Nora asks that he not look at her “like that,” and Torvald responds by asking if he can't look at his “most treasured possession.” He says that he can tell she still has the tarantella in her blood and that makes her even more desirable.
Torvald continues to assure her that everything will be okay. In fact, he argues that, by forgiving her, “it's as if [a man has] twice made [his wife] his own.” He says that he feels he has given Nora a new life so that she is now both his wife and his child.
Oh Nora, Nora, how like a woman! After Nora asks why they should care about the consequences of borrowing money, Torvald responds with this remark. We can see from the beginning of Act One how dismissive Torvald is of his wife's intelligence, and of all women in general.
Torvald Helmer
He treats Nora like a child, in a manner that is both kind and patronizing. He does not view Nora as an equal but rather as a plaything or doll to be teased and admired.
He treats Nora more like a child than a wife. He calls her silly names and scolds her for eating macaroons. Toward the end of the play, he even says that Nora is "doubly his own" because she has "become both wife and child" (3.257). (Cue the collective "eeeeew.")
To him, she is only a possession. Torvald calls Nora by pet-names and speaks down to her because he thinks that she is not intelligent and that she can not think on her own.
In A Doll House by Henrik Ibsen, the main character Nora is being objectified by her husband Torvald. He treats her like a doll that can't do anything without him. He orders her around, tells her what to wear, and how to dance the way he wants her to.
Linde brought them and then explains to Mrs. Linde that Torvald has “outlawed” macaroons because he thinks they are bad for Nora's teeth.
For started, the nicknames “little squirrel” was used by Torvald. When Torvald calls Nora a squirrel, it shows that he does not view his wife as another human, but instead, an…show more content…
As the play progresses, Nora reveals that she is not just a “silly girl,” as Torvald calls her.
Torvald made Nora take on a foreign identity; Torvald used her as a doll.
Torvald is shallow enough to be a mere foil for the character of Nora.
Her husband, Torvald Helmer, comes out of his study and addresses Nora with tenderness and authority, calling her his “skylark” and his “squirrel.” Nora tells Torvald that she wants to show him what she has bought, and Torvald teases her for being a spendthrift.
His despair as Nora exits at the very end of the play suggests that, despite his patronizing and unjust treatment of her, Torvald really does love Nora (or at least the idea of her).
Upon learning that Nora has committed fraud, Torvald tells her that from now on, “you will not be allowed to bring up the children, I can't trust you with them.” (p76) Nineteenth century bourgeois society valued women taking caring roles and being a good mother was seen as a path to happiness and fulfilment for women, ...
Torvald has banned Nora from eating macaroons. Although Nora claims that she never disobeys Torvald, this is proved false in the very opening of the play when Nora eats macaroons while she was alone in the living room. The macaroons come to represent Nora's disobedience and deceit.
"How painful and humiliating it would be for Torvald, with his manly independence, to know that he owed me anything [says Nora]. It would upset our mutual relations altogether; our beautiful happy home would no longer be what it is now."
Torvald Helmer betrays his wife by not defending and understanding her when he finds out the secret she has been keeping from him. To her utter disappointment, Helmer tells her that he can work day and night for her, bear sorrow for her but no man would sacrifice his honour for the one he loves.
At the beginning of the play, Nora and Torvald appear to be very happily married, even to themselves. Nora talks joyfully about her love for Torvald, and Torvald refers to Nora using affectionate pet names.
Nora is a victim of the male-dominated society of the nineteenth century. To save her husband, Torvald, she borrows money so that he might be able to recover from a life-threatening illness in a warmer climate.
Nora name meaning and origin
In Europe, Nora emerged as a shorter version of Honora, which comes from the Latin word "honor." Nora is also short for Eleanora, a Greek name meaning "light."
A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen is a significant work as a model play in the rise of feminism of 19th century. Nora, the central female character, acts as the harbinger of feminism here. She is seen in the play as a rebellious female for establishing her own recognition as a human being.
Nora Helmer once secretly borrowed a large sum of money so that her husband could recuperate from a serious illness. She never told him of this loan and has been secretly paying it back in small installments by saving from her household allowance.
Nora's use of Torvald's pet names for her to win his cooperation is an act of manipulation on her part. She knows that calling herself his “little bird,” his “squirrel,” and his “skylark,” and thus conforming to his desired standards will make him more willingly to give in to her wishes.