Blanche from A Streetcar Named Desire and Nora from A Doll's House are similar in that neither fully understand the world and how their relationships with men fail to take them seriously. However, they differ in how they respond - Blanche remains in fantasy while Nora chooses reality. They also differ in dependency, with Blanche relying on others while Nora decides she can be independent. Both characters illustrate the theme of the limitations placed on women in society.

1. Kelsey Noah<br />Period 8<br />English 12<br />In a Street Car Named Desire by Tennessee Williams and A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, the characters Blanche and Nora are very similar characters, but they are also different in several ways. The authors show the theme of the limitations of women in society through Blanche and Nora’s similarities in that they both do not completely understand the world and their relationships with men, but the way they differ in their choices whether to remain in a fantasy and their dependency on others.<br />Blanche and Nora are very similar characters because neither of them clearly understand how the world works. Williams shows how little Blanche understands when Stanley asks if Belle Reve “was lost in a mortgage” and Blanche answers “that must have been what happened”, clearly showing that she does not fully know what happened (42). Stanley understanding while Blanche does not shows how different their level of understanding of the world around them is. Similarly, Nora also has little comprehension of how things work as can be seen when Kregstad ask her if she knows that admitting to the forgery is a “dangerous confession”, and she asks “In what way?” (Ibsen 23). She does not realize how serious her situation is because she knows very little about how things work, even admitting “I don’t know much about law” (Ibsen 24). Both Nora and Blanche have minimal knowledge of laws and how things work, and the theme can be seen though this because they are both limited by their lack of understanding.<br />Another similarity that can be seen in Blanche and Nora is in their relationship with men. When Blanche is talking to Mitch she tells him “I don’t want realism. I want magic” (Williams 54). Most of the time Blanche spends with men is fun, and nothing serious. This can be seen when Blanche says to Mitch, “We are going to pretend that we are sitting in a little artist’s café on the left bank of Paris”, which shows that there is no serious conversation (Williams 88). Nora has a similar situation with her husband. When she is asking Helmer for Kregstand to keep his job, she says, “Your squirrel would run about and do all her tricks for you” (Ibsen 51). Ibsen is showing that Nora’s relationship with Helmer does not really take her seriously. The relationships Nora and Blanche have with men can be a severe limitation because they are not taken seriously. <br />Despite their similarities their differences begin to show when by the end of the play Blanche is still living in a fantasy while Nora chooses reality. Blanche tells her sister, Stella, “If any one calls while I’m bathing take the number and tell them I’ll call right back”, which is something she has been doing throughout the play (Williams 132). Blanche is still living in a fantasy, waiting for someone to call her even though no one ever does. She keeps waiting for something and never realizes that it will not happen, because, in her mind, it will. The opposite can be seen in Nora because at the end of the play she realizes Helmer has \"
never understood me. I have been greatly wronged Torvald” (Ibsen 66). She is a dynamic character and realizes that things are not the way she thought they were, and is willing to accept it. Even though they are different, both characters show the theme through their choice about accepting reality. By Blanche remaining in a fantasy, Williams shows how limited women are and the effect it can have on them, but Ibsen shows, through Nora, how women's understanding of the world should be compared to how it is.<br />Blanche and Nora are also different in their dependency on others. Blanche is very dependent on others, which is shown when she says “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers” (Williams 142). Blanche feels she cannot do things on her own and relies on others quite a bit. She needs men or even her sister to do what needs to be done. In contrast, Nora tells Helmer that she “can receive nothing from a stranger” (Ibsen 71). She feels that she must do things herself if she is to understand things better. Nora wants to understand how the world works, and she realizes that no one else can do it for her. Their differences also show the theme of the limitations of women. Because of the limitations that society places on Blanche, she does not know how to do things for herself and feels she must rely on others to help her. Nora however, changes and decides she can be independent, which again is Ibsen showing what is wrong with the way women are very limited.<br />Blanche and Nora’s similarities and differences show very clearly the limitations of women, and the way things should be compared to the way they are. Ibsen and Williams are very successful in getting the theme across to the readers, even though they do it in different ways. Both of the plays show how the limitations of society can have a strong effect on women.<br />