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White lies are often justified morally by the logic that the recipient is being protected by the lie. In the case of an obedient housewife, it was the unveiling of her white lie that created a turning point in all aspects of her life. In Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, Nora’s deception is crucial to saving Helmer’s life. Although her intentions are pure, the risks of this deception are detrimental. Her deceit leads to the unraveling of her family and her decision to become independent. It is important to understand why Nora lied to her husband in the first place and the risk she bestowed upon herself in doing so.
The lies began when Helmer was sick and ‘He needed to have no idea what a dangerous condition he was in” when the doctors informed Nora that Helmer’s life was in danger (pg. 11). Her selfless act of taking out money to save his life was still to be kept secret. A woman lying to her husband in 1879 was wildly unheard of and discouraged. Helmer built a marriage around the subservience of his wife, “a clean beak to chirp with—no false notes,’ (pg. 29), and his ability to solely provide for her and the children. His stubborn, sexist view of women handling money, “no debt, no borrowing’ (pg. 32) forced Nora to keep this secret from him. This deceit was an act of bravery on the part of Nora and is made to be disobedient in the eyes of Helmer.
Although her intentions were pure and selfless, the unraveling of these secrets saw no better outcome than if she hadn’t taken out the loan. Nora’s newfound freedom of having this secret started with some mild concerns about “all this concealment and falsehood going on.’ (pg. 66) However, as Helmer discovers that Nora has lied, he acts as if he is hurt and betrayed by her deceit when in reality he is concerned with himself and his reputation. In a fit of rage, Helmer scolds Nora, ‘What a horrible awakening! All these eight years—she who was my joy and pride—a hypocrite, a liar—worse, worse—a criminal!’ (pg. 75) He treats her as if she had intentionally ruined him for her benefit. His fit of rage is fueled by his new job position being affected by this loan being owed to a fired employee. This anger perpetuates into her fitness to be a mother, ‘I shall not allow you to bring up the children; I dare not trust them to you.’ (pg. 76) However, when he is relieved of his distress by the good news that his reputation will not be affected, he does a full 360°, changing his perspective based on his well-being. He cherishes Nora for her decisions and “forgives” her all of a sudden.
This complete shift in his emotion solidifies his characterization as selfish and self-centered. Nora’s dishonesty is much better accepted when Helmer’s true priorities are revealed. Finally, Nora’s story blossoms as a result of her lie. As she uncovered Helmer’s true colors, she was able to see that she is capable of being independent and making decisions for herself, even tho she has always been discouraged from doing so. She no longer has to keep things from others just because they don’t value her ability to be independent. She decides to leave her family and explore herself as an individual, not to be controlled by anyone, especially those who are not accepting of her instincts, forcing her to be dishonest. As she is reminded of her duties to her family, she tells Helmer, ‘I have other duties just as sacred. […] Duties to myself.’ (pg. 81) This concludes the consequences of her lie, a positive awakening of her self-worth. Although this deception was morally controversial, her life needed to have a new meaning.
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