Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - A Doll's House

Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen

20 reviews

phantomgecko's review against another edition

Go to review page

sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Spoiler

I was surprised by the ending. Legit surprised. I fully expected Nora to kill herself, tbh. Specifically when she went to change out of her fancy dress, I thought Torvald would end his little monologue and find her hanged.

But no! Instead, against all my expectations, my girl dropped him and decided to live for herself.

This play is from the 70s. The 1870s. And wow.

Ibsen denied this was a feminist work, but...idk death of the author and whatever.

5 stars

Content Warnings

stephriggs25's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

cloudyowls's review against another edition

Go to review page

reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Content Warnings

ashley_1206's review against another edition

Go to review page

reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

honestly i expected so much more from the way my teacher was hyping this book up. i was highly disappointed i think it was just so mid. like the mc annoyed me and so did all the characters and i feel like the ending was so meh. i cant wait to do a project on this bc i was already analyzing as i read so yeah. but anyways it was mid!

Content Warnings

theaceofpages's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I can't say I was a big fan of this book. The characters were annoying and the writing didn't particularly captivate me. I can, however, admire what this work set out to do and the extremally unusual and complex female representation for the time. I can, for example, admire Nora's strength even though I don't like her. I do wonder how much of that is her having to suppress herself because of the times and bow things have changed since. I do also wonder how much of that was narrative choice (I listened to an audiobook. While this was of high quality, I did get annoyed at the ways the characters spoke at times). I can see why some people love this book, but unfortunately it wasn't for me.

Content Warnings

mariekejee's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I don't understand how I keep accidentally reading stories about women's autonomy - I'm not complaining, but it's starting to become suspicious. I was gifted a recording of this book by the audiobook app Audrey through a giveaway, for which my thanks. The recording is great - the actors are great, it's performed as a play but completely understandable in audio format, and hearing the audience laugh in the background is a fun addition.

As for the story itself: for a play written by a man in the 19th century, it is a surprisingly feminist one. This is the story of Nora Helmer, who we initially see as a frivolous and cheerful woman, happily married with lovely children, but come to understand as being coddled and confined in her marriage. She is not being taken seriously by her husband, rather seen as a pretty thing to take care of, the same as she was treated by her father. It takes a great crisis for her to realise this, and to reclaim her autonomy.

The ending is a surprising but powerful one:

Spoiler

after hearing the anxiety she suffered through most of the play, even willing to drown herself, I had expected her to be elated at Thorvald's forgiveness, but she shows a surprising amount of reflection and strength. I'm a sucker for happy endings, and while I feel for Thorvald and their kids, I believe it is the best ending possible for Nora

. I appreciate a piece of Victorian era-literature that is so willing to challenge the idea that a woman's purpose is more than just to be a good mother and wife, and I believe this play succeeded phenomenally in this.

Content Warnings