Henrik Ibsen was the son of a weathy merchant in Norway. In 1836, however, the elder Ibsen filed for bankruptcy. The family was forced to move to a small house, and Henrik had to leave his beloved private school to attend a public school, which he always believed left him with an inferior education. He left home as soon as he was old enough to become a druggist's apprentice. As a young man, Ibsen was both a social and political rebel, founding a radical club that worked to promote issues of personal and national freedom. He drank and gambled heavily, and at the age of 18 he became an unwed father. In 1850 he wrote his first play, and in 1857 he became the director of the Norwegian Theater, and he and his family moved abroad. They lived primarily in Italy until 1891, and Ibsen wrote his major plays during this time.

Major works by Ibsen

Peer Gynt (1867)

A Doll's House (1879)

Ghosts (1881) An Enemy of the People (1882)

An Enemy of the People (1882)

Hedda Gabler (1890)

When We Dead Awaken (1899)

Ibsen and the Web

For an extensive biography of Henrik Ibsen, visit Professor Bjorn Hemmer's page.

Would you like to see the title page of the manuscript of A Doll's House in Ibsen's handwriting? Visit this page.