DRAM 1101 1st Edition Lecture 7 Outline of Last Lecture I Melodrama a Conventions b Characteristics c Legacy II Origins of modern theatre III Realism a Ibsen Chekhov IV Naturalism a Slice of Life Outline of Current Lecture I The Woman Question II Why Henrik Ibsen s dramas were controversial III Problem Plays IV Realistic Theatre V Play Structure VI Seeing the production a 4 interpretations Current Lecture I II The woman question a The emergence of the new woman in the 1880 s was a direct challenge to the paradigm of the true woman i Wanted to get an education get a job wear men s clothing etc ii Contradicted traditional roles of women iii Was satirized in popular culture because it was a disruption to the norm 1 Was characterized as a beast b These tensions appear in Ibsen s Doll s House Why were Henrik Ibsen s dramas controversial a Challenge existing moral values and social norms These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute III IV V VI VII i Channeled the idea of the environment shaping characters 1 Dr Rank and his syphilis as a result of the sins of his father ii Contradicts the idea that good prevails 1 In a well made play formula in a melodrama good will prevail over evil 2 The husband would have absorbed Nora s sins and there would have been a reconciliation a Nora would have repented and reformed and her husband would have shouldered the blame iii Challenged the roles of women 1 Nora leaves her family she is not saved by Torvald as she expected 2 Nora goes from a life of security to ostensibly marginalization a Rejected the roles that have been prescribed for her Ibsen On the Contrary a He questioned conventional ideas b His plays n the 1870 s were realistic dramas focusing on social issues and free will i Eventually he moved into more symbolism ii Earned the title of father of realism 1 He was to realism what Emile Zola was to naturalism Doll s House is often called a problem play a A play that spotlights social problems b In this case it was a marriage in crisis i Not resolved in the conventional way c Critiqued social conventions and gender inequality Forerunner in realistic theatre a Ibsen discarded nonrealistic devices i Example tools such as characters turning to the audience to explain something ii Replaced them with impactful conversations between characters 1 Also with deliberate dialogue settings costumes and stage in order to reveal how characters and the environment worked in tandem a How characters are impacted by the environment b Example Nora dancing the tarantella was a purposeful decision because it was a symbolic dance of her spinning out of control iii Each character reflected the impact of heredity and environmental forces Play structure a Well made play formula conventional i Has a causal plot 1 Cause and effect ii Has a secret that is gradually revealed iii Usually has a necessary scene to ultimately reveal the secret iv Usually has a voice of reason b This structure makes the play more realistic Seeing the production several interpretations a 1973 Movie i Historically accurate setting and costumes b 1992 Version i Also historically accurate ii A more rational and confident Nora c Long Wharf Theatre adaptation 2010 i Not historically accurate settings 1 Modern costumes and set design ii Much more movement 1 Less formal iii Modernized dialogue updated language iv Sense of violence 1 Potential domestic abuse d Mabou Mines Tour 2003 2010 i High stylized and inherently meta theatrical 1 Creates a sense of distance between the actions of the play and the audience ii Melodramatic music iii Children played by dolls iv Male characters played by men shorter than 4 11 while female characters were all made to look taller than 6 feet tall 1 Metaphor for gender equality 2 In the last scene Nora sheds her clothing and takes off her wig so that she is bald a Symbolic of shedding gender roles and the things that are symbolic of femininity b Breaking free of social constraints that we use to perform our prescribed roles v Set looked like an actual doll house