Gender And Gender Roles Have Radically From The Time...

The idea of gender and gender roles have evolved minimally from the time Henrick Ibsen â€Å"A Doll House,† was first published. In the late 1800s, just before the beginning of the first wave of feminism in the United States and Europe, women were looking for ways to gain independence from their â€Å"duty† to marry a man, have children, and live a life to home and yearned for the freedom to choose what kind of lives they wanted to live, what they wanted to do, etc. In the beginning of the play, the views of gender are fairly typical, though by the end of the play, the gender roles among the main characters change dramatically. According to an essay by Stephanie Forward, the original Norwegian title literally refers to a â€Å"small, cozy and neat† home, one that was meant to reflect the homes of the play s audience, so that members could better identify with the scenes, characters and occurrences that happen in the play. Nora Helmer, who we could consider the ma in character in this drama, ends the final act by walking out of her home into the dark night (literally and figuratively, as society would be unwelcoming to her) and slamming the door shut, implying that she left her husband and three children, which, of course, encouraged young, single women to achieve freedom, but also shocked a large percentage of the public. Critics viewed her character as someone who was â€Å"unnatural† for leaving her husband and children because they feared that such behavior would lead to an upheaval in