Henrik Johan Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (1828-1906) was an extremely influential Norwegian playwright who was known for his modern works in the European theatre. ... Ibsen was born into a Middle Class family in the small town of Skien, Norway. ... At the age of fifteen Ibsen left home to become an apprentice to a chemist and in 1849 wrote his first play, Catilina. ... Ibsen would not write again for some time but was still determined to be a playwright. ... With this success Ibsen would now bring more and more of his own ideas and morals into his drama. In 1879, Ibsen wrote A Doll’s House where he sent Nora Helmer out into the world with a demand that a woman too must have the freedom to develop as an adult, independent, and responsible person. ... ” (1) Ibsen’s writings show that when the individual intellectually frees himself from traditional ways of thinking, serious conflicts arise. ... Ibsen can be sometimes criticized for his somewhat superficial treatment of the problems a divorced woman would face in modern-day society. ... These were the aspects of the middle-class life that were not mentioned in public in Ibsen’s time. Ibsen also believed the main character strives toward a certain goal, but this struggle leads out into loneliness.