Ghosts | Essays and Criticism

  • The Haunting Life of Helena Alving

    Kelly teaches creative writing and scriptwriting at two colleges in Illinois. In the following essay, he examines the life of Helena Alving, the main character in Ibsen’s Ghosts, in terms of one haunting, definitive moment in her past.

  • Ibsen: A Critical Study

    John Northam focuses on Mrs. Alving in Ghosts, placing her in the context of the society depicted in the play. According to him, Mrs. Alving ‘‘has always been at war’’ with her society, which subtly coerces women to sacrifice their ‘‘personal integrity to social demands.’’

  • The Sun Always Rises: Ibsen's Ghosts as Tragedy?

    Corrigan views Mrs. Alving in Ghosts as divided between her intellectual ideals and an ‘‘emotional inheritance’’ over which she has no control.

  • Ghosts and the Cherry Orchard: The Theater of Modern Realism

    In his discussion of Ghosts, Fergusson detects elements of three conflicting types of drama in the work: a formulaic ‘‘well-made’’ thriller, a realist ‘‘thesis play’’ about a specific social question, and a traditional tragedy.