Enemy of the People

The three plays in this volume all point to a common origin - the hurt, distress and disgust Ibsen felt at the hostile reception given in 1881 by the Norwegian public and critics to "Ghosts".

They are all concerned with the problem of telling the truth, with the need for individual decision and moral courage.

In "An enemy of the people", Dr Stockmann finds himself up against an alliance of political hypocrisy and vested interest when he attempts to reveal that the town's public baths, its civic pride and joy, are polluted. "The wild duck" dramatizes the shock of growing up through the figure of 14 year old Hedrig Ekdal, while "Rosmersholm" explores the contrast of a progressive, passionate and ruthless character with a conservative and contemplative inclination and the changes wrought by one on the another.