Individual vs society theme in Hedda Gabler

Zainab
Akram
Introduction

CO
Heda gabler

NT
Theme (individual vs

ENT
society)

S
Conclusion
HenrikJohan Ibsen:
Introduction

1
 HenrikJohan Ibsen:

TheFatherofModernDrama Henrik Johan Ibsen was a

Norwegian dramatist born in 1826 and dying in 1906.
During his life time, he was influential in the creation of
a new type of realism in drama. He is considered to be
the father of modern drama, as a result. He was also a
leader in Scandinavian society, and his plays
challenged the values of the middle class society that he
lived in.
 Hedda Gabler

Hedda Gabler is a play first published in 1890 by

Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The play premiered
in 1891 in Germany to negative reviews, but has
subsequently gained recognition as a classic of realism,
nineteenth century theatre and world drama. A 1902
production was a major sensation on Broadway starring
Minnie Maddern Fiske, and following its initial limited
run was revived with the actress the following year.
 Theme

Individual vs society
:
The theme of the play can be described as the conflict
between society and the individual. Hedda Gabler
concentrates on the destructive efforts of an unfulfilled,
frustrated woman. Hedda lives in a state of perpetual
boredom because she dare not risk a fight with society
about what is conventional and what is not.
Cont......
 Cont..........
Since she needs to marry in order to gain economic security, she seeks out
Tesman, who is delighted to marry a woman of such character and social
standing. At the same time that she marries Tesman because he is safe,
she is very frustrated in her marriage. She considers Tesman and his
research boring. She refers to him in a very derogatory manner as a
"specialist" for he is very unimaginative and does not understand her
psychological and emotional needs. She is rude to Aunt Julia because the
latter is not only from a lower class than Hedda but she is represents a
type of woman who is reprehensible to Hedda, someone who had
dedicated her life for others - Tesman, Rina and other invalids - instead of
giving a free reign to her own instincts.
Hedda rebels against the prospect of bearing Tesman a child
because this is what society dictates should be the natural destiny
of a married woman. To amuse herself under these circumstances,
she forms an underhand alliance with Brack, who understands
how trapped and unhappy she is. Yet he eventually exploits that
position to his own advantage Brack represents the hypocrisy in a
society that denies women their freedom but allows men to
choose their pleasures where they will.
 Conclusion

Being a woman, Hedda cannot rebel like Lövborg. She is so

conditioned to conform to societal norms that it results in her
acute fear of scandal. By destroying the manuscript she has
had no share in, she kills what could have been her and
Lövborg's child rather than his and Mrs. Elvsted's. The pistols,
too, represent her hidden rebellion against her limited role as a
woman in this society. With them she hopes to destroy all
those dead social forms prevent her from being free. Pregnant
with Tesman's child, a man whom she has never loved
 Cont......

Hedda has become an example of society's

humiliating concept of womanhood. Her suicide
thus becomes a rebellion against what society
deems her to be. With Brack's inexorable hold
over her and deprived of freedom, Hedda takes
the only choice possible. She commits a valiant
suicide in order to satisfy her "crowing for life."
This play is thus a powerful protest against
double standards enforced in society.
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