Las Hermanas de Nora

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen
Dear sisters – and brothers – of Nora in Spain,

It gives me great pleasure to be here today and to attend this event – “Nora’s sisters”, here in Madrid. The aim of the series of seminars on Nora and her legacy is to use the work of our great playwright Henrik Ibsen as a starting point to put gender issues on the agenda.  

One may ask why we – in 2007 – are so interested in the works of a Norwegian playwright who died one hundred years ago? And what relevance do Ibsen’s plays have to contemporary life in Spain?

Or for that matter in China, India, Israel, Malawi, Mozambique or Egypt – for similar seminars have been held in all these countries during the last couple of years, and more are to come.

Part of the answer is that even in different times and different places, human nature essentially remains the same.

And this is what they are about, the plays of Ibsen – human nature.

Ibsen’s dramas are universal, present-day dramas, and the problems he brought to the fore are the common problems of everyday life. 

In 2006 we commemorated the centennial of Ibsen’s death. The global interest was far greater than we expected. It turned out to be one of Norway’s greatest international cultural programmes ever – with more than 8000 events in more than 83 countries.

I am pleased to note that many Ibsen-related events took place here in Spain both in 2006 and in 2007. But it is particularly inspiring to hear that Ibsen and his universe is nothing new to Spain. In fact, the first Ibsen event here in Madrid took place at the Atheneum in March 1907 and was attended by many of your top intellectuals.

The two visits to Norway by your outstanding director Calixto Beito in 2006 with his groundbreaking version of Peer Gynt in Catalan were a great treat for us. Calixto Beito has now been engaged by the National Theatre in Oslo to direct Brand. This is something that I am in particular looking forward to.

But what, you may ask, has Ibsen to do with foreign policy? Quite a lot, actually.

In his plays, Ibsen raises questions about political power, idealism, fanaticism, corruption, the environment, neglected children, individual freedom, cultural and socio-economic challenges – and gender equality.

And, not least, he raises basic questions on truth and how to balance individual freedom against the freedom of others.

These are all elements of foreign policy. And moreover, while he asked questions, he did not provide any answers.

His challenge to us was for us to reflect on the dilemmas the questions raise - as well as possible solutions.

Ibsen makes us reflect. And reflection is what moves us forward.

It is when positions become stale, when ideologies provide all the answers that we have reason to worry.

Thus, Ibsen’s questions to us are questions to be debated and discussed by each new generation, in any country – just as you are about to do here today.

“To be a poet is to see,” Ibsen claimed.  He saw things with the eye of an eagle and in his plays he set up chain reactions that alter the way we see our own lives.

Take for example his play A Doll’s House; it continues to have an immeasurable influence. It is staged again and again all over the world, in new forms, in new contexts, constantly highlighting new aspects of gender issues.

Constantly challenging us to see that gender relations are deeply engrained in social attitudes. In who and how we are.

Pursuit of freedom can never be fulfilled if ones life is governed by violence and fear of violence.

Freedom from violence is an essential feature of any democratic society allowing its members to prosper.

The recent legislation in Spain allowing for acknowledgment of the abuses that took place during the Franco regime is a response to this reflection. To know ourselves is to know where we come from. To recognize our history. With its losses and its achievements.

As Ibsen knew well, without truth there can be no change and no real freedom.

I have been told that here, in the Ciudad Universitaria, some of the most violent clashes during the Spanish civil war took place.

Today, it is particularly pertinent to remember what the Franco regime meant for women’s pursuit for justice and freedom. It is well known that the Franco-regime put a stop to a radical women policy taken by the legal government in the thirties. A lid was virtually put on women’s liberation for forty years.

What your democratic governments have achieved in terms of gender equality measures is therefore especially impressive.

The ongoing campaign against gender violence as well as the initiative to establish Courts for Violence against Women here in Spain are concrete steps in making the state accountable for the protection of women from violence and abuse. To act efficiently against gender based violence taking place today.

Dear friends,

Perceptions of gender influence all spheres of society. The issue of violence is but one.

We can learn from Nora, who is often considered a symbol of feminism. But we can also learn from a number of other characters in the universe of Ibsen, such as Nora’s friend Mrs Linde, who ignored conventions and took on paid work to provide for herself and her family. 

Norway’s social policies have focused on how to encourage women to play their rightful part in the economic sphere by providing child-care facilities. We have also encouraged sharing of responsibilities for children and the home between fathers and mothers.

It is now more than 10 years since we introduced a system whereby fathers are encouraged to take a portion of the parental leave. Early critics argued that this was a way of limiting the family’s right to choose how to organise family life. But experience has shown that a steady growing number of fathers view this as an opportunity to spend more time with their children.

I know that also the Spanish government is making a great effort to improve the social conditions for parents to be able to combine their working life with family life.

I was inspired to learn that Spain’s gender equality law (Ley de Igualdad), which was launched in March this year, calls for balanced representation of men and women on boards and committees. I was also inspired by your new law to provide economic compensation for those who take care of the elderly and sick within the family.

In A Doll’s House, Nora struggles with fundamental moral questions: freedom of an individual versus a required loyalty to something outside herself; marriage versus divorce. “Before all else I am a reasonable human being, just as you are,” she says to her husband.

So, dear sisters and brothers of Nora, I hope this seminar will help us to stake out the path ahead on our journey as human beings – both men and women.

I would like to thank the Complutence University and Foro Complutence (Fundacion Universidad Complutence) for hosting and co-organising this seminar and I am confident that the debate will be both stimulating and challenging.