History 102 Reflection Essay One

Worth five percent of overall grade

Henrik Ibsen, A Doll’s House (originally published in 1879; any edition).

Assignment: After you have completed reading Ibsen’s play, A Doll’s House, write a one-page essay on one of the two following topics:

  1. Imagine that you are a middle-class, European woman or man, who has just seen a performance of A Doll’s House in 1880, and you have to write a one-page review of it for the local newspaper. Write a review either encouraging or discouraging readers from going to see the play; that is, write a review that is either quite positive or quite negative about the performance. Do not try to summarise the plot; you will not have space. Your response should attempt to be consistent with a middle-class nineteenth-century perspective, either of a women or man [male students can pretend to be women and vice versa].
  2. Imagine you are Henrik Ibsen’s publisher. He has just handed you the manuscript of A Doll’s House and asked whether you will publish it. You write a one-page response to Ibsen explaining why or why not you think his play should be published. Again, strive to respond as a member of the nineteenth-century middle-class would. Do not try to summarize the play.

Format: Your essay should be one page in length, typed (on a computer), single-spaced, using the 12 point Times font, with one inch margins all round. In the upper right corner of the page write the course number, your section, your name, the date, and the topic you are writing on.

See the below example.

History 102

Section 1

Mark Baker

12 October 2007

Topic 1

Begin essay… [remember, one page, single-spaced, one-inch margins, 12 point Times font].

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