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Chapter – IV
Introduction
Both Ibsen and Tendulkar have taken up contemporary social issues for discussion
in their plays. Ibsen’s plays feature modern heroines like Nora and Hedda Gabler who
are the product of their times; same could be said of Miss.Leela Benare and Champa.
The plays chosen for study reveal the social vision of both playwrights.
In Tendulkar’s plays, generally, women are at the centre. It is around women that
most of the action revolves. The roles Tendulkar’s female protagonists play eclipse those
played by the men figuring in them. It is Leela Benare in Silence! The Court is in Session
and Sarita in Kamala who play the leading roles in these plays which present a world
apparently dominated by male chauvinists. Both Leela Banare and Sarita are educated
and efficient and refuse to be cowed down by men. Tendulkar treats his women
characters with understanding and compassion, while pitting them against men who are
selfish, hypocritical and brutally ambitious. So, these plays can justifiably be defined as
gyno-centric.
the heroines of Shakespear’s romantic comedies, as some critics have already observed.
She is conscientious in her work and commands the love and respect of all her pupils. She
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is also an enlightened activist, being a member of the amateur theatre group called “The
members of this amateur theatre are the Kashikars, Balu Rokde, Sukhatme, Ponkshe,
Karnik, Professor Damle and Rawte, who all belong to the urban middle class of
Bombay. Mr. Kashikar is the chairman of the association while Mrs.Kashikar is a house
wife who follows her husband like a meek shadow. Balu Rokde is a college student
whose education is taken care of by the childless Kashikars. Sukhatme is a lawyer and
Ponkshe is a clerk in the Central Telegraph Office. Karnik is an actor in the experimental
who plays a key-role in the action of the play, though not physically present.
Leela Benare and Samant, an innocent villagers, are the first to arrive at the
village hall where the artistes from Bombay are to hold a “’Mock Law Court’. When
Benare hurts her finger, mishandling the door bolt, Samant, looking at her bleeding
finger, tells her how he also had hurt his finger once in the same way. Benare feels light-
hearted and gay in Samant’s company. She springs a surprise on the rustice Samant with a
somewhere far, far, away – with you!” in utter “confusion” the shocked Samant exclaims
“With me?”(S.C.S.55).
Benare tries to make sexual overture to Samant, she takes every opportunity to get
closer to him as she enjoys his psysical proximity. Samant has no reason to suspect her.
Meanwhile, she talks to Samant of her career as a teacher, saying her pupils are “so much
better than adults” (S.C.S.56). When she makes this observation, she has Professor Damle
in her mind and the audience realizes this fact in the course of the play. Samant’s total
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indifference to her maneuvers and his complete innocence leaves Benare with no option
but to accept him as good company till the arrival of the rest of the troupe.
They will do anything for her; for she would give “the last drop” (S.C.S.58).
Benare loves her profession very much, and likes to teach students until die. Her fellow
teachers, and even the management, are extremely jealous of her. Samant becomes
“embarrassed” when Benare, after telling him that the management is holding an enquiry
against her “just because of one bit of slander” (S.C.S.58), ignoring the fact that she is in
the presence of a stranger, who is in no way connected with her present plight, bursts out,
placing her hand on her swelling stomach and continuing her tirade:
I’ve hurt anybody, it’s been myself. But is that any kind of reason
for throwing me out? Who are these people to say what I can or
Gradually, Benare regains her poise and tells Samant, who asks her if she is not
feeling well, that nothing is the matter with her, and, to convince him of her fine health,
sings, with a sudden burst of energy, an English song to herself. Benare begins to provide
Samant with additional informantion about her co-actors. For instance, she sarcasticaslly
that the childless Kashikars have adopted Balu Rockde in order to escape their boredom
in life, and in the process, have made a slave of the poor fellow:
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teacher, and highly sarcastic comments on most of the members of the theatre troupe to
which she belongs, missing only the significance of the nuances of her jobs at her co-
actors. To him, it is all great fun. When Sukhatme, Ponkshe and Balu Rokde arrive,
prepared to be at their back and call, doing menial jobs for them, like buying tea,
cigarettes, beedies and pan-masalas. He is totally oblivious of the fact that these city-
wallahs, except Benare, treat him with contempt because of his rustic background.
Arrangements are being made to stage a ‘mock-trial’. Benare goes into the inner
room to wash her face, all the while, humming to herself, Karnik takes Ponkshe aside
and, indicating the inner room into which Benare has just gone, tells him if he knows
anything about her” “About Her, About Miss.Benare, Rokde told me.”. Ponkshe, too,
says: “I’ve got something to tell you, too, About Miss Benare” (S.C.S.72). This aside
suggestion, they all decide to frame Benare as ‘the accused in the ‘mock-trail’.
Ponkshe calls everyone around him and almost in a conspiratorial tone “whispers
some plan to them, gesticulating” (S.C.S.73), all of them arrange the furniture as in a
court, with Ponkshe taking the lead. The furniture arrangement having been completed,
Ponkshe and Kashikar stand by the door of the inner room, while the others go into the
wings at the left. Now Benare comes out singing. She looks very fresh. She puts away her
Ponkshe, coming from the door way of the inner room, and standing before
Benare on the dais, starts her saying: “Miss Leela Benare, you have been arrested on
suspicion of a crime of an extremely grave nature and brought as a prisoner before the bar
of this court” (S.C.S.74). At this, Benare stiffens, while Karnik and Rokde arrange a
wooden dock around her. Benare is suddenly felt sad and seriously accused of a grave
crime, and Kashikar, the judge of the ‘Mock Law Court’, asks Benare: “Prisoner Miss
Benare, under section No.302 of the Indian Penal Code you are accused of the crime of
infanticide. Are you guilty or not guilty of the aforementioned crime?” (S.C.S.74)
On hearing this sudden charge, Benare is stunned, and the entire atmosphere
becomes extraordinarly somber and tense. Ironically enough, this is so-called illusive
‘mock-trial’, ‘the play-within-the-play’, slowly but steadily, grows into a serious affair,
with the promise of some enormously sadistic kind of pleasure to Sukhatme, Ponkshe,
Balu Rokde and Mrs.Kashikar, as the audience are to realize later in the course of the
play.
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repeating his question as to whether or not Benare is guilty of the crime of infanticide,
Benare stands numb holding on to a chair for support. However, Samant’s entry lightens
the atmosphere a little, for he offers them cigarettes, beedis and panmasalas. There ensues
a pan-spitting context. Tendulkar introduces this comic interlude in his play in order to
help Benare regain her usual sense of gay abandon and confidence. Benare quickly
recovers her poise when Sukhatme enquires of her” “Why are you so grave all of a
sudden? After all, it’s a game. Just a game, that’s all. Why are you serious?” (S.C.S.75). It
is now that the ‘mock-trial’ begins. To start with, Sukhatme asks Ponkshe a few questions
about the accused Benare’s private life and her general behaviour in public:
This leads Sukhatme to seek information from Ponkshe about Benare’s moral
conduct. He triumphs in making Ponkshe admit that Benare is a woman who “runs after
men too much” (S.C.S..81). Further, Karnik, the next witness, is persuaded to confess the
Rokde is called as a witness. With his innate fear, Rokde feels utterly afraid and
hence, is close to tears. But Mrs.Kashikar persuades him to give “a marvelous, unbroken
bit of evidence” (S.C.S.85) against Benare. Despite all this, Rokde is speechless, and
when goaded again and again by Sukhatme, with great difficulty, he says: “I saw – shall!”
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(S.C.S. 86). Benare has been taunting Rokde all along and her words, “Speak, Balu, speak
A-B-C”. (S.C.S.86) Infuriate him and, wiping away the sweat on his forehead, he tells
Sukhatme that he saw Benare in Professor Damle’s hostel room, after disclosing this vital
bit of information. Rokde, looking at Benare, says vengefully: “Now laugh!” (S.C.S.86)
Benare has already stiffened considerably and Karnik signals to Ponkshe to observe this
dramatic change in Benare. Thus Benare leads herself in trouble, much to the perverse
Benare comes to the stage, takes her bag and purse, and goes to the door to open
it. She finds the door locked from outside. At this point, namely the end of act II, a
claustrophoubic atmosphere is deftly built up by the playwright. The door can be opened,
as Samant says, only when the villagers come to see the real ‘Mock-Law court’, the real
performance of the night which is to take place after some time. Again the door-bolt has
slid itself shut because of Benare’s mishandling of it, for Samant says. “Madam, when
you pulled the bolt you did it the wrong way. You should have pulled it back fully”
(S.C.S.95). Thus, Benare finds herself trapped with none coming forward to help her. The
trial, as Kashikar says, has to go on in this manner, for they have to while away the time,
till the arrival of the villagers. Thus, Act II comes to a close with Sukhatme praying to
Kashikar, the ‘mock-judge’, to allow him to call Benare, the accused, to the witness-box.
Ignoring Kashikar’s call, Benare remains rooted to where she stands. This results
in Mrs.Kashikar dragging Benare, ‘softly’ suggests to her. “why not get it over with Miss
Benare? It’s all a game” (S.C.S.97). Karnik asks Sukhatme to “fire away” (S.C.S.97) his
questions at Benare Sukhame, walking around in front of Benare for a while, suddenly
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points a finger at her and says. “Your name is Leela Damle.” (S.C.S.97). Samant at once
corrects Sukhatme saying: “No, no, Benare. Damle is the Professor” (S.C.S.97). Benare
does not answer any of Sukhatme’s questions and whenever he approaches her, she
Karnik tells the court that it was not Balu who slapped Benare but Benare who
slapped Balu. He also says, describing the conversation between Balu Rokde and Benare
that Benare did propose to Balu Rokde. Another piece of vital information that he tells
Kashikar, the mock-judge, is Benare’s unsuccessful attempt at suicide when she happened
to fall in love with her own maternal uncle. Kashikar listens to Karnik intently and at the
end, observes with respect to Banare’s immoral behaviour: “… just one step away from
the very history of court proceedings. He tells Sukhatme, the lawyer for prosecution, that
the Chairman of Benare’s school, Nanasahib Shinde, has already decided to dismiss her
from service. This shocks Benare who realizes suddenly that she is going to lose her job
the very next day. In sheer despair, she tries to swallow the TIK – 20 that she keeps in her
bag. Karnik dashes forward and pushes it away beyond her. The light is now focused on
focused on Benare, who remains motionless. The whole court freezes in the position and
Benare stands up erect and says: Yes, I have lot to say (S.C.S.116).
How new, how wonderful every moment is! Even you seem newto
yourself. The sky, birds, clouds ….. even the strong smell of medicines in
a hospital, even that seems full to bursting with life. Life seems to sing for
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you! There’s great joy in a suicide that’sfailed. It’s greater than the pain of
living. (S.C.S.116)
Leela Benare, in her monologue, accuses all men as ‘hypocrites’ whose only
interest is in her body and not in her bleeding heart or agonized mind. Commenting on
These are the moral remains of some cultured men of the twentieth
century. See their faces-how ferocious they look! Their lips are full of
lovely worn-out phrase! And their bellies are full of unsatisfied desires.
(S.C.S.117).
Finally, Benare ends up confessing that she is afraid of them all. She admits
further the fact that she committed a sin once in falling in love with her maternal uncle as
a teen-aged girl, though, she had enough sense even at that stage to ask him to marry her.
On the other hand, she was sad to learn that the man was a pervert and he had his eyes
only on her newly-blossomed beauty. At the end, confronted with, her demand to marry
her uncle “turned tail and ran” (S.C.S.117). This incident hurt her mind so much that, she
tried to commit suicide by throwing herself off a parapet of her house yet she would not
die.
Leela Benare confesses that as a grown-up woman, she fell in love again. This
time it was an intelligent love, she fell in love, she thought. However, Professor Damale,
the unusual intellect” exploited her hero-worship and, when she offered to him her own
body on the altar of her worship, “my intellectual god took the offering and went his
He wasn’t a god. He was a man. For whom everything was of the body, for
In short, all her bitter experiences have taught Benare that it is her body that has
brought about her current sad plight. Nevertheless, much as she may hate her body she
would not totally reject it. Her agony finds expression in the depiction of the conflict
within:
body-and I hate it-but-it’s all you have, in the end, isn’t it? …
and where will you go if you reject it? … It was your body
near to heaven! … It took you high, high, high above yourself into a
place like paradise. And now it carries within it the witness of that
little life-my son –my whole existence! I want my body now for
She asserts in pain and anxiety that here is a selfless mother’s quest, founded on
her would be son’s most essential needs.The boy must have a mother, a father, a house
and a good reputation in society. Kashikar, the judge of the ‘mock trial’, now declares
that her time is up, and prepares himself to give the verdict. He tells her that she has tried
motherhood, and hence, deserves no mercy. Moreover, as a teacher, she has set a very bad
example, by daring to conceive a child out of wedlock. Therefore, the sentence meted out
to her by him is that she must destroy the foetus in her womb.The play is a satire on the
concerned only with a farcial moral code. It is Benare fear of such a code that makes her
crave for marriage and forces her to beg the inferior men around one after another to
marry her in order to play the role of a father to her child. Benare’s final collapse is
unexpected and it leaves the audience with the feelings of pity and horror.
The theme of Tendulkar’s Kamala a two act play is flesh trade and how well-
known young journalist like Jaisingh Jadhav seeks to capitalize on it in order to further
succeed in their careers in the least for the victims of this trade in a democratic country
like India. The play offers Vijay Tendulkar enough scope to scoff at the kind of trendy
journalism practiced by Jadhav and also to strike a contrast between the journalism in the
vernacular and that in English. Tendulkar uses the play also to dwell on the characteristic
suffering of the Indian middle class women perpetrated by selfish, malicious, secretive
favourite themes, is also deftly touched upon in the complex relationship between Jadhav
Sarita emerging from being a docile wife to an assertive, mature woman in the end.
published by an unscrupulous press baron. Sarita is his wife. She is well-educated and
hails from a village called Phaltan. They live in a small bungalow in a fashionable locality
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around New Delhi in the neighbourhood of Neeti Bagh. Kamalabai is Sarita’s servant-
woman and she, too, hails from phaltan. Though highly educated, Sarita lets herself be
reduced to the status of a slavish, docile wife. Kakasaheb is Sarita’s uncle and, he is
currently in Delhi in order to procure his quota of newsprint with Jadhav’s help. Born in
an aristocratic family, Kakasaheb runs a paper in the vernacular. He lives a simple life on
Gandhian principles.
Hectic phone calls form a recurrent ‘motif’ throughout the play. Act I of Kamala
begins with Kakasaheb speaking on the phone. In the dialogue that follows between
Kakasaheb and Sarita, Sarita has to make a note of all the incoming calls and any failure
domestic discord.When Kakasaheb asks her why she wants the name of the caller to
whom he has just been talking, Sarita replies: “I have to write down each phone call”.
(K.3). The phone rings at such regular intervals that Kakasaheb suggests to Sarita. “Why
don’t you make Kamalabai sit by the phone?” (K.4). That Jadhav does not tell her any
thing about his frequent outings become obvious when Sarita says” “He’s gone out of
town somewhere.”(K.4)
After sometime, Sarita receives the message that Jadhav is returning to Delhi from
the newspaper office. Receiving this message, Sarita goes about busily making all
arrangements for a warm reception for him. As a wife, she is extremely sensitive to her
husband’s needs and tastes, quite eager to pamper to his own whims and fancies. She
spreads some mangoes and cauliflower on a plate and keep Jadhav’s beer ready. Sarita,
thus, attends to her husband’s needs with an alacrity that makes wonder how she, an
educated girl, rich enough not to depend on any one, could be so slave to her husband.
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Kakasaheb rightly observes: “you may be highly educated, Sarita, but you
husband, Kakasaheb and his friends like Jain, have nothing good to say about him.For
Hi, Bhabhiji, I mean, an English ‘h’ to him, and a Marathi ‘hai’ to you.
Sarita is indeed a “lovely bonded labourer”, taking note of all phone calls,
attending to all Jadhav’s physical needs and running about in the house carrying out all
his presumptuous instruction.Sarita is shocked to hear from Jadhav that he has bought
Kamala for two hundred and fifty rupees in the Luhardaga bazaar in Bihar. Noticing
Sarita’s reaction, he adds: “They sell human beings at this bazaar… They have an open
He goes on to add: “The men who want to bid the women have to inspect them…
How they feel in the breast, in their waist, in their thighs and …” (K.14). Outraged, Sarita
asks him to stop. Jadhav warns her strictly not to tell any one that he is going to exhibit
newspapermen tell lies. He hopes: “there’ll be high drama at today’s press conference.
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It’ll create an up roar!” (K.15). When Sarita asks him if she can ask Kamala to bathe and
then give a fresh sari to wear, Jadhav shouts at her: “No! He adds just let this evening’s
As the time for the Press Conference draws near, Jadhav calls Kamala to him and
KAMALA: Oh: I’ll see Bombay! They say it’s a very big city (K.19)
Kamala is so ignorant and illiterate that she does not even know that she is in
Delhi and not in Bombay. Jadhav tells her that she is going to take her to a place where
‘big feasts’ take place and that the people there “will want to meet” her. Kamala,
however, tells Jadhav that she cannot go with him in her rags. Jadhav, hardening his
expression and voice, tells her: “You will ‘have’ to come, Kamala. Finally, Kamala
Before Jadhav goes out with Kamala to the Press conference, Kakasaheb makes
an attempt to persuade Jadhav to see the danger that he is landing himself in. Jadhav tells
him that someone should take up the cause of the common man and so, He is doing it.
Kakasheb ironically asks Jadhav what he hopes to gain from the reports that he writes in
English which will certainly not be read by the common man whose cause Jadhav is
fighting for. Here, Tendulkar, highlsights the contrast between journalism in the
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vernacular and that in English to drive home the fact that it is the dailies in the vernacular
To the surprise of Jadhav, Kakasaheb argues that none can effect any meaningful
social or political change in India through English dailies, as they reach only a very small
…This new journalism of yours- if money- making is not the object of it-
of it. ‘Arre’, write the people’s language first, speak it. Then try and teach
them. (K.24)
Seeing the change that comes over him, Kakasaheb apologizes profusely: “Arre Baba’. I
apologize, Is that all right? Seeing I’m a journalist born and bred, I’ll apologize, as often
much to Sarita’s relief. Act I ends in Jadhav’s taking Kamala to the Press Conference.
Act II of Kamala opens with Jadhav celebrating his success at the Press
Conference with his friend Jain. Both Jadhav and Jain are dead drunk. Kakasaheb
watches them in silent amusement. However, very soon, he gets so disgusted with the
friends, narration of what happened at the Press Conference that he exclaims: “this is your
press conference!” (K.29). The two friends, nonetheless, continue their drunken revelry.
They say that they had great fun at the press conference.
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Sarita asks them: “So while they were asking her those terrible questions, and
making fun of her- you just sat and watched, did you?” (K.30). Jadhav, rather drunk, says:
“I didn’t hold this press conference for my own benefit. It was to drag this criminal sale
of human beings into the light of day” (K.31). At once Kakasaheb tells him: “and you
observation and asks him to apologize, which he does at once.Yet; the success Jadhav has
been proud of is punctured by both Sarita and Kakasaheb. Jain now takes leave of them
and Kakasaheb goes into his room. This leaves Jadhav and Sarita alone. Jadhav wants to
go to the bed room at once with Sarita. Sarita reples his advances towards her which
“…Don’t I have the right to have my wife when feel like it? Don’t I? I’m
hungry for that to- I’ve been hungry for six days. Is it a crime to ask for it?
Sarita, trying to control her aversion, goes to the kitchen, and Jadhav goes upstairs
drunk, emerged and dejected. Like Kamala, Sarita too function as a mere pawn in
Jadhav’s game of chess. However, she becomes aware of her real condition only when
she converses with Kamala who asks her what price Jadhav has paid for her. To quote
Kamala’s question opens Sarita’s eyes suddenly and, for the first time, she finds
no difference between herself and Kamala whom her husband has bought to exhibit at the
press conference. She coolly tells Kamala that Jadhav bought her for seven hundred
rupees. Only women understand the problems of women, a fact that emerges from the
frank and unreserved conversation between Sarita and Kamala. Kamala, though naïve,
ignorant and illiterate, sympathizes with Sarita over her barrenness: “…If you pay seven
hundered and they bare no children…” (K.34). Sarita asks her how many as you want”
(K.34). Kamala, thus, expresses her readiness to bear Jadhav’s children to make the house
a pleasant place to live in. In a rather long dialogue Kamala tells Sarita,
Memsaheb, if you won’t misunderstand, I’ll tell you. The master bought you; he
bought me, too… So, Memsahib, both of us must stay here like sisters. We’ll keep the
master happy…The master will have children. I’ll do the hard work, and I’ll bring forth
the children. I’ll bring them up. You keep the accounts and run the house…fifteen days of
the month, you sleep with the master, the other, fifteen, I’ll sleep with him agreed?
It is now that Sarita’s eyes open and the she realizes, at least, that in her husband’s
scheme of things, there is not much difference between herself and Kamala. That Jadhav
has been using her as a mere object to satisfy his own carnal desires, and as an object to
parade his own status in the capacity of his wife at parties, is suddenly recognized by
Sarita.On his return from the ‘Nari Niketan’, Jadhav asks his wife to go with him to a
party. Sarita, defiant now, tells him that she does not want to accompany him there:
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Jadhav, surprised and dejected, leaves alone for the party. Kakasaheb, who has been away
to the city, now comes in, and sees Sarita sitting, rather depressed, on the sofa. To quote
one.
Here Sarita refers to Jadhav, her husband, by the term ‘gentleman’ underlining the
fact that he has become a stanger in her life. Sarita is here compared with Nora in Ibsen’s
A Doll’s House, has, thus, undergone a sea change, and now is entirely an independent
and assertive woman who has finally discovered her real identity. Now Sarita tells
Kakasaheb that she is going to convene a Press Conference at which she intends to
declare before the whole world, the real state of affairs at home:
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I am going to present a man who in the year 1982 still keeps a slave, right
advocate of freedom. And he brings home a slave and exploits her… listen
to the story of how he bought the slave Kamala and made use of her. Th
other slave he got free – not just free - the slave’s father selled out the
When Kakasaheb asks her why she suddenly begins to think thus in strange terms, Sarita
says:
everything… I saw that the man I though my partner was the master of a
slave. I have no right at all in this house… slaves don’t have rights, It is
true Kakasaheb makes some feeble attempts to mollify her, but all his
Why can’t men limp behind? Why aren’t women ever the masters? Why
can’t a woman at least ask to live her life the same way as a man? Why
must only a man have the right to be a man? Does he have one extra
Jain, Jadhav’s friend, now comes in to inform Sarita and Kakasaheb the shocking
news that Sheth Singhania, the unscrupulous press baron, who is hand in glove with the
flesh trade at the Press Conference. Jain says: “There have been pressures on the
proprietor. I learnt that some very big people are involved in this flesh market.” (K.48).
Sarita, at once, asks Jadhav over the phone to come back from the party.
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Jadhav returns and asks Sarita why she has called him away from the party.
Sarita’s reply is soaked in irony: “Your owner is pleased with you and he’s decided to
relieve you from your job.” (K.49). Jadhav is shocked to hear the news and he curses his
boss and then goes on drinking. And then he suddenly flares up and then goes on banging
his fist on the table, bursting out: “The bastard! Do you hear me? He is a bastard. That
Sheth Singhania! I’ll teach him a lesson” (K.50). Little by little his voice weakens, is
control over his limbs gradually decreases, and finaly, he collapses on to the sofa.
Kakasaheb tells Sarita: “This is the mistake men make. That manhood makes. Do
you understand me?” (K.51) Sarita tells him that she understands him. Nevertheless, she
is not ready to change her opinion about marriage and husband- wife relationship. She
says,
I’ ll go on feeling it. But at present I’m going to lock all that up in a corner
of my mind and forget about it. But a day will come, Kakasaheb, when I
away. I’ll do what I wish, and no one will rule over me. That day has to
come. And I’ll pay whatever price I have to pay for it. (K.52).
Benare in Silence!The Court is in Session and Sarita in Kamala are playing roles
which anger, mystify their male counterparts. In fact, these two plays are Tendulkar’s
attempts at delineating women, who, inspite of their supposed inferior status in Indian
society, reel against all odds and commands the audiences admiration.The principal
action in both the plays revolves around women protagonists. Benare in Silence!The
Court is in Session and Sarita in Kamala stand for the central consciousness in the
respective works of art, beyond any shade of doubt, and, hence, the plays can be rightly
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plays in question bears it out. In these women centered works, feministic ideology, which
puts women in direct encounter with chauvinistic male oppressors, finds its full and free
characters a greater variety and depth – and thus a definite edge, over to their male
counterparts.
masochism, and lust of the middle class male. Sakharam Binder, born in a Brahmin
family, ill-treated by both his father and mother, runs away at 11, fends for himself and at
last finds a job in a press. He is foul-mouthed and rough in manners, but honest. In
marriage, he brings home cast-off women whom, however, he does not keep with him
long. Thus, he spends fourteen years with six women. The play begins when the sixth
woman has left him and when he brings the seventh woman, the typical Indian woman,
Sakharam Binder is very arrogant in his manners. He exposes his ego in order to
escape from his super-ego. He always glorifies of himself as a self-made man who has no
respect even for Gods. In his own words” This Sakharam Binder he’s not scared of God
or God’s father”. (S.B.126) On seeing Laxmi looking for framed God he says,
We’re not saints. We’re men. I tell you, Worship and prayer can’t
satisfy the itch. If you want a thing, well you’ve got to have it:
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All this crude atheistic out bursts of Sakharam Binder, and his own reference to himself
as a ‘terror’ stand in sharp contrast to what he tells the terrified Laxmi a little while later.
me talk? I’ve been like like this right from birth. (S.B.127)
Such recounting of the childhood by Sakharam Binder occurs again and again in
the play. One cannot escape the feeling that but for an unpleasant childhood he would
have been a true Brahmin throughout his life. Sakharam loves his mirudanga and chillum
(ganja). He plays on his mirudanga after having his heart’s fill of ganja, and then he falls
into a trance. Strangely enough, this same man, who has the aesthete in him, is still
capable of shocking cruelty towords his women. It is here that Tendulkar let people have
a peep into the inherent lust in men, which brooks no resistance, the insatirable “appetite”
in Sakharam’s words.
…This house is like me… This is not a royal palace. It’s Sakharam
Those above dialogues of Sakharam show how he is deeply rooted in his manliness. He is
…She ‘ll go up to God with her head held high. She’ll say to him,
If I gave anything at all, I gave men joy. They’re born with an itch.
I satisfied them. Big and small ..I treated them all alike. As equals:
O Lord: If anyone has sinned at all, it’s the others. Not me:”( S.B.130)
On the first night itself, while letting her rest, Sakharam warns her that her
religious fasting should stop, for she will need all her strength to serve him. He says,
“Mine is no ordinary appetite (S.B.135). Laxmi though frightened at first, however, soon
learns to adapt herself to her new environment. She discovers that in his heart of hearts
Sakharam, whom she has by now begun to regard as her own husband,is not a bad man,
especially after hearing how he conducted his last woman’s funeral rites.
Sakharam’s friendship with Dawood Miyan causes a minor problem in the house.
Strongly asserting her Hindu religious faith Laxmi does not allow Sakharam to have the
‘aarti’ to Lord Ganapathi perfomed by Dawood too. She gets beaten up, yet she refuses to
give in. Strangely enough, a year’s life with Laxmi brings about some inexplicable
change to Sakharam. But, excess of work and sex make her a scarecrow of a woman. One
day Sakharam explodes and decides to send Laxmi out. In spite of Dawood’s intervention
he does so.
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The arrival of next woman, Champa, turns the tables against him. She is younger
than Laxmi, slightly more plump and better built. She is the wife of a police fouzdar in
chimkhada who has just been sacked for drunken irresponsibility.Sakharam’s lectures to
her in his usual vein to which she responds infatuated by her body. Even Dawood find her
irresistible. It seems that men to Champa are flesh-hungry. No wonder, at the very first
sight of Dawood, she observes, “He’s nice “(S.B.159). This remark not only rouses
Sakharam’s jealousy but also damages his image of himself as a tireless love-maker.
Champa needs drinks to satisfy Sakharam’s itch. Sakharam even shirks his duty
for a few days just to get drunk and extract the maximum out of the drunken and
comes to Sakharam’s residence, fully drunk, begging her to kill him. Sakharam is
shocked to see the way Champa beats him up. He asks her “What kind of a woman are
you?” Look what you’ve done to him: he’s your husband. Haven’t you a heart?( S.B.167).
Here, he seems to forget the fact that he himself has done the same to Laxmi. Dawood
DAWOOD: (in a low voice) Packed him off. My God, she did
relationship. Tendulkar probes deep into man-woman relationship in this play. Sakharam
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falls because of his ‘appetite’, to satisfy which he goes to any extreme. His ill-treatment
of Laxmi, and his helpless slavery to Champa are proofs of this fact. Inwardly, he is a
coward. Though he condemns Gods for his hard life, he has innate faith in them. He tries
to cover up his cowardice, helplessness, and above all, his loneliness behind a mask of
aggressive boastfulness and animal behaviour. Yet, he is aware of his need for
Laxmi return to Sakharam’s house, driven away from her nephew’s house. Her
nephew’s wife has accepted her of stealing. She has none else to turn to. She has already
accepted Sakharam as her husband, as the mangalsutra of pearls she wears signifies.
Sakharam tries to turn her out. He beats her up. Champa intervenes and let her stay, for,
as she tells Sakharam, “….she can help me in the house. Anyway, I can’t cope with the
house and with your….”( S.B.184). The mysterious disappearance of Champa during the
afternoon, rouse, Laxmi’s suspicion. She follows Champa and discovers, to her shock,
that the latter have been having an affair with Dawood. She prays to God for advice. In
I went for his sake. My misfortune. I couldn’t keep the man I married.
was away, I’d worship him in silence every day…if have to die,
let me die on his lap – infull glory like a married women…. Oh,
Laxmi takes pity on Champa’s husband and feeds him. When Champa comes to know of
(stands before her,hands on hips) look here. Don’t double cross me.
don’t leave her mouth) it you act stright,you can stay….( S.B.191)
In scene 5 of act III the conflict between Champa and Sakharam reaches its
climax. Champa refuses to sleep with him. The enraged Sakharam compels her. She tells
him “My body can’t take it, not any more”.( S.B.193). She drives the dart into Sakaram’s
heart when she further adds that she did’t minds it as long as he was a man. There follows
SAKHARAM: Champa-
The enraged Sakharam beats Champa into taking more and more liquor and has
his way.While Champa is asleep; Sakharam comes to Laxmi and orders her to get out.
She tells him that she will go after telling what she has been yearning to tell him. Her
Sakharam. First, he rains blows on Laxmi, and then drives her out. In a blind fury he
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rushes out. He returns quickly, and chokes champa to death. While all this happens, he is
Sakharam shudders at the thought of having murdered Champa. All his strength
leaves him. Laxmi takes over, she urges him to bury Champa in the kitchen. Finding that
Sakharam is too dazed to dig the grave, she summons all her strength and digs away.
Fauzdar Shinde comes and knocks at the door.Laxmi asks Sakharam to keep quiet. The
knocking grows fierce.The play ends here. Are readers to conclude that Laxmi and
Sakharam are to live like husband and wife? Are readers to assume that Fauzdar Shinde
also dies? Tendulkar, as is usual with him, does not hint at anything.
also interested in social work; Jyoti is one of the significant characters in Kanyadaan. She
is the titular heroine of the play because the major concern of the play is Jyoti. It is not
Arun, but the autobiography and the poems of Arun attract her towards him. She loves
Arun and marries him. It is Jyoti who is victimized due to the philosophy of her father.
Jyoti marries Arun because she likes his writings. A girl, who is educated, economically
with an untouchable boy purposely and she is to face her destiny. When beaten by Arun,
Jyoti comes to her father’s house and she decides not to go back to him. But when Arun
comes to take her away, she accompanies him. She is oppressed by her husband in an
inhuman manner but she does not tell anything about it to her parents. She dislikes Nath’s
attending the function and praising Arun’s book. She also cannot understand the Arun’s
“Come and watch Arun at night when he staggers home roaring drunk,if
you have the guts. There is a savage beast in his eyes, his lips, his face…in
from him. In the beginning, like an idiot, I used to search for that Arun
who is above and beyond this beastliness, I used to call out to him, take
both the beast, and the lover. Arun is the demon, and also the poet. Both
are bound together, one within the other, they are one. So closely bound
that at times it is not possible to distinguish the demon from the poet.”
(S.B.82)
Though Jyoti’s marriage turns into a nightmare, the failure of marriage changes
her from a simple, sensitive girl into an assertive, determined lady.She does not give up
the chosen part despite the fact that it is strewn with miseries and sufferings. It is Seva
and Jayaprakash, right from the beginning oppose the marriage of Jyoti with Arun. In the
first meeting itself, Seva and Jayprakash dislike Arun’s behavior, his way of talking and
his actions. Despite the warnings of Seva and Jayaprakash, Jyoti marries Arun. Seva is
the mother who worries about the future of her daughter. She thinks of economic stability
of the person. She makes Nath to attend the function because she is afraid of Arun’s
brutality.
freedom of thought and action becomes the cause of misery, Thus, the play Kanyadaan
depicts the senseless wastage of Jyoti in translating her father’s dream or idealistic values
into reality. She exhibits total apathy or indifference to her mother’s and brothers rational
Prakash 194
arguments and blindly follows her father’s path of idealism. Towards the end of play, her
father also implicitly suggests her to give up the ideals, but she rejects it for she thinks it
cowardly to succumb to circumstances. She leaves her father’s house with a firm decision
never to return and to accept life as it comes to her. Thus, she is willing to rather put up
with a marital life of misery and humiliation than forsake her husband.
Kanyadaan is perhaps the most controversial of all the plays written by Vijay
Tendulkar. It dwells on an extremely sensitive social and political issue namely the
conflict between upper castes and dalits a phenomenon still rampantly prevalent in
several parts of India. Despite fifty years of independence dalits continue to suffer object
misery and ill-treatment at the hands of the upper castes, politicians, instead of trying to
uproot this evil seem to capitalize on it. Tendulkar delves deep into this social evil and
presents it as it is. He raises disturbing questions but never bothers to answer them. This
open his reader –audience’s eyes to a social problem which continues to evade easy
Jyoti in her decision to marry him, Jyoti informs her parents and brother that she
has decided to marry Arun Nath Devlalikar the idealist who dreams of a casteless society
gives her his consent immediately nevertheless as they are used to Nath’s ways they
finally agree Jyoti and Arun get married what follows is a sequence of violence misery
and disillusionment. The play is divided into two acts each of which is further divided
into scenes. Act I has two scenes and Act II has three scenes comparatively speaking it is
a shorter play by Tendulkar yet it is the most gripping of all his plays the evaluation of
Jyoti from a soft-spoken highly cultured brahmin girl into a hardened dalit girls is really
Prakash 195
incredible and distressing one cannot but wonder if such a sacrifice as Jyoti’s is possible
among modern woman the imperceptible transformation occurring in Nath attitude to the
world is also vividly portrayed by the master, Nath the idealist in the end turns into a
disillusioned realist the play therefore is at once a domestic social and political one.
In scene 2, Act I, Jyoti brings Arun to her house to introduce him to her parents
and brother. Arun is dark-complexioned and has a harsh face yet he is good looking on
entering the comfortable middle class house. Arun feels quite nervous and ill at ease he
does not want Jyoti to leave him alone saying “I feel uncomfortable in big houses…”
If you see my father shut you’ll understand ten of us big and small lived in
that eight by ten feet the heat of our bodies to warm us in winter no clothes
on our back no food in our stomach but we feel very safe here these damn
house of the city people they’re like the bellies of sharks and crocodiles
Jyoti finds such talk revolting and covers her face with her hands she begins to
And you thought of marrying me: our life is not the socialists’
service camp. It is hell, and I mean hell. A hell named life. (KN.18)
Seva enters witnessing this scene. She hides her displeasure and asks Arun about
his education, future prospects etc. the moment she hints at a ‘stable career’ Arun bursts
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out saying, “No problem.We shall be brewing illicit liquor” (KN.21). Both Seva and
Jayaprakash are shocked of his reactions; Arun goes on talking in a rather obscene
language about the advantages of brewing illicit liquor. Nath’s entry eases the situation a
….Seva until today, ‘Break the caste system’ was a mere slogam
for us. I’ve attended many intercaste marrige and made speechs but
today I have broken the caste barrier in the real sense my home
After sometime Arun leaves not caring even to touch the tea that Jyoti brings him
on his departure Seva tells her husband that Arun is someone who can fit among them on
Not only is he not a middle class man he is a dalit he has been brought up
in the midst of poverty and hatred these people’s psychological make –up
difficult. (KN.27)
Though Nath speaks in defense of Arun’s vile behaviour he advises Jyoti to think
the matter over but Jyoti says that she does not want to change her mind and that her
decision is final Nath decides to stand by her side. Jyoti gets married to Arun. Scene I of
act II opens to show its readers, Jyoti who has become tired and crushed after a few
months of married life with Arun she comes home with the determination not to return to
Prakash 197
him to her father proposal that both of them could stay in her house she replies in sheer
agony:
All are stunned to hear Jyoti speaking so agitatedly. Nath however is firm on his
resolution not to break the relationship to quote him addressing his wife:
…Seva let not his wonderful experiment fail this dream which is
struggling to turn real let it not crumble into dust before our eyes
Experiment (KN.41)
Jyoti who has been watching all this leaves the house with Arun perhaps to
prevent further embarrassment to her parents and brother. On seeing this, Nath feels
Jyoti I feel so proud of you the training I gave you has not been
this is the moment I’d go down on my knees and pray for you…(KN.45)
This utterance is indicative of the pride and anguish that swell up in his heart. He
wishes against all odds that her daughter would be able to lead a happy domestic life with
Arun. At the same time, it also shows that he is besieged by unknown fears. In scene 2,
Act II , Nath immersed in Arun’s autobiography which has just been published. Seva
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reports to him that Jyoti is pregnant and advised rest by the doctor but she has failed in
her attempts at persuading her to come home. Nath is all praise for his son –in-law who
has shown the world that he is a powerful, creative through his autobiography. Seva
responses,
…The truth is that your dalit son-in-law who can write such a wonderful
his wife to work ..on top of that for entertainment, he wants to kick his
wife in the belly, why not? Doesn’t his wife belong to the high caste? In
this way he is returning all the kicks aimed at generations of his ancestors
by men of high caste. It appears that this is monumental mission he has set
Nath tries his best to convince her affirmating that Arun’s autobiography is a very good
book. But Jyoti continuously to batter him saying that it is all a lie for she knows:
You attended that meeting and made a speech only because you
Jyoti’s words sting Nath. He feels helpless and defenseless. He is pained to see his ideals
crumbling before him. When Nath asks her who will take care of her during delivery
Saying these words, she leaves the house obviously never to return. Nath breaks
down and lies on the sofa a totally defeated idealist. The play ends here. The readers is
left wondering what could be the future of Jyoti and of course her father.Tendulkar delves
deep into this social evil and presents it as it is. He raises disturbing questions but never
bothers to answer them. This method of his truly characteristic of a genuine playwright
whose foremost concern is to open his readers and audience’s eyes to a social problem
Ellida, and Hedda.The theme of captivity also serves as a performance guide for the
person that manipulates the character's mental and emotional senses. The character's inner
captivity reaches a climax where a decision must be made to abolish the chains of
Henrik Ibsen has written many influential plays that have forever changed western
society, dramatic literature, and theatre performance. Henrik Ibsen's notable female
characters continue to illuminate the role of the woman in performance; the female
characters often encounter the issues of incest, hopelessness, unjust laws, unrequited love,
and suicide. The theme of captivity is also prevalent in Ibsen's work, encapsulating the
Prakash 200
female characters in a myriad of bonds. Henrik Ibsen's scripts A Doll's House, The Wild
Duck, and Hedda Gabler, demonstrate the theme of captivity as a literary tool for the
development of the female protagonist and as a performance guide for the portrayal of the
female protagonist.
The theme of captivity as the dominant idea of a literary works, explores the
impair the character's normal judgment and passion forcing the character into mental or
control over a character's interaction with this outside entity (lbsen's female characters are
victims of mental and emotional captivity to objects, attitudes, and people. Captivity can
begin as a voluntary act of submission, but it is not a true form of bondage till the
understanding or belief in self. In Ibsen's work, a second and sometimes third captor also
imprisoned identity forces these characters to make decisions for life or death. The theme
of captivity has several applications in the areas of literature and performance. Through
an understanding of the literary theme of captivity, the reader will be able to more
profoundly connect with the struggles of Ibsen's female protagonists and unite this theme
of non-physical captivity to the realm of human nature. The actor can also benefit from an
increased understanding of the textual theme of captivity in Ibsen's plays, and portray the
character's mental and emotional bondage through a realistic acting style. The literary
begins as a literary tool in the development of the female protagonist through the genius
Ibsen explores this issue in the play A Doll's House through Nora's experience
with a counterfeit loan and the ensuing consequences. Women held a minority status in
nineteenth-century western culture. Ibsen recognized the rights of these unheard and
powerless people groups. And believed the underprivileged should join together to tight
for improvement.
Ibsen grapples with the social problem of poverty in The Wild Duck. The Ekdal
family endures biting poverty that affects living conditions and available food. Ibsen also
recognized the debilitating relationship of poverty and womanhood. A poor woman in the
nineteenth century lacked resources to fashion an agreeable life, and often felt enslaved in
a marriage of convenience. Women of the nineteenth century had narrow possibilities and
were always looking for a way out. Henrik Ibsen's female characters provide a compelling
portrait of the theme of female captivity in society. This theme of captivity, as a tool in
the development of the female protagonist, begins with Ibsen's great interest in what it
means to be a woman.
Ibsen presents women as complex riddles with a deep musing and curiosity. Ibsen
recognized the confusion of portraying women in literature, which was often over-
contrast, Ibsen created characters that transcend the bonds of a mere acting role and
portray humanity. The human beings in Ibsen's plays struggle with many diverse
difficulties, but retain an insatiable fighting desire. Ibsen's female characters are further
Prakash 202
relationships with the daughter as a replica of the father. The daughter is often held
captive to the memory, expectation, or person of the father. Ibsen's character of Hedda
transferred from the home of her father into marriage. Nora exclaims to husband Torvald:
"I mean, then 1 went from Papa's hands into yours ... it's a great sin what you and Papa
did to me" (Ibsen, Four Major Plays: I09). The character of Hedvig in The Wild Duck is
also a victim of an overtly domineering father figure that defines this character's captivity.
Ibsen's use of the strong father adds to the female character's struggle with captivity.
Ibsen's daughter characters face a climactic choice of forsaking or dying to the captivities
of their fathers. Ibsen characters are dynamic and innovative portrayals of human beings
The theme of female captivity further layers these characters providing another
element to the intricate and organic struggle. Henrik Ibsen's characters mirror reality and
deal with a multitude of problems, including the captivity of the female protagonist. Nora
tool in the development of the female protagonist is seen in Ibsen's play A Doll's House.
The theme of captivity directly affects the development and decisions of the character
Nora Helmer.
money. The play A Doll's House is about the power of money . Nora is enthralled by the
power and freedom of money available only to men. The captivity to money begins as a
Prakash 203
tasting of the freedom of this world. Nora decorates for the Christmas holiday and
lavishly purchases decorations, gifts, and a Christmas tree. Nora even gives the Christmas
tree delivery boy the extra change, enhancing a bountiful image of plenty. This image is
brought into focus upon meeting the character Torvald Helmer, Nora's husband. This
character questions Nora's use of money: "Bought, you say? All that there? Has the little
spendthrift been out throwing money around again?" (D.H.44). The couple is
immediately at odds in regards to financial matters. Nora feels a great freedom to spend
"Torvald, we can squander a little now. Can't we? Just a tiny we bit.
Now that you've got a big salary and are going to make piles and
spending extra money from the anticipated raise.The theme of Nora's bondage to money
is further enhanced by the couple's discussion of monetary loans. Nora mentions the
"Nora, You know what I think about that. No debts! Never borrow!
Ibsen creates this early protestation against debt to set the tone for financial issues
throughout the play. Despite Torvald's heated objections to debt and frivolous spending,
he generously supplies Nora with forty extra dollars for household expenses. Nora
quickly rejuvenates and asks for a Christmas present of money. Nora becomes ensnared
by an obsession for money through which she hopes to gain a sense of freedom. The
Prakash 204
couple lived through a period of financial burden in which Nora had to make homemade
This picture is juxtaposed with the current Christmas season of plenty. Ibsen gives
further depth to Nora's monetary conviction with the arrival of Nora's old friend, Cristine
Linde. Nora immediately discusses the Helmer family successes despite an absence of ten
"My husband's been made manager in the bank, just think! From now on
Nora has begun to surrender her will and identity to the comfort and freedom of
money. Ibsen carefully layers Nora's jubilant monetary reactions to portray the illusion of
a carefree and almost foolish woman. This illusion is soon broken by Nora's revelation of
the source of her monetary obsession, a secret loan of four thousand, eight hundred
crowns to provide for a trip to Italy to save Torvald's life. Nora is very proud of these
successful efforts of saving Torvald's life, despite her illegal actions of borrowing money.
Nora is profoundly satisfied with her quiet work of sacrifice, but this is
nevertheless an illegal action. Women in Ibsen's day were not permitted to borrow money
without a husband's approval, and the consequences of such actions were dire. Nora does
not initially understand the ramifications of the law and the true state of her mental and
emotional captivity to money. The captivity of money deceptively provides Nora with a
sense of freedom in the world of men. Nora finds clever ways of utilizing the household
allowance from Torvald, as well as stealthily working on copying jobs. Nora is blind to
her initial captivity to money, but slowly feels the pressure and tension of repaying the
Prakash 205
loan. Torvald's future salary raise will provide the additional funds necessary to repay the
"Now I'm free. Oh, how lovely to think of that Cristine! Carefree! To
happy!" (D.H.56).
Nora's apparent obsession with money is a truly elated rejoicing at the near
freedom from the captivity of the loan. Unfortunately, this freedom does not bloom to
fruition as Nora sinks deeper into monetary captivity and a secondary captivity to the
demands of male society. Nora is a captive to male society through the secret loan
provided by Krogstad. This money lender reveals that Nora has forged her father's
"If I introduce this paper [the loan document] in court, you'll be judged
a second layer of captivity to the rules set by male society. Nora begins to understand the
convince Torvald to retain the money lender's position at the bank. Nora's secondary level
sends Krogstad's notice. Torvald, a member of male society further encapsulates Nora in
Nora is in danger of undergoing serious legal action that would affect her
relationship with Torvald and the children. The captivity to male society proves to be a
more difficult burden than monetary captivity. Torvald, a member of male society, sets a
firm opinion against borrowing loans in the beginning of A Doll's House, and makes a
Prakash 206
stiff declaration against the moral aptitude of a law breaker. Nora's captivity expands into
patronizing and moralistic attitude serves as a third snare of captivity for the character of
Nora.
performances of song and dance. Nora mentions to Mrs. Linde the viable danger of
Torvald tiring of her appearance or habitual play-acting. The theme of captivity is present
with Torvald about the loan as this would not be fitting for a doll-wife. Nora is a captive
expectations. Nora's three levels of captivity to money, to male society and to Torvald's
desperately seeking release from captivity and seductively turns to Dr. Rank in a veiled
cry for help. Nora uses flirtatious language and a pair of silk stockings with the intention
of seducing Dr. Rank into giving money. Nora's desperation at the third level of captivity
is observed in the sexual treatment of Dr. Rank. Nora's behavior causes Dr. Rank to make
a daring confession of love since he has misunderstood Nora's sexual advances as a sign
of true affection. The levels of captivity continue to pressure Nora as she grapples for
relief from the burden. Nora contemplates suicide as a respite from the three levels of
captivity.
Nora's death would not save the Helmer family from the severity of Krogstad's
accusations. Nora recognizes her utter powerlessness and pours all of her fears and
Prakash 207
anxieties into a performance of the tarantella dance. This is a dance of death, and Nora
dances to postpone death as the result of captivity . Nora recognizes that her comfortable
livelihood is coming to an end and hopes for a miracle. Nora says very little as she
endures this tirade of selfish comments and accusations which quickly turns to a torrent of
jubilation with the returned loan from Krogstad. Torvald happily forgives Nora and
reinstates her position as doll-wife. Nora decides to leave her marriage, children, and
livelihood. Nora makes the decision to break out of the final chains of captivity and leave
Torvald.
There are two kinds of spiritual law and two kinds of conscience, one in man and
another, altogether different, in woman. They do not understand each other. The
superstructure of Torvald conscience , his sense of right and wrong, is founded on the
formulation: the most important thing is that I be a success; all else will follow from that.
Nora’s moral sense, on the other hand, is that “the most important thing is that people live
in, and out of, the truth of people feelings; all else will follow from that.What is at stake is
nothing less than the respective definitions that the society allows of a man and a woman.
Ibsen lives in a universe where essences are no longer given a priori, out of a
fixed, eternal order, out of some platonic idea of man and woman, but rather in a flowing
process where selves are chiefly defined by the choices they make, the unenlightened
struggle of Torvald and Nora to define themselves along separate paths inevitably bring
them into conflict. It is crucial, however to note that whereas the play begins with Nora,
and in time Torvald appears, after the action has run its course Nora withdraws, and the
play ends with Torvald at the conclusion is more pathetic: his bland, common – sensical,
self – righteous attempt to establish his authority has failed, and, although Nora has been
strengthened by facing up to at least a glimpse of the truth, Torvald has had love pulled
Prakash 208
from under his feet while, by the nature of his conventional code, he has hardly an inkling
The mental and emotional pull of captivity also affects the development of the
character Hedvig in The Wild Duck. Hedvig in The Wild Duck is captivity to Hialmar.
The theme of captivity as a literary tool in the development of the female protagonist is
prevalent in the character of Hedvig in The Wild Duck. Hedvig blindly adores her father
Hialmar, and is held captive to his selfish moods and unrealistic ideology. At age
also has the opportunity of playing in the family's attic that is filled with various live
birds. The Ekdal family created an indoor forest for enjoyment that is home to Hedvig's
wild duck. Hedvig's childlike imagination is formed by playing with this wild duck.
Hedvig's life of fantasy is encouraged by her parents and grandfather. Hedvig has
Hialmar's egotistical treatment and is continually trying to please her father, which
attitude, and longs for mere scraps of affection. On one occasion, Hedvig excitedly
anticipates a treat from Hialmar's dinner party, and is disappointed when he carelessly
forgets. Hialmar launches into a verbal tirade after seeing Hedvig's disappointed face,
which Hedvig patiently endures. Hialmar's negligence and harsh words are met with
The captivity to Hialmar causes Hedvig contentedly to work for her father and
when asked about future goals, she resolutely states her plans to remain at home. Hedvig
comments:"I'm going to stay at home always and help Daddy and Mother" (D.H.163).
Prakash 209
Hedvig's paternal affection is visible in the usage of the term "daddy" and her desire to
stay at home. This peaceful existence is threatened with a revelation from Hedvig's
the news of Hedvig's true paternity. Hedvig is traumatized by Hialmar's treatment and
looks for means of restitution. Hedvig desperately longs to please her father. Hedvig is
entrenched in captivity to Hialmar that continually serves his selfish moods and
ideologies with the hope of small sign of affection. In Hialmar's treatment of Hedvig, this
father has manipulated his daughter's mind and emotions forcing Hedvig to work for his
love. When Gregers Werle, Hialmar's friend, suggests that Hedvig sacrifices her prized
Hedvig's captivity to Hialmar causes her to sacrifice a most prized possession for
reconciliation. Hedvig makes the climatic decision to give up her own life in a final love
protagonists of giving one's self for freedom. Hedvig's response of suicide as a love
offering leaves the dichotomous result of dying with captivity as well as becoming
Ibsen's next female protagonist, Ellida Wangel in The Lady from the Sea also
captivity as a literary tool in the development of the female protagonist is evident in the
development of the character Ellida Wangel in The Lady from the Sea. Ellida is a captive
to her own mental illusions and is wracked with mental fantasies regarding a former
lover, the Stranger. Ellida also becomes obsessed with the world of the Stranger- the sea.
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The title of the play, The Lady from the Sea, also connects this character to the
sea. Ellida is often called "the Lady from the Sea" and the "mermaid" . Ellida takes a daily
swim and is enchanted with stories about "the spell of the sea". Ellida's mental captivity
to the Stranger is manifested in an obsession with the sea and a life of fantasy. Ellida's
mental captivity to the Stranger is a growing force affecting her marriage to Wangel.
Ellida's mental captivity to the Stranger threatens her marriage and family. Ellida's
mental captivity forces her to resent her marriage to Wangel since it comes after a
symbolic marriage to the Stranger. Ellida's mental fantasies cause her to view her
of the mind and condemns her marriage to Wangel. Through Ellida's mental captivity, she
stepdaughters.
Ellida's obsession with fantasies also clouds her judgment in regards to Wangel
and the true nature of their marriage. The mental captivity of fantasies has hindered
Ellida's view of Wangel's affection. Ellida is not able to participate in sexual relations
with Wangel due to the strangling mental captivity of fantasies about the Stranger. Ellida
believes the Stranger took over Wangel's body to father her child who soon died. Ellida
confides to Wangel:
"The child had the stranger's eyes . . . now you can understand why I
never again want- why I never again dare to live with you as your wife"
(D.H.266).
Ellida's captivity of the mind prevents intimacy between husband and wife. Ellida
suffers from a mysterious depression that began when her baby died. She no longer has
sexual relations with her husband, and is experiencing an emotional and mental anguish.
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Through the captivity of the mind, Ellida believes her dead child possessed the Stranger's
eyes as proof of the Stranger's controlling power. Ellida longs for freedom from her
supposed physical captivity of marriage as well as her deep mental captivity consisting of
fantasies of the Stranger. The climax of captivity is reached when Ellida must choose
The theme of captivity reaches a climax in Ellida's decision between the Stranger
and Wangel. Ellida longs to break out of the bonds of captivity and make an independent
choice. Ellida resolutely comments: "I have to talk to [the Stranger] myself. It's the only
way I can make a free choice" (305). Ellida can shatter the shackles of mental captivity
through the freedom of choice. It is recognized , since the Stranger only represents for
Ellida her own imperfect understanding of what she wants from life, it only takes a final
maturity of will to break his power and let him sink into nothingness.
Ellida is given the power to conquer the demon of mental captivity through
Wangel's sacrifice. Wangel abolishes Ellida's false image of marital captivity, to enable
her to conquer the actual mental captivity to the Stranger. Wangel notes: "Now you can
choose your own path- in full freedom . . . because I love you so much" (L.S.319).
Wangel's gift of free choice enables Ellida to vanquish the demon of mental captivity by
refusing the Stranger. Ellida victoriously dismisses the Stranger: "Your will hasn't a shred
of power over me now. To me you've become a dead man who came up out of the sea-
and who's drifting back down again. There's no terror in you now. And no attraction"
(L.S.320). Ellida destroys the hold of mental captivity to the Stranger by exerting her own
free will. Ellida's successfully removes her mental captivity to the Stranger and sees with
The theme of captivity also affects the inward life of another Ibsen protagonist is
Hedda Gabler. Hedda Tesman in Hedda Gabler captivity to the attitude of selfishness.The
observed in the character Hedda in Hedda Gabler. This character is a captive to the
love with self and incapable of caring for others or having true joy.
Hedda is captured by a constant inner focus that makes no time for anyone else,
including her new husband. Hedda's captivity to selfishness directly affects her marriage
Tesman's affairs. Hedda does not feel any love or interest towards her new husband, and
chooses to concentrate solely on her own interests. When Tesman asks if Hedda has been
worried about him, she responds: "No, that never occurred to me" (H.G..276). Hedda
Hedda's captivity to self is also evident in the play's title. Ibsen's titling of the
play, "Hedda Gabler," reflects Hedda's identity of self over husband. Hedda's married
husband’s name is Hedda Tesman, but the play's title uses Hedda's maiden name
enhancing this character's identity apart from marriage. Hedda refuses to merge her life
with Tesman's or enjoy the company of his family by showing great disinterest and
rudeness. Hedda refuses to like anyone and is continually hurtful with insults of bored
pricks or calculated piercings. Hedda deliberately insults Tesman's aunt who has greatly
sacrificed to provide extra money for the new couple. Hedda is entrenched in captivity to
selfness, and has been recognized as, "one of the meanest romantics in literature".
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obsession with self arouses an inane jealousy of others. Hedda is greatly jealous of the
character Thea Elvsted. Hedda's selfishness results in feelings of jealousy over the
appearance of Thea Elvsted. Hedda's jealousy over Thea's appearance stems from
captivity to selfishness and boredom with life. Hedda is bored and restless; her captivity
to selfness has deepened to a blase view of daily life. Hedda's captivity to selfishness has
removed any excitement and joy from life. Hedda notes that she has one talent, to bore
Hedda is captured by an obsession with self that threatens her very existence.
Hedda longs to escape the bonds of languor but is unwilling to dismiss the egotistical
bend to put self above everything else. Hedda's captivity and obsession with self is in
direct contrast to the courageous drive of character, Eilert Lovborg. Hedda longs for the
same courage as Lovborg to live beautifully. When Lovborg desires to commit suicide,
Hedda passionately asks him to die beautifully in a selfish attempt at finding vicarious
satisfaction. Hedda's captivity to self and habitual boredom provides the means for
Lovborg's death. Hedda views Lovborg's death as a worthy escape from the monotony of
life, but soon learns the truth of his death in the climax of captivity.
The climax of captivity is reached when Hedda learns that Lovborg's death is not
intentional and far from beautiful. With Lovborg's failure to die courageously, Hedda
feels the growing sense of hopelessness amidst the captivity of self. Hedda bemoans:
"what is it, this-this curse-that everything I touch turns ridiculous and vile?" (H.G.299).
Hedda's captivity to self is a dark trap of depression and gloom. Hedda's bounds of
captivity also grow tighter with the realization that Judge Brack could reveal her
literary tool in the development of the female protagonist is marked through the mental or
performance guide for the portrayal of the female protagonist, providing the actor with a
captivity as a performance guide for the Portrayal of the female protagonist .The theme of
captivity in the works of Henrik Ibsen serves as a performance guide for the portrayal of
the female protagonist. Ibsen's female protagonists were written as dynamic characters for
the stage and have forever changed the history of acting style and performance.
pivotal to the central thrust of each play. The Ibsen actor will face a complexity of
morality issues within the theme of captivity. The character of Nora makes the decision to
leave her husband as a response to the captivities of money, male society and husband
Torvald. The character of Hedvig takes her own life in a sacrificial love offering amidst
the throes of captivity to her father Hialmar. The character of Ellida is an extremely weak
captive to the fantasies of her mind. The character of Hedda leads an acerbic existence
that responds to the captivity of selfishness with a suicidal gun shot. Ibsen's women
undergo a myriad of situations that must be respected, researched, and adopted in the
The plays of Henrik Ibsen, A Doll's House, The Wild Duck, The Lady from the
Sea, and Hedda Gabler, demonstrate the theme of captivity as a literary tool in the
development of the female protagonist through bonds of captivity, the climax of the
character, and then the character's response. Nora's is a captive to the tertiary bonds of
money, male society, and Torvald, and responds these chains of captivity by leaving.
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Hedvig is a captive to Hialmar and sacrifices her life as a love offering. Ellida is a
captive to mental fantasies and is freed by the gift of free choice. Hedda is a captive to
selfness and stays ensnared in captivity with suicide. The theme of captivity also serves as
a performance guide to the performance of the female protagonist through the creation of
the distinct Ibsen acting style. This acting style of realism broke down the walls of
nineteenth-century cultural captivity by enlarging the role of the actress and continues to
affect contemporary performance. The theme of captivity in the work of Henrik Ibsen
provides fresh literary reading and a tool for creating dynamic characterization for
performance.
Conclusion
Thus, this chapter has brought out the sociological perspectives on the plays of