People deal with situations and problems in various ways. Some problems are bigger while others are smaller. In some cases people can solve problems easily; however some people cannot solve them at all. In Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House and Franz Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” the main characters, Nora and Gregor, find themselves in situations that they are ill-prepared to cope with. Even though their positions are far from the same, they do compare in some ways. Nora and Gregor both have a situation in which they choose to avoid until they come face to face with reality.
Nora is a loving housewife to her husband Torvald. They have a wonderful home and three beautiful children. Torvald works at a bank and is the idea man of the house. They seem to have the perfect life although Torvald treats Nora like a child or as a doll. She does not seem to mind her doll-like treatment. Like most men in the late 1800s, Torvald is only concerned with his status in society and how they view him and his family.
At the beginning of A Doll’s House, Nora seems completely happy. She responds nicely to Torvald’s teasing and nicknames. She also speaks about the money his new job promotion will provide. Torvald thinks that Nora wastes the money on common yet not needed items, but she uses it for a much bigger reason.
Krogstad, an employee at the bank, is about to lose his job. He comes to Torvald and Nora’s home to talk to Nora. In the past, Nora foraged her father’s signature on a loan at the bank in which Krogstad let her sign. She signed this loan in order to take Torvald on a vacation. He was ill from an overload of work and stress. When Krogstad heard that he was going to lose him job,
he had to do anything to fix it. He thought the only way to do this was to blackmail Nora into telling Torvald not to fire him or that he would tell everyone of what shame she was.
Nora had no idea how to cope with the situation she found herself in. She knew that Torvald loved...