Nora+and+Krogstad

__**Conversation between Nora and Krogstad (173-176):**__

Acting: TJ, Evan

Summary and Purposes of the Conversation: The selected section of the conversation between Nora and Krogstad in Act 1 is the point where Krogstad makes an unexpected visit to Nora’s house. As Krogstad is aware of the secret behind how Nora could acquire money for the journey to Italy, he uses such knowledge as a tool to threaten Nora to influence Torvald and help him secure his position at the Bank. This section’s primary contribution to the play is the revelation of Nora’s forgery of father’s signature, for this is an important action from which the play’s main conflicts like the ones between Nora and Torvald, Nora and Krogstad arise. Not only does this contribute to the overall development of the plot by introducing the source of conflicts, but the conversation also deepens the understanding of Nora and Krogstad by characterizing Nora as naïve yet defiant, Krogstad as ambitious. The conversation is also successful in incorporating the issues of morality and deception as shown through both Nora and Krogstad’s cases. What does the conversation reveal about Nora and Torvald or Kristine or Krogstad?

Krogstad’s visit reveals much about the characters Nora and Krogstad. Firstly, Nora’s secret regarding the source of money with which she arranged the trip to Italy. Nora’s past action of forging her dad’s signature to borrow some money is revealed, while the fact that Krogstad uses his knowledge regarding Nora’s forgery for his benefits, threatening her to help him secure his position at the Bank also provides some insights into Krogstad’s character and personality. In this section of the conversation, whereas Nora is depicted as a caring, naïve housewife, who is willing to do anything for her husband, Krogstad is portrayed as an ambitious individual who is primarily concerned with his own success.

How does the conversation contribute to plot?

This segment of the conversation between Nora and Krogstad reveals the illegal action that Nora committed, which is what the overall plot of the play revolves around. The revelation of Nora’s forgery serves the purpose of introducing a source of both external conflicts she will experience with other characters like Krogstad and her husband and internal conflict she will experience inside. The established conflict between Krogstad and Nora further contributes to the plot development as it will point to Nora’s realization and discovery of her selfhood and eventually lead to her contemplation on the idea of independence.

What motifs and/or themes are addressed in the conversation?

The question regarding moral beliefs and standards is the major underlying theme in this section. During the conversation between Krogstad and Nora, Nora argues against Krogstad’s continuous threat, claiming that there should be a law to protect good-willed actions like the one that Nora committed; she feels that she has done what is right for both her husband and father and fulfilled her responsibility as a wife by saving her husband’s life. However, the issue of morality surfaces as regardless of her motive, the action of forging her father’s signature itself violates the law. Ironically, Krogstad, while bringing up the ethical, moral problem to threaten Nora for his benefits, also engages in a morally questionable action for, after all, what he is doing is threatening someone else. Interestingly, his action of threatening Nora can be justified to a certain degree, if such attempt is to be perceived as a desperate struggle to make living for not only himself, but also for his family.

*Deception is another theme in the conversation as Nora's act of deceiving her husband (regarding the forgery and loan) is mainly discussed in this section.

What is implied by stage directions and speech patterns in the conversation?

Krogstad [taking a step towards her]:  l Approaches to Nora, builds up the tension. <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Signals that something secretive will be unveiled (along with his speech – “I shall have to make things a little clearer to you.”) <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;">Krogstad’s lines with pauses: “Well…” “…father’s signature… and I handed over the money” “But – to get back to the point - …” “But look at this – …” <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Before pointing out significant facts, Krogstad takes a brief pause or break in his speech. <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Pauses further emphasize the tense atmosphere and provide the sense of mystery, perhaps provoke some curiosity before revealing important facts that point to the core of Nora’s secret. <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;">Nora’s significantly shortened lines with noticeably increased number of halts and pause: “Yes, I think so…” “Yes.” <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;">[Nora is silent.] [Nora is still silent.] <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo2; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">As Krogstad takes a more aggressive approach when threatening her and patiently brings up the forgery issue, Nora’s answer becomes increasingly short. Such responses contrast to Nora’s defiant, impetuous speeches she delivered when Krogstad threatened her about telling Torvald about the loan. <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo2; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">However, as the forgery issue is brought up, a clearly noticeable increase in terms of her nervousness, worries, and anxiety is reflected in her short speech patterns with constant pauses. <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo2; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Nora’s silence when Krogstad finally makes his point about the forgery issue underlines her surprise and worries; she feels vulnerable to an extent. <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;">Nora: [throwing her head back and looking defiantly at him] <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">After the period of silence, Nora defiantly speaks against him; her stage action that clearly suggests her defiant stance shows that Nora is not yet completely intimidated by Krogstad’s threat. <span style="display: block; line-height: 14.25pt; margin-left: 40pt; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; mso-para-margin-left: 0gd; text-align: left; text-indent: -20pt;"> l <span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Nora’s perhaps naïve, innocent belief/hope that her action should be capable of being protected under the law is also revealed; at the same time, she is trying to break herself free from her concerns and worries by stubbornly believing and defiantly claiming that her action is justified.