Compare and contrast the presentation of women in contemporary society in Wildes A Woman of No Importance and Ibsens A Dolls House. Consider alternate viewpoints of both presentations in your answer.
Both Wilde and Ibsen present Woman in contemporary society to be of lower importance to men. In both plays the main female characters are shown to be weak and rely solely on a man to look after them. However as both plays progress we begin to see that Nora and Mrs Arbuthnot are not like the stereotypical woman of this society when they begin to show courage and independence. Wilde has used the title of the play, A Woman of No Importance to convey how woman were viewed in that society (which was second best to men.) This links nicely with Ibsens idea of calling his play A Dolls House and doll being a metaphor for Nora and how she is treated by her husband. In A Woman of No Importance the majority of the play is the unravelling of Mrs Arbuthnots big secret about her second life which presents woman to be highly secretive. In comparison, throughout A Dolls House we pick up hints that Nora is a secretive woman and later come to realise that like Mrs Arbuthnot she has being hiding a large and important secret from her loved ones, and that is that she has taking a secret loan out in her husband Helmers name which presents woman to be extremely devious. The fact that woman had to hide their secrets demonstrates they would have been looked upon as more shameful than a man because of their lower status.
In A Woman of No Importance Wilde presents woman in contemporary society to be of a much lower class than men by constantly mentioning how woman are a lot less under achieving than most males and that it is the way that men like society to be. But good women have such limited views on life. By Lord Illingworth saying this to Gerald whilst talking about his mother, it represents to us that he enjoys being brighter than woman because he feels like he is in control.``` He later goes on to mention that a womans horizon is so small and their interests so petty. Wildes intention was to makes it obvious that Lord Illingworth believes woman are useless and by using the words small and petty conveys that to him, obviously a males horizon and interests are a great deal more important than any womens, therefore making men the more superior sex. In addition to this, Lord Illingworth later states that: women have become too brilliant. Nothing spoils a romance so much as a sense of humour in the woman. This yet again represents to the audience that Lord Illingworth clearly wants to be in control of any woman he knows. By saying that a sense of humour spoils a romance for Lord Illingworth indicates that he doesnt like the woman he knows to be a big character or have any sort of normal emotions, he would rather them be robotic and do what he pleases. Furthermore, the fact he saying woman have become too brilliant shows that Lord Illingworth is becoming threatened by women, and represents to the audience that society is changing and women are starting to get more recognition. Ibsen presents woman in contemporary society similarly through Nora and how her own husband Helmer treats her. For when Helmer states that No one gives up honour for love Nora replies millions of woman have done it. This statement from Nora is very powerful because she uses the word woman instead of people which represents that in this society it is always the woman that have to give up their life and their honour for their husbands which shows us that men are the stronger sex. Not only that, but when Helmer finds out about Noras secret loan and that she is leaving, one of the first things he says to her is: But it is unheard of for a woman to behave like this. This has a strong effect on not only Nora but the audience because instead of looking at Nora as a person, he still only looks to her as nothing but a woman which in that society wasnt much of a compliment. In addition, it shows that Helmers first priority is what the society will make of him and his family if they find out about Noras unusual actions, rather than Nora herself.
Both titles of these plays convey how woman are presented in contemporary society. By Wilde choosing the title A Woman of No Importance it immediately gives the impression that woman compared to men arent valuable, which later contrasts with the last line of the play A man of no importance. This is really effective because it represents societys misconception of woman. This links perfectly with why Ibsen choose the title A Dolls House, Doll being a metaphor for Nora who states to Helmer Ive been your doll-wife. This demonstrates that Nora has realised that she hasnt been living her life for herself and she has finally built enough courage to become independent. Moreover, linking House and doll-wife represents to the audience that she is Helmers property and only lives in his house as his wife just so he can keep her as a possession of his.
Both Wilde and Ibsen present woman of this society as secretive and sneaky through Nora and Mrs Arbuthnot. In A Dolls House Nora took out a loan in her husbands name to preserve Helmers health. Whilst confiding in her friend Mrs Linde, Nora says whilst working to pay of her deft it was almost like being a man This links well with the idea that woman are dependent on men to be the provider by her saying man it represents she feels only men are capable of looking after the family. In addition, it shows the audience that not only did the men believe this but some of the woman did too. On the other hand, her description of her years of secret labour undertaken to pay off her debt shows she is driven with fierce determination and ambition, which is something the majority of woman in this society are perceived not to have. Moreover, the fact that Nora has been working secretly for years indicates she isnt just a silly girl as Helmer always makes her out to be, and that she is intelligent and possessed capacities beyond mere wifehood. The strong and determined attributes or Nora are also found in A Woman of No Importances Mrs Arbuthnot who we learn has had a love child with Lord Illingworth and has been pretending she was a widow to cover up the shame of having a child outside of marriage. When Mrs Arbuthnot states: The woman suffers. The man goes free. it is a very moving moment because it relates to her life, for she had to run away from her loved ones and create a secret life for herself and her son, whereas Lord Illingworth got to roam free without a care or responsibility in the world. This quote represents to the audience that Mrs Arbuthnot is much stronger than any man and in particular Lord Illingworth, for she survived her suffering along with bringing up Gerald, while Lord Illingworth had an easy.
In conclusion, in the beginning of both plays the women of contemporary society are considered the weaker sex and tend to keep things to themselves, however as we go on throughout the play we realise how strong woman can be. I believe that Wilde and Ibsen present the truth about what society would have been like in the 1920s, which is that there would have been a number of men overflowing with confidence because they believe woman arent as important as them, and even though both plays are set in different countries this idea applies in many different countries. Both authors suggest that even though woman may seem to be more vulnerable than men, they should not be underestimated because they have and will achieve just as much as men, which has been proven by the different and independent types of woman who in the end decide to leave and become free of men in A Woman of No Importance and A Dolls House.
Bibliography:
* Henrik Isben A Dolls House
* Oscar Wilde A Woman of No Importance
* The Student Room
* The Works Of Oscar Wilde
* York Notes A Dolls House
Word Count: 1292
Already have an account? Log In Now
6765