A Doll's House - Quotes and Analysis
Exam Questions and Answers 100%
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Act 1 - ✔✔
Nora pops the bag of macaroons in her pocket and wipes her mouth - ✔✔Shows
disobedience
Shows that Nora lies to her husband
Nora = Sly and dishonest
Theme: Lies and Deceit
Torvald to Nora:
"my skylark"
"my squirrel" - ✔✔Lexical field of small animals
metaphor
dehumanise Nora and lower value
Makes Nora seem dependent
Disregard Nora as human
Possessive pronoun
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 1
,Theme: Love and Marriage
Torvald takes her (Nora) playfully by the ear - ✔✔Action = more like parent and child
Weird power dynamics
Nora < Torvald in dominance
Nora = his child = something to be cared for
Theme: Love and Marriage
Torvald to Nora:
"how like a woman!" - ✔✔Societal view of women
Patronising attitude
inequality of women
Theme: Gender
Torvald:
"A home that is founded on debts and borrowing can never be a place of freedom and
beauty" - ✔✔a juxtaposition of freedom and beauty as beauty is constricting concept
Theme: Respect and reputation
Nora plays with his (Torvald) coat buttons - ✔✔Shows faux obedience
plays - literally playing but also refer to the idea of manipulating Torvald
Theme: Lies and Deceit
Torvald to Nora
"It is incredible what an expensive pet she is for a man to keep" - ✔✔pet = possession of
Nora
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2
,dependent on Torvald - has to be taken care of
to keep - odd phrasing - highlights societal views
Theme: Gender
Torvald
"Not a nibble at a macaroon"
Nora
"No, Torvald - I promise you, honestly - !" - ✔✔Introduces the idea that relationship is
not always truthful
Theme: Love and Marriage
Nora to Torvald
"You know I could never act against your wishes" - ✔✔Shows/Fakes obedience
Women's inferiority depicted
Conditioning Torvald's ego
Trying to convince him that she is the stereotype that he believes in
Theme: Lies and Deceit
Nora to Mrs Linde
"He didn't leave you anything?"
"No children, either?" - ✔✔One reason for marriage
True purpose of women = be caregivers
Theme: Gender
Mrs Linde to Nora
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 3
, "I didn't feel I could say no" - ✔✔Emphasises the need for her marriage
Out of necessity not love
She felt obligated to accept as the society had given her no other way to provide for
herself
Theme: Gender
Mrs Linde to Nora
"No, Nora. Just unspeakably empty. No one to live for any more." - ✔✔Woman found
joy in taking care of others
Only purpose in life
Theme: Gender
Nora to Mrs Linde
"I'll lead up to it so delicately, so delicately; I'll get him in the right mood" -
✔✔repetition - emphasise the word
delicate - refers to the nature of a woman and how she is planning to manipulate that
concept
Theme: Lies and Deceit/Love and Marriage
Mrs Linde to Nora
"You're a child, Nora" - ✔✔Nora is viewed as someone who is dependent
Cant take care of herself
child - simple-minded, not capable of complex thoughts
Theme: Gender/Love and Marriage
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 4
Exam Questions and Answers 100%
Pass
Act 1 - ✔✔
Nora pops the bag of macaroons in her pocket and wipes her mouth - ✔✔Shows
disobedience
Shows that Nora lies to her husband
Nora = Sly and dishonest
Theme: Lies and Deceit
Torvald to Nora:
"my skylark"
"my squirrel" - ✔✔Lexical field of small animals
metaphor
dehumanise Nora and lower value
Makes Nora seem dependent
Disregard Nora as human
Possessive pronoun
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 1
,Theme: Love and Marriage
Torvald takes her (Nora) playfully by the ear - ✔✔Action = more like parent and child
Weird power dynamics
Nora < Torvald in dominance
Nora = his child = something to be cared for
Theme: Love and Marriage
Torvald to Nora:
"how like a woman!" - ✔✔Societal view of women
Patronising attitude
inequality of women
Theme: Gender
Torvald:
"A home that is founded on debts and borrowing can never be a place of freedom and
beauty" - ✔✔a juxtaposition of freedom and beauty as beauty is constricting concept
Theme: Respect and reputation
Nora plays with his (Torvald) coat buttons - ✔✔Shows faux obedience
plays - literally playing but also refer to the idea of manipulating Torvald
Theme: Lies and Deceit
Torvald to Nora
"It is incredible what an expensive pet she is for a man to keep" - ✔✔pet = possession of
Nora
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2
,dependent on Torvald - has to be taken care of
to keep - odd phrasing - highlights societal views
Theme: Gender
Torvald
"Not a nibble at a macaroon"
Nora
"No, Torvald - I promise you, honestly - !" - ✔✔Introduces the idea that relationship is
not always truthful
Theme: Love and Marriage
Nora to Torvald
"You know I could never act against your wishes" - ✔✔Shows/Fakes obedience
Women's inferiority depicted
Conditioning Torvald's ego
Trying to convince him that she is the stereotype that he believes in
Theme: Lies and Deceit
Nora to Mrs Linde
"He didn't leave you anything?"
"No children, either?" - ✔✔One reason for marriage
True purpose of women = be caregivers
Theme: Gender
Mrs Linde to Nora
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 3
, "I didn't feel I could say no" - ✔✔Emphasises the need for her marriage
Out of necessity not love
She felt obligated to accept as the society had given her no other way to provide for
herself
Theme: Gender
Mrs Linde to Nora
"No, Nora. Just unspeakably empty. No one to live for any more." - ✔✔Woman found
joy in taking care of others
Only purpose in life
Theme: Gender
Nora to Mrs Linde
"I'll lead up to it so delicately, so delicately; I'll get him in the right mood" -
✔✔repetition - emphasise the word
delicate - refers to the nature of a woman and how she is planning to manipulate that
concept
Theme: Lies and Deceit/Love and Marriage
Mrs Linde to Nora
"You're a child, Nora" - ✔✔Nora is viewed as someone who is dependent
Cant take care of herself
child - simple-minded, not capable of complex thoughts
Theme: Gender/Love and Marriage
© EMILY CHARLENE YEAR 2025-2026, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 4
