Nora: Why is She so Annoying?

Nora is a complex personality. She seems to care about her friend, Kristine, yet she says some very insensitive things. She obtains the money to take her husband to Italy so that he can get better and she seems to care for him greatly, yet it looks like she is not completely happy in her marriage. There are a lot of factors that are involved in the way that Nora acts.

I believe that Nora is a well-intentioned person. She obviously makes some insensitive comments about how happy she is, how good her life is with all her money, how Krisitine should go to a resort (when she obviously does not have the money), and things like that, but I do not believe that those come from a mean-spirited place, but rather from an ignorance. Nora comes off as quite an air-head sometimes. she says stupid things and made the stupid mistake of dating the fake signature on the will five days after her father's death. Nora is in conflict because she wants to be useful, to do something important, to be recognized as smart (to a certain extent), but she also wants to please her husband, who likes to keep her as an ignorant child. Many of these mistakes are a result of her being kept in the dark. As her husband's pet, she is not expected to know much, nor does she need to if she aimlessly follows her husband's decisions; however, when she decides to go off-the-books and get the money for the Italy trip, she makes mistakes because she has never dealt with money or business before. But it seems it would be common sense to date a signature at a time when the person (whose signature it is supposed to be) was alive, right? If Nora were sharp she would realize that even if she had never dealt in business or the sorts before in her life. Nora, however, does not exhibit a sharpness, and while part of this might just be the way Nora is, I believe that a lot of it can be attributed to her husband. Her husband does not allow her to be a smart woman. He does not want a sharp companion, an equal with an opinion. He is all about being "a man," having power, and being in complete control of his house. In consequence, Nora runs around like a silly little air-head to get what she wants. Nora acts in the way that she knows her husband wants her to, but that ignorant way of acting has also led her to say some stupid things to Kristine and deal very badly in business.

Nora talks about how much work she went to and how much she sacraficed to get the money for Italy, so she seems to really care about her husband, but I don't think that she is exactly happy in her marriage. She tells Kristine how she never spent more than half of her allowance and saved the rest towards the trip (and for someone as vain as Nora, that really seems to say something), yet when she is telling all of this to Kristine, she sounds kind of self-praising, as if she is just trying to get pity or glory from her friend for what she did. Nora also seems to rather like Dr. Rank. He and she have a very flirtacious and friendly relationship that she seems to enjoy much more than her current marriage. At home, Nora wants to be someone that she cannot and she enjoys floating around and doing her own thing, rather isolated from her husband. In contrast, with Dr. Rank she feels free to be herself. She can talk to him about things (which she cannot with her husband), she does not conceal her slightly rebellious attitude that comes with her sneaking macaroons, and she is not afraid to just act freely. Nora wants to be more than she is allowed to be at home, and that cannot possibly produce a happy person. Also, while Nora may care for her husband, I do not believe theat the two of them have a loving relationship. Nora is afraid to be herself, afraid of what her husband would do if he found out about what she did, and sure that one day her husband will no longer love her as she thinks he does now. Firstly, these things alone show that she is not in a trusting reslationship. Secondly, if Torvald would reject Nora for being herself, would not forgive her for what she did (since she was just trying to save his life), and will stop loving her once she gets older and is no longer young and beautiful, then she is definitely not in a loving relationship. Nora is not in a trusting or loving relationship with her husband, as a matter of fact, they are quite distant and isolated from eachother. Nora is not in a happy marriage.

All of these factors (Torvald, society, Dr. Rank, Nora's desires, etc.) influence her behavior. In the end, I believe that Nora does not exactly know who she is. She is in constant conflict with herself and that is what creates her complex behavior.

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Contradictory Religious Sentiments in Hamlet

Religion plays a major role in Hamlet; however, there are many contradictory religious sentiments in the play, especially when it comes to Hamlet. There is no doubt that Hamlet holds religious beliefs. He believes in Heaven and Hell and Pergatory. He is quite preoccupied with beliefs on where the soul goes once the body perishes and he is very concerned with doing the right and moral thing. All of this being said, Hamlet does not speak as someone who follows the beliefs that he clearly seems to have.

It is well known (or should be) that Christianity is very against taking revenge. It is ALL about forgiveness (and if someone does not know that by now, then I don't know where they've been). So, with that being common knowledge, everyone should be asking him/herself why the entire play is about a man with Christian beliefs trying to avenge his father. The question of contradictory sentiments would be different if Hamlet was attempting to kill Claudius for another purpose besides vengence. If, as king, it was impossible for Claudius to be taken down by a court (because how many kings get a fair trial? They run everything!), so Hamlet decided to take justice in his own hands and rid the world of a criminal, then our question of the contradiction would be very different. Hamlet does not view it like this, however, and he clearly shows this with his words. Hamlet not only seeks revenge, but he plots specifically to get Claudius's soul to Hell. It is another Christian belief that no matter how evil someone may be that they are not wished to go to Hell. Christians, obviously, would like everyone (even if you're Osama Bin Laden) to repent and find eternal life. While Christians believe that there is a Hell and that some people (like most likely Osama Bin Laden) will go there, it is not wished that anyone should go. Hamlet, however, goes to kill Claudius but then stops out of fear that his (Claudius's) soul might go to Heaven. So who is Hamlet? What does he believe? Is he as moral as he and other people think? He is not just trying to kill a man (murder by the way is not on a Christian's to-do list either), he is trying to send him to Hell!

It is possible that part of Hamlet's struggle throughout the play involves his questioning of his very contradictory sentiments, but I'm not so sure.

Well, that's about all.