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How does A Doll’s House fit onto Freytag’s Pyramid? List the point of entry, stasis, inciting incident, at least 3 “rising action” events leading to the climax, the climax, the falling action, and the new stasis.

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Answer:

A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen can be mapped onto Freytag’s Pyramid as follows:

Point of entry: The Helmer household seems to be a happy and stable place. Nora Helmer is a loving wife and mother, and her husband Torvald has recently been promoted to a high position at the bank.

Stasis: Nora is hiding a secret from her husband - she has borrowed money to pay for his medical treatment and forged her father’s signature on the loan document. She is constantly worried that the truth will be revealed.

Inciting incident: Krogstad, the man who gave Nora the loan, blackmails her, threatening to reveal her secret to her husband.

Rising action:

Nora tries to convince her husband to keep Krogstad at the bank and not fire him.

Krogstad writes a letter to Torvald revealing Nora’s secret.

Torvald is furious when he reads the letter and berates Nora for her actions.

Climax: Nora realizes that Torvald cares more about his reputation than her wellbeing, and decides to leave him and their children to pursue her own happiness and self-fulfillment.

Falling action: Torvald tries to stop Nora from leaving and begs her to stay. Krogstad returns the forged document to Nora, realizing that she has repaid the loan and therefore has no power over her anymore.

New stasis: Nora walks out of the door, leaving Torvald and the children behind. The play ends with Nora’s future unknown.

Overall, A Doll’s House follows the classic structure of Freytag’s Pyramid, with a clear point of entry, inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, and new stasis.

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