Using Soren Kierkegaard’s Philosophies Of Truth To Analyze A Doll’s House

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Using Soren Kierkegaard’s Philosophies of Truth to Analyze A Doll’s House
In Henrik Ibsen’s play A Doll’s House, the main character, Nora Helmer, is a woman whose life is ridden with worry, guilt, alienation, and deception. These feelings come from lying to her husband for the length of their marriage. She lies to her husband because she does not want to displease him, this choice has made her a “doll” for her husband to control and manipulate. At the end of the play the truth is exposed and Nora frees herself from her marriage. Kierkegaard believed that finding and knowing your self is a challenge because we are always changing paths. His philosophy is that we need to chose our selves and construct our identities by means of decisions, actions, and commitment. He also believed that there is one truth that is truly known only to God. Kierkegaard’s “truth” establishes the justice that Nora deserves, makes an unknown reality known to her, and transforms Nora into her true self.
Nora has spent 8years of her life lying to her controlling husband. Her life is full of anxiety because she is afraid that her husband will learn the truth. This anxiety leads to despair which she cannot overcome. This despair has made her a prisoner to herself.
In The Divine Justice, Kierkegaard says that sins relating to our laws are punished in our world but sins that relate to God’s laws seem to go unnoticed.
Through actions, decisions, and commitment people are able to find themselves. When the truth is finally exposed Nora is revealed as her new self....