| , Research Paper
Dramatic Irony in A Dolls House
Irony serves the purpose of accentuating a story, it also adds
to its creativity and originality. There are numerous types of
irony in the play A Doll’s House by Henrik Isben. Throughout
this work three types of irony are used, dramatic, situational,
and verbal. These three types of irony help bring out certain
conflicts within the play. These Conflicts, without irony,
wouldn t provide readers with such enjoyable or dazzling plays
to read.
Dramatic Irony, defined by Websters Dictionary, is the
incongruity between a situation developed in a drama and the
accompanying words or actions that is understood by the audience
but not by the characters in the play A Doll’s House contains
abundant examples of dramatic irony. In A Doll’s House the
reader is aware that Nora borrowed money from Krogstad without
her husband’s permission. Nora also forged her father’s name to
gain the money. She says, “You don’t know all. I forged a name.”
In the following conversation between Nora and Christine it is
clearly stated that Torvald does not know of Nora’s actions:
“Mrs. Linde: And since then have you never told your secret to
your husband? Nora: Good heavens, no!” Another example of
dramatic irony in A Doll’s House is when Nora wants to practice
a dance called the Tarantella. When Torvald goes to look in the
letterbox Nora says, “Torvald please don’t. There is nothing in
there.” The reader knows that Nora has not forgotten the dance.
Nora then says, “I can’t dance to-morrow if I don’t practice
with you.” All Nora is trying to do is keep Torvald from reading
the mail that contains a letter from Krogstad.
Situational Irony is a discrepancy and a formation of a
situation that one would logically anticipate or that would seem
appropriate and the situation that actually develops. An example
of situational irony within A Doll’s House is when Nora leaves
Torvald. There is no hint that Nora is going to leave Torvald
until the end of the book. During the beginning of the book Nora
acts as if she loves him. Only till Nora says, “Or if anything
else should happen to me-anything, for instance, that might
prevent me from being here-” the reader gets a feeling that Nora
might leave Torvald. At the end of the play she calls Torvald a
“stranger” and walks out. The reader does not expect Mrs. Linde
and Krogstad to have been married. The reader does not even know
that they are friends. When Christine, Mrs. Linde, says, “Nils,
how would it be if we two shipwrecked people could join forces?
The reader finds out that Christine and Krogstad compel each
other. No one expects Christine to want Krogstad because he has
been corrupt in the past. What us readers didn t know till later
was that Christine also knew and loved Krogstad in the past.
Verbal irony is the discrepancy between what someone says and
what he or she really means. In A Doll’s House when Helmer says,
“Is that my little skylark twittering out there?” Helmer is not
asking if Nora is a bird; nor that she is twittering like a
bird. Helmer is just asking if it is his wife, Nora, and if she
is saying something. When Torvald Helmer says, “Is it my little
squirrel bustling about?” He does not think that Nora is a
squirrel either. Nora has her share of verbal irony too. When
she is sitting down talking to Mrs. Linde she says, “There now,
it is burning up.” The place is not literally burning up. The
house is not on fire. Nora is just stating that the temperature
inside the house is hot. Nora then gets up and, “Shuts the door
of the stove and moves the rocking-chair aside.”
All three types of irony are used throughout A Doll s House to
create a further stirring play. Irony plays an important role in
any type of literature, and is used to help show the opposite of
what is actually said and/or done. Irony is the use of words to
express something other than, and especially the opposite, of
the literal meaning. Without irony, literature, especially plays
would be humdrum and minimal.
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