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// A Doll's House //

A WebQuest for 12th Grade (World Literature)

Designed by Ms. Lisa Douglas, Hoover High School

Adapted by Mrs. Pat Leyden, Mount Saint Joseph Academy

mdestefa@msjacad.org

Last updated on May, 2013. Based on a template from [|The WebQuest Page]



"He who wishes to understand me, must know Norway. The magnificent, but severe, natural environment surrounding people up there in the north, the lonely, secluded life ... they often lose faith. At home every other person is a philosopher! There, the long, dark, winters come with their thick fogs enveloping the houses--oh, how they long for the sun!" Henrik Ibsen Nora and Torvald have been apart for 10 years. You will be both characters, now ten (10) years older, in two (2) separate letters. Your classmates, partnered anonymously, will respond to your first letters. How have both the Victorian Era and living in the country of Norway shaped your future? If you could write to the other character, what would you tell him/her? What response would you hope to hear?



- You will research information about marriage, the status of women, child- rearing, and money in the Victorian Era. You will also research the country of Norway, the setting of the play and the homeland of the author, Henrik Ibsen. - You will assume the role of either Nora or Torvald, and write a letter to the other using the information about Norway and your understanding of the character. - You will respond to the letter written by your partner. - When you are finished, you will reflect on the process you have undergone to complete the WebQuest.



You and your partner will assume the role of either Nora or Torvald from Ibsen's //A Doll's House//.

Character Description--Who are you? You will be writing a letter assuming the personality traits of your character, so the first thing you need to do is understand who your character is from the play.

1. You and your partner must decide who is going to become Nora and who is going to become Torvald.

2. Print a copy of the Character Analysis Sheet for each of you. You will address each of the following aspects of your character:

3. Complete the Character Analysis Sheet and save the information to use as you draft your letters.
 * Physical Characteristics--Age, Gender, Build
 * Actions
 * Thoughts
 * Dialogue
 * Predictions for the Future

4. Go on to the next section, The Victorian Era.

The Victorian Era--Attitudes Toward Women Regarding the Following:
 * Marriage
 * Employment
 * Child rearing
 * Money

5. Use the Question Guide to record the results of your research, which will then be incorporated into your letter. Print a copy for you and a copy for your partner. The Guide should be used by both you and your partner at the same time. You will need to negotiate and come to consensus about what needs to be recorded on the Guide.

6. Go on to the next section, Researching Norway.

Researching Norway: Answer the questions below to research important information about Norway. Norway is the country in which Nora and Torvald live, so you will want to use your Question Guide to record the results of your research, which will then be incorporated into your letter (Although the play is set in 1879, you will research Norway as it is today.). Print a copy for you and a copy for your partner. The Question Guide should be used by both you and your partner at the same time. You will need to negotiate and come to consensus about what needs to be recorded on the Guide.
 * What is the [|name of a city] to which Nora or Torvald may move?
 * What kind of [|government] does Norway have? Who are the [|leaders]?
 * What kind of [|economy] does Norway have? How does it work?
 * What sort of [|public transportation] does Norway provide for the population?
 * Where would Nora and Torvald likely [|live]? In what kind of house? How does it look?
 * Where would Nora likely [|work]? Where would Torvald likely work?
 * To what kind of [|art and literature] would Nora and Torvald be exposed in [|Norway]?
 * What events in [|Ibsen's life] influenced Nora's life? How would Ibsen have envisioned Nora's and Torvald's futures?

Next, you will need to transform the research information you have gathered into the form of an "authentic" letter to your partner's character. You will also include the details from the Character Analysis Sheet you have already completed. Works Cited __**or**__ Works Consulted: On another piece of paper, you will create a Works Cited __**or**__ Works Consulted of ALL of the sources of information you used to conduct your research. You **__MUST__** have all the bibliographic information in impeccable MLA Style to receive a passing rubric score. Please consult your MLA Handbook.

7. The Letters To write the two letters, you need to synthesize the information from the Character Analysis Sheet and the Question Guide. Print a copy of the Synthesis Guide so that you and your partner can compile all of the information you have gathered in this WebQuest.


 * Include the following information, in this order, as you write your letter. You may add more if you wish, but you __**MUST**__ cover the following:


 * Where are you now? (Remember to use the name of a city in Norway.)
 * What has happened to you during the last ten years?
 * What are you doing now--job, housing, recreation, information based on your facts about Norway?
 * As you look back on your parting, how do you feel about it? Would/should you and/or your partner have done anything differently?

> >
 * Your letter should include a proper greeting, a body with at least three (3) paragraphs, and a closing.
 * Guidelines for Writing a Friendly Letter
 * Give your letter to your partner. Your partner will give her letter to you.
 * Maintain your assumed role as Nora or Torvald.
 * Answer the letter written by your partner. Please respond to whatever is in your new letter, and let him/her know what you have been doing and how you feel about what happened. Thus, you will be writing two letters--the original one and the one you answer in response to his/her letter.
 * Again, your second letter should include a proper greeting, a body with at least three (3) paragraphs, and a closing. Refer to your Guidelines for Writing a Friendly Letter.
 * After all the letters have been answered, you will receive your original letter and your partner's reply.

8. Your Reflection: The last step of this WebQuest is to write a reflection. Answer these questions on a separate sheet of paper. Answer each question in a separate paragraph.
 * How did you put yourself in the place of the character and make predictions about the future?
 * How did you use technology to accomplish this task?
 * What did you need to consider before you wrote each of the letters?
 * How did the cultural information about Norway assist your writing of the letters?

The following rubric will be used to evaluate your success in assuming the roles of both Nora and Torvald and predicting the future of these characters.


 * || Beginning--1 || Developing--2 || Accomplished--3 || Exemplary--4 || Score ||
 * Character Analysis || Character analysis is attempted, but details are lacking and description is incomplete.

. || Details of the character have not been analyzed thoroughly. Superficial characterization impedes comprehension of the character. || Character has been sufficiently analyzed reflecting all facets of personality traits || Description of the character is detailed and demonstrates significant insight into the development of this particular character. ||  || and Reflection || The letters and reflection do not reflect an accurate understanding of the Victorian Era, Norwegian culture and the character traits. || The letters and reflection are complete, but they lack careful analysis and synthesis of the character and the research. || Both of the letters and the reflection demonstrate a successful synthesis of the character analysis and the research. Predictions are viable. || The letters and the reflection demonstrate insightful knowledge synthesized by the WebQuest activities. ||  ||
 * Research || Research is inadequate. The required questions are not completed. || One or two of the research questions are not sufficiently researched. || All of the research questions have been answered completely. Question guides reflects sufficient understanding of the Victorian Era/Norway/Ibsen. || Research results exceed required information. ||  ||
 * Letters
 * Mechanics || Poor use of Standard English, with major or minor mistakes that impede the reading of the letter. || Adequate use of Standard English, with very few major, or a few minor mistakes. || Good use of Standard English, with very few mistakes. || Excellent use of Standard English, with very few or no mistakes. ||  ||

By completing this WebQuest, you have learned to analyze the characters in Henrik Ibsen's //A// //Doll's House// and relate them to the author's cultural background. In addition, you have learned about Nora and Torvald's Victorian Era. The life experiences of an author significantly influence his/her works. As you study literature in the future, remember this experience and learn as much as you can about each author and the world in which he/she lives (d). This skill is a valuable tool you can apply to any type of literature you study. [] [|ibsen.net] [|www.norphoto.com] The WebQuest Page

Special thanks to Mrs. Michelle Sims for her patience and for her dedication to the completion of this WebQuest