Introduction
At the time Anna Karenina and A Doll’s House were written, both published around the 1870s, Russian women were primarily under the control of their fathers and husbands. For this very reason, marriage was, in a way, a career goal for Russian women at that time. This feeds into the marxist theme because every character in each novel is In both Anna Karenina and A Doll’s House, the problems Anna and Nora face from the marxist perspectives of the time are heavily compounded by their gender.
Anna Karenina and Feminism
In that sense Anna had her life set. She was married with a child to a wealthy man of high social standing
Anna Karenina and Marxism A Doll’s House and Feminism
Nora Helmer is an accurate depiction of a woman who lives in a male dominated society that actively supports the idea that women are not equals, but are mere dolls that exist only to be played with. The women, Nora included, in A Doll’s House reinforce the idea that women are secondary to men, often being viewed as objects rather than people.
In Torvald Helmer’s eyes, Nora is just a “little skylark” (citation), a “song bird” (citation), or a “poor little girl” (citation) whose thoughts and beliefs are as half-witted as any other woman’s. Since childhood Nora has allowed herself to be treated as a second class citizen by her father. Then she married Torvald, who regarded her as a valued possession. It is not until the conclusion of the play that Nora comes to a self-realization of her treatment. All that Nora had done up until this point was play a role that society had taught her to play, a role that was expected of every woman.
To the outside world, Nora was the ideal wife. She was obedient and eager to please, however, on the inside she yearned for love and recognition of the sacrifices she had made in the name of her family. When she expresses her hope that Torvald will take the blame for the crime Nora committed, he says “no man would ever forsake his honor for…