Henrik Ibsen was born in 1828 into a merchant family in the small Norwegian town of Skien. After his family fell into poverty, he was forced to abandon his studies, and at age 15 he worked as an apprentice in a pharmacy. It was here that he began to write plays. Ibsen was not an instant success. He spent many years writing, working for a theater company and publishing without much success. Cynical about the narrow-minded society in which he lived, Ibsen went into exile and wrote the play that would give him success, Brand. This play and his next play (Peer Gynt) elevated him to prominence and influence. At the "peak" of his career, Ibsen began to explore unexpressed themes. In 1879, he published A Doll's House and scandalized Victorian society. Nor did his subsequent plays lighten their thematic content. Ghosts, An Enemy of the People, The Wild Duck, and Hedda Gabler hit the wall of late 18th-century culture that Ibsen despised. His plays have received stage attention, often selling out each performance. Nonetheless, they sparked public outcry and critical infamy. He suffered a series of debilitating strokes and died on May 23. His last words were to his nurse, who told a visitor that his condition was improving. Disagreeing, he replied “on the contrary!” and died the next day. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay For all its piety, modesty, and political advancement, the Victorian era stifled the development of ethical questions. For example, voting was not only a man's privilege, but also a rich man's right. With an almost autonomous aristocracy, the social elite created a political clique, where all control circulated through it: this created a great disparity between the rich and the poor. Around this time, literature began to focus more on human emotion. Ibsen's contemporaries included the Brontë sisters, Victor Hugo, Arthur Conan Doyle and Henry David Thoreau. This era was also characterized by a preoccupation with chastity, which resulted in a restricted social construct in which a woman could operate. A Doll's House, in particular, addresses the way women were treated and thought of. They were groomed for domestic work, trained to be fragile and delicate for their future husbands. They could not own property, businesses, or pursue careers outside of the teaching profession. Ibsen paved the way for controversial drama with A Doll's House. The plot revolves around Nora, a wife and mother from late 19th century Norway. She realizes that she is not a complete person and that her husband, Torvald, treats her like a doll. Based on a true story, Ibsen's A Doll's House came to champion the burgeoning women's rights movement. Although we today view Nora's self-discovery and empowerment with respect and encouragement, critics responded with fury. Nora was either considered moral poison or considered stupid and irresponsible. The original ending was so scandalous that Ibsen was asked to change it, and although he complied, the alternate endings were unsatisfactory. Strong themes of inherent power and the need to become oneself are the very fabric of this play, and although the action centers on one woman, it invites everyone to contemplate their own growth and the encouragement it gives to others. others to progress. of the People has a plot »..