The play A Doll House by Henrik Isben is a perfect example of women's problems in the nineteenth century. Women were thought to be the housewives in the home, doing the cooking, cleaning, and caring for their children while the husband went to work to support his family. However, women during this time wanted to discover who they were and what they could do in the world. In A Doll House, Nora Helmer helps her maid and nanny take care of her children, cook and clean, and also takes care of her sick husband. Nora committed fraud by signing her dead father's name to get money to take her husband on a trip to Italy. Once her husband found out, Nora was forced to decide whether she wanted to stay with her family and follow her husband's rules or go out into the world and be "free." Henrik Isben does not continue the show after Nora leaves. his family. However, there is historical evidence of what happened to the women who followed in Nora's footsteps. A single woman would attract the attention of the community and they would look at her with disapproval and pity (CITE). Furthermore, she would not be able to have children or be with a man because everyone would know that she had abandoned her family; also would not be able to find work anywhere because they were not available for women (CITE). Men could do almost anything to his wife if she ran away. It would be almost impossible to move forward and have a better life without her husband. In a letter written in 1844 by a husband to his wife who left similarly to Nora, the husband wrote that his wife has sinned but he is willing to have her back if she follows all the conditions he set forth (A Nineteenth). This was a common way that husband and wife... middle of paper... would do because while living with her family and dealing with blackmail and debt, Nora was contemplating suicide. Before she goes back to her husband and follows his rules, I think Nora would kill herself. It sounds violent but from how she acted in the play I think that's what would have happened. Works Cited "Letter from a Nineteenth-Century Husband to His Wife." Mayer 1765-67. Print.Ibsen, Henrik. A doll's house. Trans. Rolf Fjelde. Meyer 1709-57. Press. Letters and speeches. Ed. And trad. Evert Sprinhorn. New York: Hill, 1964. 337. Print.Meyer, Michael, ed. Bedford's introduction to literature. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2011. Print. “The Status of Women in Nineteenth-Century England: A Brief Overview by Helena Wojtczak.” History of English women. Np, nd Web. April 28. 2014..