Henrik Ibsen

“ Life has no such charm for her that she cares to purchase it at the cost of squalid humiliation and self-contempt. The good and the bad in her alike impel her to have done with it all; and a pistol-shot ends what is surely one of the most poignant character-tragedies in literature. Ibsen’s brain never worked at higher pressure than in the conception and adjustment of those “crowded hours” in which Hedda, tangled in the web of Will and Circumstance, struggles on till she is too weary to struggle any more. ”

“ He is not afraid of robbing others of their life’s happiness—as he has done both for my father and for me. But when it comes to climbing up a paltry bit of scaffolding—he will do anything rather than that.
Hilda. Oh, you should just have seen him high, high up—at the dizzy height where I once saw him.
Ragnar. Did you see that?
Hilda. Yes, indeed I did. How free and great he looked as he stood and fastened the wreath to the church vane!
Ragnar. I know that he ventured that, once in his life—one solitary time. It is a legend among us younger men. ”

“ Solness. That all this I have to make up for, to pay for—not in money, but in human happiness. And not with my own happiness only, but with other people’s too. Yes, yes, do you see that, Hilda? That is the price which my position as an artist has cost me—and others. And every single day I have to look on while the price is paid for me anew. ”

“ Mrs. Solness. Oh, no, no, Miss Wangel—do not talk to me any more about the two little boys. We ought to feel nothing but joy in thinking of them; for they are so happy—so happy now. No, it is the small losses in life that cut one to the heart—the loss of all that other people look upon as almost nothing.
Hilda. [Lays her arms on Mrs. Solness’s knees, and looks up at her affectionately.] Dear Mrs. Solness—tell me what things you mean!
Mrs. Solness. As I say, only little things. All the old portraits were burnt on the walls. ”

“ A greater contrast could scarcely be imagined than that between the hard, cold, precise outlines of Hedda Gabler and the vague mysterious atmosphere of The Master Builder, in which, though the dialogue is sternly restrained within the limits of prose, the art of drama seems for ever on the point of floating away to blend with the art of music. Substantially, the play is one long dialogue between Solness and Hilda ”

“ Hilda. [In distress, putting her hands over her ears.] Don’t talk like that! Do you want to kill me? To take from me what is more than my life?
Solness. And what is that?
Hilda. The longing to see you great. To see you, with a wreath in your hand, high, high up upon a church-tower. ”

“ You have some hidden motive in this, Hedda!
Hedda. Yes, I have. I want for once in my life to have power to mould a human destiny.
115Mrs. Elvsted. Have you not the power?
Hedda. I have not—and have never had it.
Mrs. Elvsted. Not your husband’s?
Hedda. Do you think that is worth the trouble? Oh, if you could only understand how poor I am. And fate has made you so rich! [Clasps her passionately in her arms.] I think I must burn your hair off, after all.
Mrs. Elvsted. Let me go! Let me go! I am afraid of you, Hedda!
Berta. [In the middle doorway.] Tea is laid in the dining-room, ma’am.
Hedda. ”

“ On the verandah, a garden bench stands along the wall of the house, and in front of the bench a long table. On the other side of the table, an arm-chair and some stools. All the furniture is of wicker-work.
Mrs. Solness, wrapped in a large white crape shawl, sits resting in the arm-chair and gazes over to the right. Shortly after, Hilda Wangel comes up the flight of steps from the garden. She is dressed as in the last act, and wears her hat. She has in her bodice a little nosegay of small common flowers. ”

“ Ibsen too was in all essentials self-taught; his philosophy was entirely unsystematic; and, like Solness, he was no student of books. There may be an introspective note also in that dread of the younger generation to which Solness confesses. It is certain that the old Master Builder was not lavish of his certificates of competence to young aspirants, though there is nothing to show that his reticence ever depressed or quenched any rising genius.
On the whole, then, it cannot be doubted that several symbolic motives are inwoven into the iridescent fabric of the play. ”

“ Miss Tesman. We must make the best of it, Berta. There was nothing else to be done. George can’t do without you, you see—he absolutely can’t. He has had you to look after him ever since he was a little boy.
Berta. Ah but, Miss Julia, I can’t help thinking of Miss Rina lying helpless at home there, poor thing. And with only that new girl too! She’ll never learn to take proper care of an invalid. ”

“ Ibsen had come to Berlin in February 1891 for the first performance of Hedda Gabler. Such experiences were always a trial to him, and he felt greatly relieved when they were over. Packing, too, he detested; and Elias having helped him through this terrible ordeal, the two sat down to lunch together, while awaiting the train. An expansive mood descended upon Ibsen, and chuckling over his champagne-glass, he said: ”Do you know, my next play is already hovering before me—of course in vague outline. But of one thing I have got firm hold. An experience: a woman’s figure. ”

“ Hedda. No, thank you, my little Thea! Not there! You’ll be good enough to come over here to me. I will sit between you.
Mrs. Elvsted. Yes, just as you please.
[She goes round the table and seats herself on the sofa on Hedda’s right. Lövborg re-seats himself on his chair.
Lövborg. [After a short pause, to Hedda.] Is not she lovely to look at?
Hedda. [Lightly stroking her hair.] Only to look at?
Lövborg. Yes. For we two—she and I—we are two real comrades. We have absolute faith in each other; so we can sit and talk with perfect frankness——
Hedda. ”

“ Hilda. Just like a troll—yes.
Solness. And make a princess of you?
246Hilda. That’s what you promised.
Solness. And give you a kingdom as well?
Hilda. [Looks up at the ceiling.] Why not? Of course it need not have been an actual, every-day sort of a kingdom.
Solness. But something else just as good?
Hilda. Yes, at least as good. [Looks at him a moment.] I thought, if you could build the highest church-towers in the world, you could surely manage to raise a kingdom of one sort or another as well.
Solness. [Shakes his head.] I can’t quite make you out, Miss Wangel.
Hilda. Can you not? ”

“ Solness. Yes.
Hilda. Was that a great misfortune for you?
Solness. That depends on how you look at it. As a builder, the fire was the making of me——
Hilda. Well, but——?
Solness. It was just after the birth of the two little boys——
Hilda. The poor little twins, yes.
Solness. They came healthy and bonny into the world. 279And they were growing too—you could see the difference from day to day.
Hilda. Little children do grow quickly at first.
Solness. It was the prettiest sight in the world to see Aline lying with the two of them in her arms.—But then came the night of the fire——
Hilda. ”

“ Hedda. Uh—the rooms all seem to smell of lavender and dried rose-leaves.—But perhaps it’s Aunt Julia that has brought that scent with her.
Brack. [Laughing.] No, I think it must be a legacy from the late Mrs. Secretary Falk.
79Hedda. Yes, there is an odour of mortality about it. It reminds me of a bouquet—the day after the ball. [Clasps her hands behind her head, leans back in her chair and looks at him.] Oh, my dear Judge—you cannot imagine how horribly I shall bore myself here.
Brack. Why should not you, too, find some sort of vocation in life, Mrs. Hedda? ”

“ Tesman. On Hedda’s account? Eh?
Miss Tesman. Yes, so that Hedda needn’t be ashamed of me if we happened to go out together.
Tesman. [Patting her cheek.] You always think of everything, Aunt Julia. [Lays the bonnet on a chair beside the table.] And now, look here—suppose we sit comfortably on the sofa and have a little chat, till Hedda comes.
[They seat themselves. She places her parasol in the corner of the sofa.
Miss Tesman. [Takes both his hands and looks at him.] What a delight it is to have you again, as large as life, before my very eyes, George! My George—my poor brother’s own boy! ”

“ My fancy, indeed, is very active. But it always wanders away. It wanders where it has no business to wander during working hours. I cannot repress my summer memories—nor do I wish to. I live through my experiences again and again and yet again. To transmute it all into a poem, I find, in the meantime, impossible.“ Clearly, then, he felt that his imagination ought to have been engaged on some theme having no relation to his summer experiences—the theme, no doubt, of Hedda Gabler. ”

“ Solness. Yes, down below—only down below.
Solness. That is where I always stand—on everyday occasions.
[He goes down the flight of steps and away through the garden.
Mrs. Solness. [Calls after him over the railing.] But do beg the man to be careful when he goes up! Promise me that, Halvard! ”

“ Solness. No, she is single.
Hilda. Oh, indeed!
Solness. But I believe she is soon going to be married.
Hilda. That’s a good thing for her.
Solness. But not such a good thing for me. For then I shall have nobody to help me.
Hilda. Can’t you get hold of some one else who will do just as well?
Solness. Perhaps you would stay here and—and write in the ledger?
Hilda. [Measures him with a glance.] Yes, I daresay! No, thank you—nothing of that sort for me.
[She again strolls across the room, and sits down in the rocking-chair. Solness too goes to the table.
Hilda. [Continuing.] ”

“ Hedda. That is stupid of you.
Mrs. Elvsted. [Shakes her head.] It cannot be otherwise—not with him. I don’t think he really cares for any one but himself—and perhaps a little for the children.
Hedda. And for Eilert LövborgLövborg, Thea.
Mrs. Elvsted. [Looking at her.] For Eilert Lövborg? What puts that into your head?
Hedda. Well, my dear—I should say, when he sends you after him all the way to town—— [Smiling almost imperceptibly.] And besides, you said so yourself, to Tesman. ”

“ The poet does not even pass judgment on his heroine: he simply paints her full-length portrait with scientific impassivity. But what a portrait! How searching in insight, how brilliant in colouring, how rich in detail! Grant Allen’s remark, above quoted, was, of course, a whimsical exaggeration: the Hedda type is not so common as all that, else the world would quickly come to an end. But particular traits and tendencies of the Hedda type are very common in modern life, and not only among women. ”

“ And I saw, too, the way he smiled and glanced at Tesman when you dared not accept his invitation to this wretched little supper-party of his.
Lövborg. Dared not! Do you say I dared not?
Hedda. I don’t say so. But that was how Judge Brack understood it.
Lövborg. Well, let him.
Hedda. Then you are not going with them?
108Lövborg. I will stay here with you and Thea.
Mrs. Elvsted. Yes, Hedda—how can you doubt that?
Hedda. [Smiles and nods approvingly to Lövborg.] Firm as a rock! Faithful to your principles, now and for ever! Ah, that is how a man should be! ”

“ So you think it quite out of the question that Tesman should ever get into the ministry?
Brack. H’m—you see, my dear Mrs. Hedda—to get into the ministry, he would have to be a tolerably rich man.
Hedda. [Rising impatiently.] Yes, there we have it! It is this genteel poverty I have managed to drop into——! [Crosses the room.] That is what makes life so pitiable! So utterly ludicrous!—For that’s what it is.
Brack. Now I should say the fault lay elsewhere.
Hedda. Where, then?
Brack. You have never gone through any really stimulating experience.
Hedda. Anything serious, you mean? ”

“ Solness. Yes, you may depend upon it he has the ability! He is the younger generation that stands ready to knock at my door—to make an end of Halvard Solness.
306Hilda. [Looks at him with quiet reproach.] And yet you would bar him out. Fie, Mr. Solness!
Solness. The fight I have been fighting has cost heart’s blood enough.—And I am afraid, too, that the helpers and servers will not obey me any longer.
Hilda. Then you must go ahead without them. There is nothing else for it.
Solness. It is hopeless, Hilda. The luck is bound to turn. A little sooner or a little later. Retribution is inexorable. ”

“ Hilda. [Rises, half serious, half laughing.] No indeed, Mr. Solness! What can be the good of that? No one but you should be allowed to build. You should stand quite alone—do it all yourself. Now you know it. ”

“ Ragnar. There is no one else.
Hilda. Yes, there is one he is striving with.
Ragnar. You are mistaken.
Hilda. Then do you hear no song in the air, either?
Ragnar. It must be the wind in the tree-tops.
Hilda. I hear a song—a mighty song! [Shouts in wild jubilation and glee.] Look, look! Now he is waving his hat! He is waving it to us down here! Oh, wave, wave back to him! For now it is finished! [Snatches the white shawl from the Doctor, waves it, and shouts up to Solness.] Hurrah for Master Builder Solness!
363Dr. Herdal. Stop! Stop!Stop! For God’s sake——! ”

“ Solness. [With subdued emphasis.] It was simply and solely by that fire that I was enabled to build homes for 283human beings. Cosy, comfortable, bright homes, where father and mother and the whole troop of children can live in safety and gladness, feeling what a happy thing it is to be alive in the world—and most of all to belong to each other—in great things and in small.
Hilda. [Ardently.] Well, and is it not a great happiness for you to be able to build such beautiful homes? ”

“ Hilda remains standing on the verandah. Solness comes from the garden, up the flight of steps.
348Solness. Somebody wants me, I hear.
Hilda. Yes; it is I, Mr. Solness.
Solness. Oh, is it you, Hilda? I was afraid it might be Aline or the Doctor.
Hilda. You are very easily frightened, it seems!
Solness. Do you think so?
Hilda. Yes; people say that you are afraid to climb about—on the scaffoldings, you know.
Solness. Well, that is quite a special thing.
Hilda. Then it is true that you are afraid to do it?
Solness. Yes, I am.
Hilda. Afraid of falling down and killing yourself? ”

“ Hilda. Do you say that now?
353Solness. Yes, for now I see it. Men have no use for these homes of theirs—to be happy in. And I should not have had any use for such a home, if I had had one. [With a quiet, bitter laugh.] See, that is the upshot of the whole affair, however far back I look. Nothing really built; nor anything sacrificed for the chance of building. Nothing, nothing! the whole is nothing!
Hilda. Then you will never build anything more?
Solness. [With animation.] On the contrary; I am just going to begin!
Hilda. What, then? What will you build? ”

“ Hedda. [Looks frightened at him.] And if you do not say nothing,—what then?
Brack. [Shrugs his shoulders.] There is always the possibility that the pistol was stolen.
Hedda. [Firmly.] Death rather than that.
Brack. [Smiling.] People say such things—but they don’t do them.
Hedda. [Without replying.] And supposing the pistol was not stolen, and the owner is discovered? What then?
Brack. Well, Hedda—then comes the scandal.
Hedda. The scandal!
Brack. Yes, the scandal—of which you are so mortally afraid. You will, of course, be brought before the court—both you and Mademoiselle Diana. ”