In the early 1800s, the patriarchal system and the gender imbalance played a major role in the culture of the world. Women and men played very different roles. Men’s roles included earning money for the family and living a controlled lifestyle, while women were prohibited from working outside the home. Women were restricted to doing “housewife’s” chores such as cleaning, cooking and caring for the children. Women were not respected and treated like property. Women who tried to defend themselves were put down by men. The culture was dominated by men and women had a limited role in daily life for men. Oxford Dictionary describes patriarchy as a system where fathers are the heads of families and descendance is determined by male lineage. How far can women break free from patriarchal societies of the 19th century? The patriarchal system is emphasized heavily in the novels The Awakening and A Doll’s House both by Kate Chopin.
The two works have similarities, but they also differ in many ways. Kate Chopin is a different author with different opinions and views, but the novels, The Awakening and A Doll’s House, are both similar. Both works were written during a period when men dominated society and women had no place. These works were created during the Victorian Era, when women lived a more seclusion lifestyle at home. Men were free to go wherever and whenever they chose (“Gender Roles for Victorian Era Women and Men”). Women were not afforded the same level of courtesy as men. If women did what they wanted, they were frowned on. Women in this period were more timid and insecure than men. Women had to keep their opinions to themselves. They were not allowed outspoken. The Victorian ideal of a woman was to be “pure, clean and virtuous” (“Gender Rules for Victorian Men and Victorian Women”). It was permitted for men to engage in sexual activity with other females during the Victorian Era but not women. Women who had relations with other men were considered prostitutes. Women were not allowed be single because men were needed to protect them because of their weakness. In the past century, women’s roles changed drastically. Now they are free to do what ever they please and don’t have to answer anyone else but themselves. Women in the modern era are not restricted like women from The Awakening or A Doll’s House. The Awakening’s Edna is similar to A Doll’s House’s Nora in the sense that both are part of patriarchal culture, but they also differ. Both characters feel trapped, and they wait to be rescued and freed. The most significant difference between these two characters is the fact that Edna lives in The Awakening and stays to herself. She had instinctively understood the dual existence-the outward conformity and the inner life that questions. Edna, in this quotation, is leading a private life. Nora, the protagonist of A Doll’s House, is a woman who lives in a fake world. I believe I’m a reasonable person just like you-or at least I must strive to be one. Edna Pontellier has expectations and rules that are solely driven by her being a woman. Edna is not a typical Victorian housewife, as the Victorian Era believed. Edna however has her own dreams. She hoped to be artistic, and have control over her sexual and financial freedom. However, this is not what she achieved. Edna, at one point, claims she is not her spouse’s property. She defends this by saying that she can give up herself whenever she wants. Robert is confused and says, “You foolish boy! You have wasted all your time dreaming about impossible things. I’m no longer Mr. Pontellier’s possession to be sold or given away. Wherever I want, I am free to give. If he had said to me, “Here Robert; take her. Be happy. She’s yours,” I could laugh at him and you.
Another moment Edna speaks up for herself and mentions the feminist movement bluntly is, “Has she,” asked the Doctor, with a smile, “has she been associating of late with a circle of pseudo-intellectual women-super-spiritual superior beings? They’ve been talking about me by my wife. That’s what’s wrong,” said Mr. Pontellier. She’s given up her Tuesdays spent at home. She’s thrown out all her friends and is now tramping around alone, moping on the street-cars. She is odd. Chopin (66) says, “I’m not fond of it; it makes me feel a bit concerned.” Nora struggles to get away from Torvald’s dominance throughout A Doll’s House. Nora is dehumanized by her husband, who calls her a “squirrel” and makes her feel as if her life is meaningless. Torvald is also presuming that men and women both have flaws. Nora, I’m serious. You know my opinion. No debt, no borrowing. Borrowing and debt are not conducive to a beautiful, free home. We have both stayed on the straight path so far and will continue to do so for as long as there is no need to struggle. Torvald stereotypes all women when he says that they are all the same, and spend money while men don’t. Nora carried out her duties as a woman from the 1900s without any questions. Why did he marry you? Mrs. Linde said: “My mom was still living, she was bedridden and unable to care for myself and my two brothers. I thought I wasn’t justified in turning down his offer.” Ibsen. Act I. 8. Nora had to sacrifice to marry in order to provide for her family. Edna’s and Nora’s marriages are also similar in that both women have come to terms with their decision.
Edna understood at the start of the novel while Nora understood it towards the end. Edna realised she wasn’t content and happy with her life by taking care of husband, house and children. She realized that her life was more than being a housewife. Edna is left feeling trapped by her marriage, which is physically and emotionally hurting her. Nora’s marriage isn’t working out. She wants to end it due to her husband’s dominance over her. Nora feels as if their marriage never was a real one. Once your fear had passed, and it wasn’t for what I feared but what you might face–once the entire situation was over, you acted as if there was nothing that happened. As before, my doll was your little Skylark. It was something you would take extra special care of in the future. [Getting up.] Torvald, it was at that moment when I realized that I had lived here for eight years with a stranger and had given birth to three children. Oh, it’s too much to bear! Ibsen’s Act III, 70. Nora, who had not given a thought to her husband’s words or actions, spoke up, despite not caring. Nora’s and Edna’s lives have been transformed by their willingness to take risks. Edna spent time alone with Robert and risked losing her relationship. Nora’s risk is different.
Nora’s man does not consider her a real person. Instead, he views her like a thing. Nora is not a human being. Edna and Nora are not mothers. Nora doesn’t treat her children as people but rather like things. Torvald also treats Nora in the same manner, not seeing her as she is. Both are very similar, but they also differ in many ways. Edna, on the other hand, does not require forgiveness from her husband. She can live without him. Both felt trapped by a patriarchal culture that prevented them from living their lives as they wanted. Edna is afraid to make the same decision as Nora, who has decided to live alone and without her husband. In order to conform to the social norm, she decides not to leave her husband but rather herself. She chooses to die over live. Death has multiple meanings, and Edna’s choice to drown in the ocean is ironic. She was awakened by the ocean and also died in it. Edna was denied her basic rights, just like the other women of the nineteenth century. She and Nora had to be housewives for their husbands and serve as their servants.