cookie in his mouth.) So much for you, Christina. And I can have one little thing, or two, so be it. (He walks around again.) Yes, I really am infinitely happy. There is only one thing I would like terribly ...

Rank... Well? What is this?

Nora... I wish I could say one thing in Torvald's presence.

Rank... So what don't you say?

Nora... I dare not. This is disgusting.

Fru Linne... Disgusting?

Rank... In this case, I would not recommend it. But with us you can boldly ... Well, what is it you so badly would like to say with Helmer?

Nora... I wish I could say, damn it!

The birth of the "new drama" was facilitated by the great playwrights of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries - A. P. Chekhov and M. Maeterlink, B. Shaw and A. Strindberg. The father of the new literary movement is rightfully considered the Norwegian playwright Henrik Johan Ibsen (1828-1906). He is recognized as a great national playwright who brought Norwegian literature to the first stages of European culture. The essence of Ibsen's innovation is in creating a play-discussion, with the help of which the heroes get to the truth.

Ibsen's most remarkable work

The heroes of Ibsen's works are not historical figures, but real people with their own problems, which it was not customary to talk about. Ibsen said this. "A Doll's House" is the first play to stir up society so much. Each work of this playwright was an event: "Peer Gynt", "Greta Gubler", "The Wild Duck" and his most famous play, which went on and on, without exaggeration, on all stages of the world - "A Doll's House". Nora has been played by all the great actresses. The significance of this work is evidenced by the fact that UNESCO included the manuscript of this play in 2001 in the list of "Memory of the World". This is a high honor that the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen rightfully deserves. "Doll House" made people talk about the soullessness of society, about its hypocrisy. It is now, in our time, emancipation has reached the point that four military ministers of European countries are women. And then the very fact that the doll-toy spoke, and even throws accusations in the face of her husband and declares that she has a sacred right not only in front of him and the children, but also in front of herself, produced the effect of an exploding bomb.

Feminism

Why is the heroine of the play so popular that an asteroid is even named after her? It must be understood that in modern Ibsen Europe, a woman had practically no rights. Therefore, it was here that such a socio-political movement as feminism arose. This is the struggle of women against discrimination on the basis of sex, for equal social rights with men. Ibsen wrote "A Doll's House" based on real events. And they were such that those described in the dramatic work were perceived by contemporaries as a hymn to feminism.

Deafening impression

The commotion caused by the new play was so great, the discussions were so intense, that in some congregations they put up notices asking them not to talk about The Burrow. Heinrich Ibsen also produced A Doll's House under the name Nora, because the central theme is the tragedy of a young woman bearing this name. Everyone argued about the play, because, on the one hand, "Nora" forced society to discuss the powerlessness of women, on the other hand, no one, not even ardent fans of the play, could justify her leaving the children. This was condemned always and everywhere. And the heroine was not saved by the fact that a minute before the happy resolution of the terrible situation, her husband took her children from her and forbade communication with them. And he allowed Nora to stay in the family, only to "not wash dirty linen in public."

The plot is taken from life

Ibsen's "A Doll's House" wrote in 1879. The playwright did not conceive it as some kind of challenge to public opinion, especially as some kind of programmatic document, as it was perceived by a part of society, especially the feminist movement. In fact, Ibsen wrote "A Doll's House" from life.

A fan of his talent, 19-year-old Laura Keeler, told Ibsen the story of her life. They met on the basis of creativity, since Laura, shocked by the strength of the personality of the protagonist of Ibsen's early play "Brand", wrote its sequel. It was Ibsen who advised her to devote herself to literature, as a result of which the woman became a popular children's writer.

Real story

Having married a decent man, a young woman, according to the conditions of that time, became just a wife and really could not help her husband, who very badly endured financial difficulties, up to fits of rage, which affected the family. Who else? Working tirelessly to avoid a lack of money, associate (trainee, assistant professor) Victor Keeler falls ill with tuberculosis. Until the diagnosis, Ibsen repeats the story of a woman in his play. "A Doll's House" was written under a strong personal impression - nothing in it is far-fetched. Than this play and excited the society - people recognized themselves. Laura loves her husband and wants to help him with all her might. At this point it is necessary to make a retreat. Victor has a very rich father. The son was brought up in such a way that, being on the verge of life and death, he cannot and, according to the conditions of society, should not turn to his father. As a Russian person, no matter what: Soviet or post-perestroika (though it will be more difficult with this generation), with his mentality he can understand why the father does not help his son, why is a woman who committed an unfeminine act in the name of the salvation of a loved one so condemned by society? Which was what Ibsen was shocked at in this story. "Doll House" continues to repeat the story of Laura. Enlisting the support of an influential friend at that time, she takes out a loan, takes her husband to the south, where he fully recovers his health.

Invaluable sacrifice

So that in the future nothing will disturb the nearby man, the woman takes another loan, but, earning secretly, like Nora, on interest on the loan, keeping a secret that in itself can undermine any health, the woman falls ill. The guarantors become insolvent. The truth comes out. Needless to say, her husband sympathized with her a little, but then took the side of society. Children are taken from the future writer, recognized as mentally ill and turned into an outcast of society. True, everything gradually returned to normal, Laura Keeler began to earn money through literary activities and gradually paid off all her debts. And imagine, her husband forgave her!

Clockwork dolls

Heinrich Ibsen's The Doll House ends in a different way. There is no happy ending. Nora goes into the unknown, and when her husband's question about whether they will ever be able to reunite, she replies that it would most likely be a miracle, because something that cannot be overcome must be overcome.

People who lived happily for some time, made children, were, in essence, strangers to each other. This is what Ibsen wrote about. "A Doll's House", the summary of which is contained in its name, made what was carefully hushed up by the society a reality. It cannot be said that all people in the Western world live according to the principle of "man is a stranger to man", but individuals like Nora, internally rich, having notions of human values, are rare. In the doll house, there are dolls devoid of passion and compassion.

Legalized insincerity

It was said aloud for the first time in the play "A Doll's House". Ibsen did not decorate the content of his "Burrow" with anything. In life, Laura's husband was very sympathetic to her at first. In the dramatic work, Helmer, the husband of the main character, did not feel compassion for her for a second, he immediately condemned her, called his songbird a liar, a hypocrite and a criminal.

And it is he, not the court, who takes the children away from her. In the play, it was necessary to sharpen the situation, which Ibsen did. "Doll's house", the summary of which is that the family remained a family, and the husband was affectionate and loving only until the first big trouble. There was no question about joint overcoming, although Nora never doubted her husband for a minute.

The play begins with preparations for Christmas and New Years, the most joyous event for most people. Everything is fine in this family - the husband got a new position of the bank director. In principle, the main character is a very dishonest person - he is the first to cut a school friend, who is now unequal to him, and once were on you, and in the past Krogstad had sins. But this is exactly the person from whom Nora took out the loan for a health trip south. In addition, in order to receive this money, the woman needed a guarantee. And Nora forged the signature of her own father, who would never have given her money. Is it normal? And daddy was already dying. Nora, who was reputed to be a reel in the family, collected money for interest on the loan, denying herself everything, and even moonlighting.

New heroes

In the story, an old friend of the protagonist, Fru Linne, appears. Some literary scholars consider it to be the embodiment of sacrifice. She gave up her great mutual love for Krogstad in the name of saving her sick mother and little brothers who needed to be educated. She is now ready, being a widow, taking care of Krogstad and his four little children, who were left without a mother. It was she who persuades the happy man to take the letter sent to Nora's husband, in which the angry Krogstad told everything about the loan and the forgery of a bill. But the letter is already gone. Then a decent person next sends another, with which he sends a receipt to Nora. It must be stipulated that the discerning Frau Linne did not like Helmar, knew the whole story and wanted to open her friend's eyes to her husband's dishonesty. The festive party ended, Nora's family returned home, her husband read the letter, and the climax of the play, which was built in the form of a dialogue by the playwright-innovator G. Ibsen, came. "A Doll's House" ends with Nora's accusatory speech - before her eyes, her husband changed twice like a chameleon. At first, from an affectionate master, he turned into an alien, evil enemy, and having received a receipt, he again wanted to restore everything as it was. But the words were spoken, Nora, realizing his falsity, leaves. This is how Ibsen ends the play. "A Doll's House", a summary of which was outlined above, really became a shock play for contemporaries. She deservedly got into the list of "Memory of the World".

Henrik Ibsen

Dollhouse

CHARACTERS

Lawyer Helmer.

Nora, his wife.

Dr. Rank.

Fru Linne.

Private attorney Krogstad.

Three small children of the Helmer couple.

Anna Maria, their nanny.

A maid in Helmer's house.

Messenger.

The action takes place in Helmer's apartment.

Action one

Cozy room, tastefully furnished but inexpensive. In the back, in the middle wall, there are two doors: one, on the right, leads into the hallway, the other, on the left, into Helmer's office. Between these doors is a piano. There is a door in the middle of the left side wall, a window closer to the proscenium. Near the window there is a round table with armchairs and a sofa. In the right wall, a little further inland, there is also a door, and in front of it is a tiled stove; in front of her are several armchairs and a rocking chair. There is a table between the stove and the door. There are engravings on the walls. A bookcase with porcelain and other knickknacks, a bookcase with luxuriously bound books. There is a carpet on the floor. There is a fire in the stove. Winter day. There is a bell in the front. After a while, you can hear the door being unlocked. Nora enters the room from the hall, humming merrily, in her outer clothes, loaded with a heap of packages and parcels, which she puts on the table to the right. The door to the front hall remains open, and there is seen a messenger bringing a tree and a basket, which he gives to the maid who opened the door.

NORA. Hide the tree well, Elene. Children should not see her until evening when she is decorated. (To the messenger, taking out a purse.) How many?

MESSENGER. Fifty ere!

NORA. Here is the crown ... No, keep everything for yourself.

Yes, he's at home. (He hums again, heading for the table.)

HELMER (from the office)... What is it, the lark is singing?

NORA (expanding purchases)... He is.

HELMER. Is the squirrel busy there?

HELMER. When did the squirrel return?

NORA. Just now. (Hides the bag of cookies in his pocket and wipes his lips.) Come here, Torvald, look what I bought!

HELMER. Wait, don't bother. (After a while, he opens the door and peers into the room, quill in hand.) Bought it, you say? All this? .. So the bird flew away again to waste money?

NORA. You know, Torvald, it's time for us to finally unwind a little. This is the first Christmas, we don't need to embarrass ourselves so much.

HELMER. Well, we can't wind up either.

NORA. A little bit you can! Truth? Just a little bit! You have now been given a large salary, and you will earn a lot, a lot of money.

HELMER. Yes, since the new year. But they will give me a salary only after three months.

NORA. Trivia! You can take it for now.

HELMER. Nora! (He comes up and playfully takes her by the ear.) Again, our frivolity is right there. Just imagine, today I will borrow a thousand crowns, you will spend it on the holidays, and on the New Year's Eve, a tile from the roof will fall on my head - and you're done.

NORA (covering his mouth with his hand)... Ugh! Don't say such nasty things.

HELMER. No, imagine a similar case - what then?

NORA. If such a horror happened, then for me it would be all the same whether I have debts or not.

HELMER. Well, and for people from whom I would borrow?

NORA. For them? Why think about them! After all, these are strangers!

HELMER. Nora, Nora, you est woman! But seriously, Nora, you know my views on this matter. No debt! Never borrow! On a home based on loans, on debts, some kind of ugly shadow of dependence falls. You and I have held out, bravely until today, so we will endure a little more, - after all, not for long.

NORA (going to the stove)... What do you want, Torvald.

HELMER (behind her)... Well, well, here's the bird and lowered its wings. A? The squirrel pouted. (Takes out a wallet.) Nora, what do you think I have here?

NORA (turning around, quickly)... Money!

HELMER. It is for you! (He hands her some pieces of paper.) Lord, I know, you never know if the house is spending on the holidays.

NORA (counting)... Ten, twenty, thirty, forty. Thank you, thank you, Torvald. Now I have enough for a long time.

HELMER. Yes, you really try.

NORA. Yes, yes, absolutely. But come here, I'll show you what I bought. And how cheap! Look, here's a new suit for Ivar and a saber. Here's a horse and a pipe to Bob. And here is the doll and doll bed for Emmy. Unpretentious, but she will soon break them. And here on the dresses and aprons of the servants. Old woman Anne-Maria should, of course, have given more as a present ...

Norway. The apartment is well furnished and very cozy, belongs to Thorvald Helmer and Nora. Torvald works as a lawyer. Christmas Eve has come. Nora comes home and carries many different boxes. She has already prepared gifts for her children and her beloved husband. He starts spinning around her. He, with a slight grin, says that she fusses. After the New Year, Torvald was supposed to be transferred to the position of bank director and then their income would increase, and they would no longer have to save on everything.

After he had helped his wife, he went to his study, and Fra Linde entered the living room. This is Nora's friend and she just got off the boat. They did not see each other for about 8 years, and there were changes in the lives of both. A friend buried her husband, but they had no children. As for Nora, everything turned out differently for her. In the very first year when they married Helmer, he quit the ministry, and therefore he had to take another job at home. At this time, he became very ill, and the doctors advised him to move to a place with a warm southern climate. The whole family went to Italy for a year. Nora took the money for this from one gentleman on receipt and now pays interest, at the expense of her part-time jobs. But Torvald, of course, does not know about this.

She began asking her friend where she would stay and what she would do. And she suggested that her husband could take her to work in his bank, because now she is expanding the staff. Moreover, he is going to fire Krogstad, so there is a vacancy. He actually fired Krogstand, because he once forged a signature on a document, but then the court did not find him guilty.

But as it turned out later, Nora arranged the forgery. She herself forged the signature of her father, who at that moment was dying. And the date on the document corresponds to the date of her father's death. Krogstad asks her to put in a good word for him. He worked for this company for a long time. But Helmer dismisses him not only for that incident, but also for the fact that he turned to him on "you" several times. Nora asks for him, but Torvald refuses her. And at this moment Krogstad tells Nora that he will tell everything, but she does not react to it. And then he starts blackmailing both of them. If he tells everything, then Helmer will simply be removed from his new position. Nora begins to look for a way out of this situation. She flirts with Dr. Rank. He is in love with her, but death from syphilis awaits him. But he is ready to give her a large sum of money, but Krogstad needs something completely different. They later receive a letter from the doctor with a black cross, which indicates that he will die alone.

But still, the threat of exposure hangs over their family and then her friend Fru Linde comes to their aid. She says that when Krogstad was in love with her, but then she had a mother and brothers who needed to be supported, so she married a better-off man. But now she is ready to marry him. Krogstad is happy that he found love and refuses to blackmail, but it was too late, because the letter was already in Helmer's box.

Learning everything Helmer was simply furious, he could not even imagine that his wife was capable of such a thing. That now their family is being destroyed because of her. He forbids her to bring up children and give them to a nanny, but in order to observe all the decencies, he is allowed to stay in her house, but now they live separately.

But then, unexpectedly for him, he receives a letter from Krogstad, who refuses all requirements and returns the loan letter to Nora. Helmer is happy that everything will be fine now. But no matter how it is. Nora packs up and leaves the house. The husband is used to treating her like a doll that just needs to be fondled. She knew about it before, but then she loved him. And now, when she hoped that he would take the blame upon himself, and he acted differently, Nora realizes that she does not love him and will no longer live with him. He doesn't want to sell himself for money and convenience.

Helmer had not expected this from her. He didn't want to believe that everything she said was true. But she says that miracles happen very rarely and her decision is final.

A serious life situation destroys Nora's dollhouse and she becomes independent, can see the world as it really is.

Briefly doll house. The doll's house book read online

Henrik Ibsen
Dollhouse

* * *

Characters

Action one

Ibsen's most remarkable work

Feminism

Deafening impression

The plot is taken from life

Real story

Invaluable sacrifice

Clockwork dolls

Legalized insincerity

New heroes

Picture or drawing Ibsen - Doll's house

Other retellings for the reader's diary