A DOLL'S HOUSE: WHY DOES NORA CONTEMPLATE SUICIDE?

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Does Nora kill herself in A Doll’s House?

No, she does not.

Why does Nora contemplate killing herself?

Nora contemplates suicide to absolve her husband Torvald from having to take blame for the crime she committed.

Textual evidence in A Doll's about Nora's suicidal thoughts.

In a Doll's Nora talks about a wonderful thing happening. (The phrase wonderful thing appears about nine times in A Doll's house. pg. 78, 84, 116, 117 and 120)

Nora suicide A Doll's House

What is this wonderful thing?

Let us begin from the start;

• When Nora and Torvald get married, Torvald quits his job as a Barrister. He then overworked himself and falls dreadfully ill. (pg 13)

• The doctors tell Nora that the only way he can recover is by taking a trip to Italy. The trip would be costly yet they barely have any money. (pg 19)

• Nora tries every trick in the book to get Torvald to procure some money for the trip but the tears and entreaties bear no fruits. (pg 19)

• She decides to borrow some money from Krogstad. Nora is anxious about her husband's illness and her father's poor health, Nora forges her father's signature. (pg 37-40)

• In the Victorian society, a woman cannot borrow money without permission from her husband. (pg 18)

• Mrs. Linde thinks Nora took a rash, imprudent decision by secretly borrowing the money. (pg 19)

• Nora keeps this a secret from Torvald to protect his manly independence. (pg 20)

• Krogstad threatens to blackmail Nora in order to keep his position at the bank. He tells Nora that she committed a crime and he's read to reveal the secret to Torvald. (pg 36)

The wonderful thing!

Nora feels that Torvald would not accept Krogstad's conditions about the extortion. She thinks Torvald would say he's the guilty one (pg. 116-117) 

This is the wonderful thing! 

In order to spare Torvald this shame (since he does not condone anything disagreeable) Nora wants to commit suicide.

When talking to Nora, Krogstad asks her if he has thought of a desperate resolution like running away from her home or "even something worse-" (pg. 76) 

He taunts her about the thought of drowning in ice cold water maybe in an attempt to coarse her to coax Torvald to not to dismiss him.

Krogstad: Under the ice, perhaps? Down into the cold, coal-black water!

When talking to Mrs. Linde, Nora hints that something may happen to her. Something that "might prevent [her] being here-" (pg. 78)

She insinuates that should Torvald take the blame, Mrs. Linde should be her witness that Nora had no accomplices in the crime.

Nora: I and I alone did t whole thing (pg 78)

Nora says a wonderful thing is going to happen. "But it is so terrible it musn't, not for all the world." (The wonderful thing implies Torvald making the sacrifice and taking the blame for Nora's cri!e, to protect her) It's terrible because Nora doesn't want to hurt Torvald's reputation which he guards so jealously (Read page 117)

On Christmas day at five o'clock, Nora says she has 31 hours to live. She has stalled Torvald from reading the letter from Krogstad but she knows that he will eventually read it after the tarantella.

Nora: Seven hours until midnight; and then twenty four hours until the next midnight (pg 84)

After the tarantella, Nora asks Torvald to go and read the letters and when he leaves her room, she has ominous thoughts of never seeing her family again.

Nora: Never to see him again ... Never to see my children again -Ah the icy, black water ... Goodbye Torvald and my children! (pg 102)

Nora later says: It was tonight when the wonderful thing did not happen; then I saw you were not the man I thought you were. (pg 116) (This is because she expected him to stand up for her but instead he insult s her. He would not make any sacrifice for Nora)

Nora implies that she would readily make such a sacrifice for Torvald. 

She says:

That wonderful thing which I hoped for and feared; and it was to prevent that that I wanted to kill myself. (pg 117)

She wanted to prevent Torvald from making the sacrifice.

Eventually Nora decides to leave Torvald instead of killing herself.

Suicide is not a solution. We can always walk away from situations that drive us up the wall.

Although the author uses the repressive Victorian marriages to drive his point home, we can draw many lessons from the play. The marriage may symbolise a business partnership, a job, friendship, an addiction or a hobby. We should learn to walk away from situations that cause depression. Life is priceless.



For more notes like this one click here to read a comprehensive analysis of A Doll's House.

Click here if you would like to read about A Doll's House essay questions and answers. 


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