Question

How do the stage directions in brackets affect the meaning of the text? They show that Nora goes from playing happily with her children to being startled by Krogstad, an unwelcome visitor. They show that Nora, the children, and Krogstad are on the stage at the same time and are communicating with one another. They show that Nora has to take care of her children without the help of her husband, Torvald, and resents it greatly. They show that Krogstad is familiar to the family and is a frequent visitor, so he can walk in without

Answer 1

The passage is:

Read the passage from A Doll’s House.

Nora: Really! Did a big dog run after you? But it didn't bite you? No, dogs don't bite nice little dolly children. You mustn't look at the parcels, Ivar. What are they? Ah, I daresay you would like to know. No, no—it's something nasty! Come, let us have a game! What shall we play at? Hide and Seek? Yes, we'll play Hide and Seek. Bob shall hide first. Must I hide? Very well, I'll hide first. [She and the children laugh and shout, and romp in and out of the room; at last, NORA hides under the table, the children rush in and out for her, but do not see her; they hear her smothered laughter, run to the table, lift up the cloth and find her. Shouts of laughter. She crawls forward and pretends to frighten them. Fresh laughter. Meanwhile, there has been a knock at the hall door, but none of them has noticed it. The door is half opened, and KROGSTAD appears, he waits for a little; the game goes on.]

Krogstad: Excuse me, Mrs. Helmer:

Nora: [with a stifled cry, turns round and gets up on to her knees] Ah! what do you want?

Krogstad: Excuse me, the outer door was ajar; I suppose someone forgot to shut it.

Nora: [rising] My husband is out, Mr. Krogstad.

Answer:

A). They show that Nora goes from playing happily with her children to being startled by Krogstad, an unwelcome visitor.

Explanation:

Stage directions are characterized as the 'instructions that are provided to the actors in order to tell them the action to be done and the manner in which it is to be done.'

In the given passage, the stage directions have been displayed through the brackets which helps in showing the readers the shift in Nora's emotional state from cheerfully playing with her kid to suddenly being astonished by the uninvited visit of Mr. Krogstad. The instructions of 'laugh and shout' shows her happy state of mind while the descriptions of 'stifled cry, on to her knees' show her frightened and fearful condition. Hence, option A is the correct answer.