课程论文
FORE120009.01
现代欧美戏剧名篇赏析

Discuss about the Miracle in A Doll’s House

院 系：经济学院 专 业：国际金融系 姓 名：陈卓佩 学 号：11307100212 日 期：2013年6月6日

Abstract
This article focuses on the miracle Nora mentions in Act Three of A Doll’s House. The miracle Nora hopes for “in terror and hope” is for her husband to change and accept responsibility. But Torvald’s initial reaction towards her sacrifice is panic, then incomprehension. This makes Nora realize that she is only a doll dependent on man. The miracle she has always been waiting for never comes. However, I think the fact that Nora decides to leave and live independently itself is a miracle in that social and historical context. Some people doubt about whether Nora will succeed in becoming independent. Judging from her personality and what she has done, I believe she will. This miracle then spread to the whole Europe, China and other countries, which greatly affected the feminist movement.
Key Words：A Doll’s House, miracle, Nora, feminist movement

摘要
本文重点分析了《玩偶之家》女主人公娜拉在第三幕中提及的“奇迹”。娜拉所盼望又害怕的奇迹是她的丈夫能做出改变并承担责任，但当托伐知道真相时，他的反应是惊惧和不理解。这让娜拉意识到她只是一个依附于丈夫的玩偶，从而毅然出走。娜拉所企盼的奇迹没有发生，但我认为在那样的时代背景下，她出走的事实本身就是最大的奇迹。有人质疑娜拉出走后是否能实现真正的独立，我认为就她的性格和所作所为而言，这一点是毋庸置疑的。随后，这种女性宣告独立的“奇迹”逐渐蔓延至整个欧洲乃至中国，并深刻地影响了女权主义运动的进程。

关键词：玩偶之家；奇迹；娜拉；女权运动
Discuss about the Miracle in A Doll’s House
1. Introduction As A Doll’s House opens, Torvald and Nora are at a point of financial success after years of hard work. But during the early years of their marriage, unknown to Torvald, Nora borrowed money to pay for his medical treatment. This involved forging her father’s signature because women were not allowed to borrow money. Nora did this out of love and imagined that if Torvald ever found out he would be proud of her. However, when Torvald learns that her criminal act of forgery might be revealed to public and ruin his future, his initial reaction is panic, then incomprehension. Ironically, this becomes a decisive moment for Nora - when she recognizes the role which has been authoritatively imposed upon her, she decides to leave Torvald. The portrait of Nora has been considered symbolic for the initiation of feminist literature in the 19th century and is extensively discussed in the European literature. In Act Three of this play, Nora says “That was the miracle I was waiting for, in terror and hope”, and this is one of the most discussed and analyzed sentence in Ibsen’s work. The essay relates to Nora’s idea of a ‘miracle’.
2. About Nora’s ‘miracle’
2.1 The meaning of ‘miracle’ The Norwegian word for ‘miracle’, det vidunderlige, literally means “the most wonderful thing”, and it is the core of Nora’s world throughout the play. In Act Two, Nora mentions it in a conversation with Mrs. Linde when she realizes that her felony might be revealed. She tells Mrs. Linde that now she has no choice but to wait the ‘miracle’ to happen, yet refuses to tell what the ‘miracle’ entails. The meaning of this ‘miracle’ is revealed at the play’s climax in Act Three where the peripety takes place. Nora says that she hoped that when Krogstad’s letter was discovered, Torvald would tell Krogstad “go on, tell your tale to the whole world”, take the blame on himself and say “I am the guilty one”. That was the ‘miracle’ for her. Nora expected her husband to stand on her side instead of the social constructs of right and wrong, and sacrifice himself for their love. Surely, she would never accept such a sacrifice, but the fact that Torvald would make that sacrifice was significant to her belief in their marriage. Unfortunately, the ‘miracle’ never occurs. It is extremely ironical that Torvald reacts exactly the opposite to what Nora wished, and his reaction is devastating for her. She finally realizes that she is no more than a ‘squirrel’, ‘little songbird’ and ‘little lark’ to Torvald. And she has always been a doll confined to home who remains dependent on an autonomous man. Their home has been nothing but a playroom, where she plays the character of a doll-wife. Nora’s hopes for the future of the marriage no longer exist, and there is no reason for her to stay with Torvald any more unless the ‘miracle of miracles’ happens.
2.2 Why in “terror and hope”? The ‘miracle’ has always been a significant factor for Nora. When she first mentions it to Mrs. Linde, she calls it “awful” and exclaims that “it must not take place, not for anything in the world” (Act Two). However, she still refers to it as a ‘miracle’, which shows that despite her reluctance, she still expects it to happen and it is obvious that the ‘miracle’ represents Nora’s hope. To Nora, this hope is like a bubble, beautiful but unrealistic. It has been the power of her life, which supports her to overlook all the misfortunes and stay positive and vigorous. For eight long years, Nora keeps the secret about the debt to herself and shoulders all the pressure on her own. Her family life has been seemingly simple and carefree, but the truth is cruel. Before her departure, Nora never has a serious conversation with Torvald, and she has been living there like a poor woman, performing tricks for her husband. She is completely a doll. Deep down in her heart, Nora has always been aware of the existence of this potential crisis. On the one hand, she is awaiting the ‘miracle’ in hope, because as long as it happens, her expectation about their marriage will come true. On the other hand, she is afraid of the arrival of the truth. That’s why she is waiting for the ‘miracle’ “in terror and hope”. Torvald’s reaction acts like an alarm call. Shaken awake by his selfish words, Nora has no choice but to face the reality. Eventually, the beautiful bubble breaks, which prompts Nora to abandon this home and live an independent life.
3. The real miracle
3.1 After Nora’s departure To Nora, the ‘miracle’ she has been expecting for years broke, but another miracle arises. The very fact that Nora decides to leave her family and live independently itself is a marvelous miracle in that historical context and social environment. Some people raise doubt about whether Nora will succeed in being independent. Lu Xun, the famous Chinese author and revolutionist, predicted in one of his public speeches that Nora’s decision to leave would eventually end up in failure. He insisted that since Nora had no access to money, she would never be able to become economically independent, which might lead to two possibilities. One possibility is that Nora will degenerate from a spoiled woman into a prostitute for money. Another is that Nora will choose to go back to Torvald’s house. Most people are pessimist about Nora’s future and insist that she is doomed to fail. However, I disagree with Lu Xun’s idea and believe that Nora will succeed in living independently for two main reasons. The first reason is that judging from Nora’s personality and experiences, she has the ability to earn a living on her own. She is resentful at the way she has been treated by Torvald and long to be regarded as an equal. Ever since she borrowed money eight years ago to pay for Torvald’s medical treatment, she has been struggling to pay it back. She saves more than half of the money Torvald gives her for new dresses and does a lot of copying in order to earn money. Therefore, I am confident that after Nora’s departure from home, she can rent a house by herself, do some simple job like copying to make money. Gradually she will be able to become economically independent. Another reason is that Ibsen has provided an answer about Nora’s future through the character of Mrs. Linde. In fact, the tough, world-wise Mrs. Linde used to be a doll-like woman, too. In her younger days, she had to sacrifice love for the sake of her family. Rather than marrying the dashing young Krogstad, she married a businessman in order to support her sick mother and two younger brothers. Now with her brothers grown up and her mother and husband passed away, Mrs. Linde decides to reunite with Krogstad. Unlike the Helmers, Mrs. Linde and Krogstad are entering into the relationship as equals. Their union is Ibsen’s example of “a real wedlock”, and becomes an answer for Nora’s future. Judging from the reasons mentioned above, Nora’s decision to leave will not end up as a tragedy like Lu Xun’s prediction. Instead, this miracle is likely to develop into a successful example of women’s struggle towards independence.
3.2 The impact of Nora’s departure Nora’s resolution to leave her family and start a brand-new life is not only a miracle of her own. Instead, it is a miracle of the whole Europe and all women. “The sound of a door slamming is heard from below.” (Act Three) marked the true departure of Nora and her official split-up with the old life. This sound criticizes the traditional roles of men and women in 19th-century marriage. To many 19th-century Europeans, this was scandalous. Nothing was considered more holy than the covenant of marriage, and to portray it in such a way was completely unacceptable. Ibsen was even forced to write an alternative ending for it to be considered acceptable. However, a few open-minded critics such as the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw found Ibsen’s willingness to examine society without prejudice exhilarating. Because of the radical departure from traditional behavior involved in Nora’s leaving home, her act of slamming the door has come to represent the play itself. One critic noted, “That slammed door reverberated across the roof of the world.” The impact of Nora’s departure has gone far beyond Europe and it has become an indispensable element of the feminist movement. For instance, Ibsen’s A Doll’s House holds a unique position in Chinese literature of the early 20th century. As years progressed, Nora and her story were appropriated by writers who explored her possible fate in the Chinese context. These authors, largely members of the intellectual elite, constructed the Chinese Nora who reflected women’s newfound liberties and Chinese society’s modernization. In Lu Xun’s Regret for the Past and Mao Dun’s Creation, characters of liberated and modern women were created, which affected women’s position in Chinese society significantly. The miracle continues to spread. Thousands of ‘Nora’s appeared in different countries all over the world. Nowadays, we live in a society where men and women are treated equally. It seems unimaginable that a hundred years ago, women were still confined to their families. Their lives were centered around their husbands and children, and they were not allowed to have control over their own fates. In the process of feminist movement, The Doll’s House contributed to provoking women to rise and fight for their legitimate rights. As far as I am concerned, this is the real miracle of A Doll’s House.
4. Conclusion The unexamined life is not worth living. This paraphrase to Socrates aphorism applies to Nora. She stops to look at her marriage and doesn’t like what she witnesses. Therefore, she steps out of her old persona and into a new one, and then walks into an uncertain future. She has begun examining her life. “I must educate myself - you are not the man to help me in that. I must do that for myself. And that is why I am leaving you. I must stand on my own feet if I am ever to understand myself and my surroundings.” When Nora is uttering these words, the actual miracle is happening. One should not place expectations on others and wait for the miracle to take place. Instead, it’s much wiser to depend on oneself and make the miracle happen. A Doll’s House is not just about Nora. It’s a story written for anyone who is waiting for miracles to happen.
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