A Doll's House
When was 'A Doll's House' written and published? (Year)
1879
What genre is 'The Handmaid's Tale'?
Dystopian / Speculative Fiction
When was 'The Handmaid's Tale' written?
1985
What was the most scandalous idea in 'A Doll's House' at the time it was first performed?
The idea of a woman abandoning her family in the name of self-discovery.
Where do Stanley and Stella live? (District)
I have another duty which is equally ______…My duty towards myself.”
sacred
'I enjoy the power; power of a ____ ______, passive but there.'
Dog bone
What is Margaret Atwood's nationality?
Canadian
What does Torvald's frequent use of animal imagery suggest about his attitude towards Nora?
He sees her as less than him
He infantilises / objectifies / belittles her
What is Blanche's main source of guilt?
She feels responsible for the death of her husband
'Downstairs the ______ door ______ shut.'
Street
Slams
'Nothing changes ___________: in a gradually heating bathtub, you'd be boiled to death before you knew it.'
instantaneously
Margaret Atwood does not want people to think of 'The Handmaid's Tale' as a _______ novel.
Feminist
What NW was a feminist ideal that emerged in response to traditional gender roles in late 19th Century Norway?
New Woman
What does Blanche's frequent bathing symbolise?
Her desire for purification
Why did Ibsen choose to set the play at Christmas?
To reinforce the illusion of domestic happiness
To highlight Torvald's preoccupation with materialism in favour of deeper human values
To suggest a new beginning
Any other valid reading
'Will this be worse, to have him denuded, of all his ____ power? He's down to the shirt; then, under it, sadly, a little _____. Wisps of hair.'
Cloth
Belly
Atwood's design for the Handmaid's uniform was inspired by her visit to which country?
Afghanistan
Some theatres refused to stage 'A Doll's House' in its present form. What change did they demand before staging it?
A new ending where Nora stays for the sake of her children.
Which character in the play serves to reveal Blanche's sexually-predatory behaviour?
The young man / young newspaper collector.
Which traditional women's pastime does Torvald deem 'ungraceful' (to Mrs Linde)?
Knitting. He says embroidery is 'more becoming'!
How many versions of Luke's fate does Offred imagine in the novel?
Three
Which BW was thought to have inspired Atwood's focus on ever-present state control in the novel? (Clue: she lived near this at the time of writing).
Melodrama was the dominant theatrical style at the time. Ibsen rejected this in favour of a different style, which came to be known as _____ .
Naturalism
In Blanche's death fantasy, what causes her to die?
Eating an unwashed grape