Ibsen's A Doll's House and Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author: A Comparison

Ibsen is concerned with the story, with the traditional beginning, middle and end of the story, and with the basic elements which go into a story. He does not seek to upset or radicalize the audience's notions of what a story should be or is. He presents the characters as beings with discernible and fairly continuous personalities. Though Ibsen's writing is sophisticated and artful, the audience is able to follow the narrative and the actions and relationships of the characters as in any traditional story. It is a world and a reality, in other words, that is familiar to the audience, and they are able to lose themselves in the storytelling because of that basic familiarity.

Pirandello, on the other hand, is not interested in the conventional story, conventional narrative, or conventional characterization. In fact, he seeks not to tell a story, but to radically disturb the notions of the audience or readers as to what a story is or is supposed to be. Accordingly, his characters are not really characters at all, but are rather pieces of the imagination of the author who has discarded them into the chaotic "play" in which they find themselves rehearsi

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cally to the past events, if they do not find them satisfyingly told and credible, then they will be less likely to relate meaningfully to the outcome of those events in the protagonist's present life. For example, Nora's attitude in Ibsen's play changes from fear to defiance when her husband reads and responds to the two letters from Krogstad. The turning point for Nora is when she sees beyond any doubt how utterly selfish and paternalistic her husband is. She sees that Torvald does not love her, and realizes in that instant that she does not love him. This is one of the most important point, if not the most important point in the play, yet Ibsen robs the moment of much of its effectiveness by telling it too quickly. In terms of narrative, it is a case of too much too fast, and in part the use of awkward, unnatural exposition is at fault. The symbolism of the loan (it is, after all, a sign of Nora's love and sacrifice for Torvald) is also somewhat weakened by the fact that we hear about it in bland, undramatic exposition. It is not credible that she should so suddenly and thoroughly awaken to her husband's selfishness, to her slave-like, doll-like role in life, and the next moment decide to leave her old life behind to start bui
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Approximate Word count = 2221
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)