p. 548, Col. A). In this scene, Nora comes to the first of many realizations in Act 2 - there is no easy or delicate way to handle this situation. In the context of the entire act, this is important, because it leads to the inevitable conclusion that Nora will eventually have to confront Torvald.
The second scene begins with Mrs. Linde entering from the hall (pg. 548, Col. B) and ends with her saying, "But I shan't leave this house until we've talked this matter out" (pg. 549, Col. B). I believe that the dramatic action of this scene is to firmly establish Nora's naivete, the naivete that she's clearly attempting to cling to as best she can. She wants to act and play - to be Torvald's little songbird. She desperately wants things to stay the same. The tarantella that is mentioned at the beginning of the scene represents a last-ditch effort to maintain this fragile facade of a marriage that she and Torvald have created, this superficially perfect construct. When asked about the tarantella, she says, "Torvald wants me to go," and also "Torvald says I should" (p. 548, Col. B.) She still wants to be that carefree pet that she's always been, deferring responsibility for all things good and bad to her husband. Another important example of Nora's naivete is the discovery that Dr. Rank may in fact see her in a romantic light. The fact that Christine, her older and more experienced friend, points out this possibility helps drive home just how inexperienced and naive Nora is.
Scene three begins as Helmer enters from the hallway (p. 549, Col. B) and ends with Nora whispering, "Anything, I don&
...