The collected works of Henrik Ibsen, Vol. 08 (of 11)

This volume brings together two of Henrik Ibsen’s most celebrated dramas, presented in a carefully edited edition that includes helpful footnotes, hyperlinks to textual corrections, and an introductory essay that places the works in the context of the playwright’s career. The scholarly apparatus makes the reading experience smooth for both newcomers and seasoned listeners, while preserving the original language and dramatic tension.

In the first play, a principled doctor discovers that the town’s cherished baths are being polluted, and his insistence on public health clashes with the community’s economic interests. The opening act sets the stage for a clash between individual conscience and the pressure of the majority, introducing a cast of townsfolk whose loyalties and ambitions quickly become entangled.

The second drama opens with a family gathering that reveals hidden layers of truth and illusion, centered around a fragile wild duck that serves as a quiet symbol of the characters’ broken ideals. As the act unfolds, the audience meets the idealistic idealist and his pragmatic relatives, hinting at the emotional turbulence that will follow without spilling the later revelations.