Research Paper on:
Women's Roles and Dramatists

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
role of women has progressed. Bibliography lists 5 sources. BBdrmaWR.doc DRAMATISTS REFLECT HISTORIC WOMENSROLES Written by B. Bryan Babcock for the Paperstore, Inc., November  2000 Introduction The roles of women in the past are being examined more and more - perhaps to discover the true nature of women, or more rightly to see  how the "viewing" of women has changed through history. In this discussion we will use major playwrights of different time periods, to see how the role of women has  progressed. Thesis statement: Over historical time, women have moved from "being in the shadow of", or "behind," to insignificant, to societal defined roles. These stages are reflected in the  historic dramas of our society, both in reality, and for the sake of this discussion on the theater stage. A Dolls House The traditional womens role in Scandinavian society,  as well as that in mainland Europe, was the role as woman as the comforter, helper, and supporter of man. "A Dolls House," by Henrik Ibsen, introduced a woman as  having her own purposes and goals, a radical idea at the time. The heroine, Nora Helmer, grows during the course of the play to eventually realize that she  can no longer continue the role of "doll," and "little squirrel," that she had maintained married to Tovald. She decides must find out who she really is, rather than how  someone else wants her to be. Whether Ibsen set out to instigate social change, or merely to describe humanity as he saw it, is not significant, because regardless of  his own choice in the matter, he is remembered to this day as a crusader in the fight for womens rights. His play was effective in heightening public awareness and