Women have dealt with numerous different issues that pertain to fighting for their rights as women during the 19th century oppose to women today. Issues such as being a wife and taking care of home and not being able to work to earn income these topics then caused much controversy. This controversy revolved around the dominance of men and the suppose known place of where a women should be seen or heard. Women were then under the impression there place was only in the home to be a mother and spouse caring for the children and obeying her husband. During the late 1800s women activist pushed for every women to be equal as man. Women were strong on obtaining legal rights. As for the right to lawfully borrow money without her husband given permission. At this point they wanted even more rights such as furthering there education by choice oppose to having to suddenly get married and raise children, and also being abe to choose whom they decide to mate and marry. Nora from A Doll’s House and both Ophelia from Hamlet can be considered when pertaining to these sexiest pre-set standards. In the 19th century, female characters have often played roles dependent on men. In Henrick’s Isben’s A Doll House, Nora’s life is dependent on her husband and her father. As for Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Opheila whom is also a female character who seems to be dependent on her father, brother, and boyfriend. Both Opheila and Nora come from predominantly different time periods, yet they are in similar situations but with evident differences. With these similarities of being treated as children and lectured for loss of honor also come differences of manipulation and management of their problems. In A Doll’s House written by Henrick Isben in the year of the late 1900s, Nora’s husband, Torvald, treats her as if she was a child and it becomes very obvious that he does not take her seriously being he refers to Nora by pet names such as “squirrel,” “skylark” and “spendthrift,” more than he calls her by her actual name. When it comes to money Torvald does not believe Nora is capable of managing her own budget and he expresses this when he answers Nora’s request for money as a Christmas gift “What do you call those little creatures that are always wasting money?” (pg1561). “You can’t deny it my dear little Nora. She’s a sweet little spendthrift, but she uses up a lot of money. One would hardly believe how expensive such little creatures are!”(pg1561). Torvald underestimates Nora’s intelligence here because she is a women, when little does he know she is managing her money to the point she is able to make loan payments behind his back. Torvald at the end refers to Nora’s dishonor “Yes, what then? After I’d exposed my wife to shame and disgrace?”(pg 1608). In the play Hamlet, Opheila lets her brother Laertes and Polonius her father, aware that Hamlet has confessed his love for Opheila. They both treat her like a child for example Polonius says “Opheila walk here…….Read on this book, that show of such an exercise may color your loneliness” (pg1400). Polonius expresses his beliefs of his daughter’s inability in handling the situation “Ay springes to catch woodcocks. I do know, when the blood burns, how prodigal the soul…..”(pg1371), as he refers to Hamlet’s confession of love as “springes” referring to a trap or a snare and compares her to a “woodcock” or in other words a waddling bird easily caught. He feels for she is a woman she is not capable of making her own decisions and is gullible. For Laertes continues on to bring up the subject of honor “Then if he says he loves you, it fits your wisdom so far to believe it……..Then weigh what loss your honor may sustain, if with too credent ear you list his songs”(pg 1368). Opheila and Nora both experience humiliation from men and both are lectured on loss of honor. After the reading of both A Doll’s House and Hamlet I can see the similarities of both Nora and Opheila being very reliant on men, even though the time frames are many years apart there is not very much change when you view the role of a women. Sadly within the long frames of time between the two stories you don’t see change even after 20 years or more of time difference. The endings may have been different with the death of Hamlet and Isben really stepping out on a limb at the ending of his play with Nora gaining the courage to walk out on her family to find herself. These two women are still very similar throughout the text with being treated as children by the men close to them but also being less to men’s honor and reputation. Women today have come even further than Nora has to Opheila but in some ways still face little discrimination for being a women. Thus being the reason for Isben’s changing at the end of his play due to the changes within society today. Yes we are now free working educated women but in some instances you have the discrimination of thinking a man can do a job better than a woman or you still have some men that think a woman’s place is to cook, clean, obey and birth children. So even though it’s safe to say that women have come a very long way in earning their equal rights, they still face some small battles in today’s society. For example, there are still some aspects in the military women are not allowed or are caution not to do. Navy seals and special forces to be exact, or you can even argue the fact of a woman president and the countries overall view in that since. With that being said women are a strong force in the world today. Many powerful potions are held by women and even large businesses.

Work Cited Hubs By Mr.Gadget. 2009. http://mr-gadget.hubpages.com/hub/WOMEN-RIGHTS-FROM-1800-TO-PRESENT Isben, Henrick “A Doll’s House.” X.J. Kennedy, Diana Gioia Literature An Introduction to Fiction,Poetry,Drama, and Writing 11th Ed. 2010,2007 & 2005 William Shakespeare Hamlet X.J. Kennedy, Diana Gioia Literature An Introduction to Fiction,Poetry,Drama, and Writing 11th Ed. 2010,2007 & 2005