A Doll's House

A Doll's House Summary | Act 1 Part 1 Summary

Nora arrives home from an afternoon of Christmas shopping. As she nibbles on some macaroons and takes off her coat, her husband Torvald calls out to her from his study. She calls back to him, asking him to come in and see what she's bought and then quickly hides the macaroons.

Torvald comes in, and in teasing language that refers to Nora as a little bird, a little squirrel and a "featherbrain," tries to convince her to not spend quite so much money. Nora says now that he's got a good job at the bank, they've got a little more money to spend, and this Christmas can be happier than last year. She shows him all the things she's bought for the children and the servants, but when he asks whether she stopped in at the sweet shop, she lies and says she didn't. She adds that she would never do anything that he doesn't want her to. He then gives her some extra money to meet the extra Christmas expenses, and they talk about how Nora's spending habits are the same as her father's. They make plans for decorating the tree that evening, and Nora asks Torvald whether he invited Dr. Rank to stop by. Torvald tells her that Rank doesn't need inviting because he's so much a part of the family and adds that he'll be there for dinner as usual. They talk again about how wonderful it is to have enough money to make Christmas happy, and Torvald mentions the previous Christmas, when Nora shut herself away and made Christmas gifts, only to have the cat destroy them.

The doorbell rings, and a servant announces two visitors, Mrs. Linde and Dr. Rank. Torvald asks whether Rank has gone straight into his office. When the servant says he has, Torvald goes into his office to meet him. The servant then shows Mrs. Linde in.