[PDF] 25 Powerful Ibsen Plays

ByJustin Cash Scripts
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Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) is considered the father of modern realism in the theatre, though he wrote in a number of dramatic genres. Ibsen’s twenty-five plays include some of the theatre’s greatest works (A Doll’s House, Hedda Gabler). The break from society’s moral standards evident in A Doll’s House shocked the audience at its 1879 premiere. To get the play produced in Germany the following year, Ibsen was forced to rewrite the ending where it was implied Nora and her three children did not leave. Today, this alternate ending can only be found in the footnotes of the modern edition. Ibsen’s careful use of psychological realism with internal characterisation and motivation has influenced playwriting to this day. – Justin Cash

Henrik Ibsen Plays PDF

Henrik Ibsen Biographies

Henrik Ibsen Plays
Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906)

Detailed biographical essay from the Ibsen Society of America on most of Henrik Ibsen’s plays.

A useful overview of the stages in his career and various writing styles evident in Henrik Ibsen plays.

Wikipedia entry on Henrik Ibsen and his life, influences, and writing career.

Biography of Henrik Ibsen from Encyclopedia Britannica.

Psychological Realism

Psychological realism is a literary genre that came to prominence in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It’s a highly character-driven genre of fiction writing, as it focuses on the motivations and internal thoughts of characters.

A writer of psychological realism seeks to not only show what the characters do but also explain why they take such actions. There’s often a larger theme in psychological realist novels, with the author expressing an opinion on a societal or political issue through the choices of his or her characters.
ThoughtCo
patrick Kennedy

Resources from The Drama Teacher on the conventions of realism and naturalism in the theatre.

Royal Theatre, Copenhagen

Royal Theatre Copenhagen Denmark
Royal Theatre, Copenhagen, c.1890, where A Doll’s House premiered on 21 December 1879.

Resources elsewhere on Theatre Links from around the web on realistic and naturalistic theatre.

Psychological Realism is the literary genre that delves on the internal life of the characters. Realism is lent to the text through a focus on the thoughts and motivations of the characters rather than on their occupations and external settings alone. The principal aim and characteristic of this
genre are that the characters who inhabit a novel should be believable and living, breathing human beings who the readers can readily and inadvertently relate to. Human beings are complex creatures and it is the functioning of their minds (together with their psychological past) that makes them so.
Psychologically realistic texts function with the assertion
that it is through an in-depth understanding and portrayal of the human mind and personality that the author can hope to make the world depicted in the novel realistic, meaningful and enriching. It is, therefore, “a highly character-driven genre of fiction writing, as it focuses on the motivations and internal thoughts of characters to explain their actions” (Kennedy).
Psychological realism in 19th century fiction
Debashish Sen

Analysis of Ibsen’s Works

Useful collection of historical press reviews from the premiere of A Doll’s House in Denmark, 1879.

The Work of Ibsen: Part One
The Work of Ibsen: Part Two

Analysis of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House

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