At the beginning of the play, he shows his love towards his children, plays with them and buys them toys, thus symbolizing Nora's life , and that she is defined by her children. Most women, including Nora, during her time period were defined by who their family was. Their lives were defined by the children they raised and the husbands they married. At the beginning of the second act, when Anne Marie talks about how she left her daughter, Nora cannot understand how a mother could do something like that. Nora begins the conversation with Anne Marie by asking if her children ask a lot of her. Anne Marie responds by saying that the children are so used to having their mother with them. Then he says a line in the play that triggers Nora throughout the entire play when Nora says that she shouldn't be around her children as often as before. Anne Marie says that children easily get used to anything. This is the statement that Nora begins to reflect on