
author
1828–1906
A master of modern drama, this Norwegian playwright reshaped the stage with fearless, realistic plays that challenged social rules and private hypocrisies. His work still feels startlingly alive in classics like A Doll’s House, Ghosts, and Hedda Gabler.

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen

by Henrik Ibsen
Born in Skien, Norway, on March 20, 1828, Henrik Ibsen became one of the most influential playwrights of the 19th century. He worked in the theater in Bergen and Christiania before spending many years abroad in Italy and Germany, where he wrote several of the plays that made his reputation.
Ibsen is widely known for helping bring modern realism to the stage. Instead of grand heroes and neat moral lessons, his plays explored marriage, power, money, ambition, and the pressure of social expectations. Works such as Brand, Peer Gynt, A Doll’s House, Ghosts, An Enemy of the People, and Hedda Gabler helped change what audiences expected drama to do.
Late in life, Ibsen returned to Norway and was celebrated as a major literary figure. He died in Christiania (now Oslo) on May 23, 1906, but his influence has lasted far beyond his own era, shaping playwrights and theater-makers around the world.