Ghosts

In the final analysis, the individual can never be free from his/her cultural identity, class, gender, race or ethnic background. Discuss this statement in relation to at least two of these aspects, with detailed reference to at least one text.

Henrik Ibsen, a playwright of social reform, wrote Ghosts in 1881. The play is set in the bourgeois Norwegian society and is primarily about dishonesty, the patriarchy, hypocrisy, and above all to entertain his audience. The play follows the path of a Greek tragedy, all the action is within 24 hours and in the end, there is an area of uncertaincy for nothing is truly concluded. Through Ghosts, Ibsen illustrates that society perpetuates itself by handing down a set of beliefs and customs from one generation to the next. Within the text, the reader can analyse that the individual can never be free from their cultural identity, class or gender. This is shown by the characters of Pastor Manders, Mrs. Alving, Oswald, Regina and Engstrand, who all, however may escape from the boundaries of the past in some aspects, inevitably return to these backgrounds, or are infected from these backgrounds.

Believes he’s holy and good. Pastor Manders is a character in Ghosts that is portrayed to be virt

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uous and noble, through a deeper reading however, it is seen to be that he is, in fact, a hypocritical figure of the church. Comically for the audience, the idea of incest is brought in, for Oswald is in pursuit of Regina. Alving, who was raised as a dutiful girl, was to become a dutiful wife and mother. Alving is a free thinking women, because of the patriarchal society which she lives in, she can never be free from her gender classification. Her mother and Captain Alving slept together, and to hide this fact, she married Engstrand. His character never really changes throughout the entirety of the play, he believes people conform to his stereotypes; he never learns from his mistakes and follows a set of beliefs that was outdated long ago.

Oswald, who is probably the best illustration of how in the final analysis, the individual can never be free from their cultural identity, class, or gender. This again illustrates that one who is entrapped within a gender construction and a class construction; they are doomed to never be truly free from these backgrounds. Regina and Engstrand, due to their class are unable to progress, except in the construction of the brothel in the name of Captain Alving. She lives in a society where men express themselves confidently and aggressively, and she only truly exists in her own individuality after the catastrophe of her son inheriting the disease. Throughout Ghosts it is continually shown that Pastor Manders is never free from his identity.

Manders is a man who is very subject to public opinion, and throughout Ghosts this is illustrated, showing that with this continual need to be liked, he will never be free from his cultural identity.

Approximate Word count = 1563
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

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