Student Question

What action of Kezia's angers Aunt Beryl in "The Doll's House"?

Quick answer:

Kezia angers Aunt Beryl by inviting the Kelvey girls to see the Burnell family's dollhouse, despite being forbidden to do so. The Kelveys are the daughters of a supposed criminal and are socially ostracized. Kezia's kind-hearted defiance of this social norm, driven by her desire to share the beauty of the dollhouse's little lamp, incites Aunt Beryl's anger. Although the Kelveys are chased away, they are delighted to have seen the lamp.

Expert Answers

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Kezia is the youngest and kindest of the Burnell sisters, and it is this indiscriminate kindness that gets her into trouble. The Burnell girls are given beautiful and meticulously decorated doll house with many accessories, the most impressive of which is a little lamp that everyone who sees the dolls house is very taken with. The sisters are told that they can bring their friends to see the house but are forbidden to show it to the Kelvey girls, who are the daughters of a supposed criminal.

At a party that she finds particularly boring, Kezia goes outside where the doll house is being kept and sees the Kelveys walking past. Against the wishes and pressure of everyone around her, even the Kelveys themselves, Kezia insists that they come see the house, which makes her Aunt incredibly angry. Though the Kelveys are chased away, they are happy to have seen the little lamp.

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