Torvald Helmer is the least sympathetic character in A Doll's House, a play by Henrik Ibsen. Torvald is sometimes portrayed as a sexist pig. Such a reading is unfair to Torvald. His character is deeper if we follow the hints that he had actively covered up Nora's father. The first clue came when Nora told Kristina that Torvald had given up his government position because there was no prospect of advancement. There may have been no opportunity to advance because promotions were slow within the office, but that may have been because his most intimate colleagues (those who would have used the familiar Du with him ) were aware of what he had done. . Even though management did not prosecute him (just as Krogstad was not prosecuted), those who knew about the incident were able to prevent his advancement into an office where his larceny tendencies could cause him a real harm. A second clue is that Helmer saw Krogstad as a threat to his new position at the savings bank: "he seems to think he has a right to know me." Did he suspect that Krogstad knew the one terrible secret that could destroy him? The third clue follows this lead: Krogstad expected Nora to have enough influence to persuade her husband not to fire him. Why did he believe this unless he had suspicions about his past influence? Another clue comes when Helmer remarks: "I pretend that we are secretly in love - secretly engaged - and that no one dreams of there being anything between us." Why does he want this? Isn't this a reference to the conflict of interest regarding his father? Finally, after reading Krogstad's letter, Nora's father comes to mind almost immediately; he exclaims, "So this is what I get for tolerating his fault! I did it for you, and...... middle of paper ......e Artist. Coral Gables, Florida: University of Miami. Koht, Halvdan 1971. Life of Ibsen New York: Benjamin Blom. Meyer, Michael 1971. Ibsen A Biography, NY: Doubleday and Company. Northam, John 1965. “Ibsen. A Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Notes: 1. Clurman (1977: 115, 117). Brandes (1964: 77-78): "The man is entirely honorable, scrupulously upright, thrifty, careful of his position in the eyes of strangers and inferiors, a faithful husband, a strict and loving father, good-hearted. . Brandes (1964:49) says that Ibsen regards Helmer as a stupid and evil man, whose "stupidity stems solely from his self-righteous selfishness."3. Clurman (1977: 115-116) presents the traditional interpretation of Krogstad: "a gentle man driven to harshness."