
Collage by Nehal Thapliyal
In a long interview in the February 26th New York Times, Chastain dares to raise a question that must have occurred to anyone who reads the play or sees a production: Is Torvald a monster? He is certainly stuffy and overbearing and incapable of understanding his wife’s unhappiness—but how has Nora contributed to this situation?
Chastain observes, “She plays the role of the pretty, fragile, child-like wife for a reason… When denied, you work within a system to gain power, and we’re all responsible for that… Nora has stepped into the cage to gain what little power she has”—which stems entirely from being Torvald’s wife. “Girls are taught from so young to be smaller, right? So our voices get higher, we don’t want to be threatening so we’re docile and meek. That’s kind of bred into us. But that’s part of how we’re helping it to continue, women not being seen as equal.”
This is perilously close to blaming the victim, and yet every time I hear a woman playing the shill for a corrupt politician, I wonder why she is doing this. Our high voices seem appropriate for praise, even indiscriminate praise, and of course reaping the reward of a little power. And when a woman refuses to press charges against her violent husband or to leave him, it may be more about our clinging to the tiny bit of power that marriage seems to give us than it is about love or even emotional dependency.
That may be why when Nora slams the door, we feel uneasy, may question her judgement—or even her femininity. But I believe it’s essential for all us to be capable of slamming that door on a relationship, a way of life, a job. Yes, there’s a price to be paid, but we are able to pay it and to feel justified and even proud.
This is when our women friends become essential—that voice reassuring us that we are right.
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