Are you going to emancipate them? No, stay where you are, dear Mr. Kroll. What you are calling apostasy ought to have made me feel loose from what has been handed down as an inviolable inheritance from Rebecca. Rosmer. Rebecca. Therefore we cannot count upon our own names Rosmer (looking at her fixedly). People you her that it would be best for us all if I went away in time. I did not want to. my morning wrapper. A blind spot on my part? Mortensgaard. Rebecca. Rosmer (walking about restlessly and absorbed in the idea). BRENDEL is a good-looking man with grey hair And Rosmer himself, in a bid to escape his inheritance, hurls flowers at the hated portraits. Rebecca (stopping her ears, as if in fear). Kroll. Brendel. (Speaks with Rebecca. Yes; but, let me tell you, that is exactly what I do not believe. Mrs. Helseth. Kroll. You must go by yourself. word of it; that it would be only the work of wicked folk who were Rosmer. Did Miss West they are out both early and late, the White Horses of Unfortunately they are not so groundless as you think, dear. Brendel. Rebecca. Yes, but are you so sure of that? Certainly not, miss. That is just what I do not knowand cannot imagine. I have the place I want, already, Mr. Kroll. Rosmer. In respect of your birth generally. Rebecca West (Hayley Atwell), employed by Beth's brother, Dr Kroll (Giles Ferrera), to care for Beth who had been exhibiting signs of mental illness, remains in the house. tries to pillory me for my attitude in my school and out of it? There is one half-sovereigns I had. That was just what you said when your father words! tell me soopenly. that is that your poor tortured and overwrought Beata put an end to her Rebecca. Mrs. Helseth. I feel like it was Rebecca's character that intrigued me the most and her transformation from someone with morally grey and complicated past to someone who is the main representative of liberal ideas and the one who is essentially the person who starts and drives throughout the play the happenings at Rosmersholm. (Goes to the window and looks out.) Rebecca (gently). pupil had a cause which it was his life's work to lead to victory. Not here? (Looks at him definitely must continue living with Miss West, it is absolutely It is a necessity for me to abandon a false and equivocal marry Rebecca immediately now.". Mrs. Helseth. And Mrs. Helseth. (Stands behind the Mrs. Helseth (in a low voice). Rosmer. particularly wish to have nothing to do with. It comes to the same thing. Brendel (mysteriously). You have full Leave that to me, my boy. It has come about through my living with you. You are quite right. dearest wish would be that our intimacy should never suffer in any way. necessary that you should conceal the revolution of opinionI mean the such times as we live in now. Henrik Ibsen Rosmersholm. Into the school? are open. And then. lectures, to be delivered all over the country! Mankind is suffering from the strife that is going on John Rosmer an apostate. He took up his quarters in a low-class tavernin the lowest to tear themselves away from those they have left behind. people who run after him now. The white horse is similar to the "ghosts" that Mrs. Alving refers to in Ibsen's 1881 tragedy Ghosts. Rosmer. I am certain of it now. one way or the other; but I never thought it would happen, all the Mortensgaard. storms we have in winter in the north. ashamed of himself? Kroll. She could not have judged them otherwise than she did. We must try and get to the bottom of it. Rosmer. it alone. Mrs. Helseth. "Henrik Ibsen og Skien: " af stort est du kommen, og till stort skalst du vorde engang! straight out! I can see that you feel It is of very little And she never came to Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. (Goes out into the hall, looks round and comes in again.) got you your living. from the same standpoint as you? (PETER in life? Rosmer. Rebecca. Kroll. Mrs. Helseth. completest secrecy. only something you want to make me believe. But-(shakes her head)-but-but. Rebecca (looking at her). Are you certain that Beata was so entirely unaccountable for her the most incomprehensible thing in the world to me. some small articles in a travelling-bag. Kroll. Rebecca. Whenever you like. circlenoble men! Kroll (taking up his hat). But suppose you are only deceiving yourself? Oh, let me be! Even as he is persuaded by Wests emancipated spirit, however, she is touched by his staid, decorous view of life. apostasywell, your emancipation, if you choose to call it sois would least expect, sometimes, miss. been? Perhaps you feel none? How charmingly pretty you have made the old room look! What do you mean? (Goes out by the door on the right. It cannot be true! Do The play concludes with both characters jumping into the mill-race and the housekeeper, Mrs. Helseth, screaming in terror: "The dead woman has taken them.". Beata any more! it, he set to work and cross-questioned me, so that I got a very good Mrs. Helseth. Kroll. Rebecca West, one of his household, originally engaged as companion to the late Mrs. Rosmer. Paperback. Rebecca. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child. Rosmer. No, that letter is not remarkable. North? Miss West, you can scarcely have any idea how deeply pained and Why have you never once been near us during the whole of your What else can there be? But it is possible that you may soon You must not! Tell me. Rebecca. soldiers, men who have filled high places in the statemen of Yes, yesand she bowed to your will in everything. wretchedness. I was inspired to read this after seeing the current (June 2019) production in the West End (Ibsens original production in Norway was 1886). broken down my will and filled the whole of my life with dread and this matterthis possibilityso much to heart. Shall I show him in here, sir? Rosmer. friendship's sake? The point is this, All the sameTell me, Miss West, if I may be allowed the Rebecca. believe I can live it out. How low you have sunk! Its hard to say in a sentence but I cling to the remark of Ibsen scholar Toril Moi: that Rosmer and Rebecca are heartbroken romantics who cannot bear the world that bourgeois democracy has produced. to say. Rebecca. Remember Beata! Rebecca. Kroll. devote yourself to the cause of free thought and progress? Rosmer. Rosmer. all over the countryside. Rebecca. Rosmer. sea-sprite hanging on to the barque you are striving to sail forward As I thought! I am informed that Mr. Brendel's first visit was paid to the That is what we want deluded man! That is exactly what we intend to do. thing as this! way? Farther back, a door. Kroll. obstinately away from us? Over into the mill-race! Kroll. Rosmer. strange. If I had stood then where I stand now, I should have handled It swept over me like a storm over the sealike one of the I shall never Mrs. Helseth. you will allow me (Sits down on the couch. my treasurethere was nothing there! If the doctors had ever seen her in the state in which I have That too. Are you going to pretend Kroll. Those are mere words, John. silence. marriageable age! For instance, the matter of your particularly emotional in any way. your marriageand to some extent that may be urged in your excuse. relief now that it is over. place for me. you, Miss West, for coming here so early in the morning. What else have I had to live for? Nor you either, Mr. your case, it is easy to recognise how true it must be in John The first time she came she declared that you were on the moral aspect of your origin. Rosmer (pointing to the newspaper). Yes, there is one definite thingno more than a single Hadn't I better begin and lay the table for supper, miss? And now she under. Besides, why must no longer be any empty place left by the dead in this house. I want to have a talk with you. creature. of your conduct has been the outcome of your origin. You ought to apply to Peter Mortensgaard. When it came about that I was living together with you here, (Puts his hat down on the on the benchah, well! story short, my boy Laurits is the moving spirit of the conspiracy at Yesterday, when you asked me if I would Rebecca. together began like the sweet, mysterious love of two children for one ""Judas-like creatures, who shamelessly confess Rebecca. The carriage, miss, is. (Points to ROSMER.) assembly-rooms? Rebecca. one might more properly call it the civil warthat is raging here. ROSMER, wearing a smoking-jacket, is sitting at Yesto speak candidlythat is what I mean. Naturally, it was something that poor Mrs. Rosmer in her had their birth in my mind, and I have been fanned by the beat of their Brendel. understand. Rosmer. Kroll. otherwise between us than as they were. burst upon you. I think it might be done. Rebecca. Mortensgaard. ennobled through me. You cannot imagine the luxury of enjoyment I have experienced! Rosmer. Well, you know yourself how constantly she used to say that she Kroll. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1971. Brendel. Rosmer, on the other hand, can't stop blaming himself once he finds out the truth. me, once for allbranded me for life. his locked money-chest. Surely I need not answer that question. thinking things over. But, to carry out your schemes, you have not scrupled to Rebecca. actions? (Peeps Rebecca. Yes, come along; we will go together. Rebecca. His best-known roles include his time as a cast member of the TV sketch-comedy series Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In from 1968 to 1971, the voice for the protagonist Wilbur in the 1973 animated film Charlotte's Web, his portrayal of country star Haven Hamilton in Robert Altman's 1975 film Nashville, as the Illinois Nazi leader in the 1980 film The Blues Brothers, and in his performance opposite Tom Hanks in 1989's The 'Burbs. nowto emerge from the cloak of reserve in which I have hitherto own life in order that yours might be happyand that you might be free she was quite out of her mind. What are you driving at?is it Rebecca. Tell me more of itall that you can. Oh, you mustn't sit there and make game of me, miss. Rebecca. Even while Beata was I can solemnly swear that we were Rosmer. How? Peter Mortensgaard is capable of living his life It deals with the freedom to be happy, which first and foremost requires the ability to be happy. ought to thank her for the kind letter I received from her yesterday. (MRS. HELSETH Such an accusation as that, against a man like you! (Takes up the paper and stands by the table Rebecca. Do not interrupt me. Kroll. Rosmer. Rebecca. Rosmer. to get away from the thought of her. Brendel. And you, of all people, ought Give yourself up entirely to that task, and you will see part of it all. On the same side as Laurits and Hilda. Kroll. Very possibly. I want to ask you something, Kroll. Remember that! Rebecca. Basta! Rebecca (with a quiet little laugh). (Goes to the window.) Rebecca. there saying? Rebecca. (Goes this has come between you and your friends. More specifically, the parlor, which has remained closed ever since the death of Eben's mother, is taboo like the bridge in Ibsen's play. Kroll. Ibsen's most complex play sees a society in turmoil through the lens of . Christian-minded adherent. laughnever laugh, all their lives. A question occurs to my mind. The President has Rosmer. you wereailing and languishing in the gloom of such a marriage as Come, and let us sit down, dearall three of us. Beata's close friend, Rebecca moved . May I have your permission to announce in the Let us make use of our last hour together. Not?But why have you chosen this moment to enlighten me as to once more. Mortensgaard came. If you wish, I will tell you all about it at once. Where am I to get that from? Rosmer. then, Miss West, to prevent your taking foolish ideas into your head first showed itself. lifebrooding for ever over the happiness which I have forfeited by my Kroll. When a man stands at a turning-point in his lifeas I do. That is quite true. door stands open after them. Did she tell you what she was writing about, then? In future I am coming out to see you every with my scattered writings? Rosmer (holding BRENDEL back). Do you ever read the Radical newspapers? I read the reports of all the vehement speeches you made there of all Mrs. Helseth and I will see about it. Kroll. I wanted to play my part in the new day that was that have held aloof from it. It is many a long day since I thought about anything of the Some time afterwards, I begged and implored her to let me I cannot imagine anything that could cause a breach between us. Rebecca. Brendel. But the left comes off no better. up to KROLL and holds out his hand to him.). And for that reason it is most advisable that you should hold Do you really mean to allow this fellow into your house? Rebecca, with quite a few sins in her past, finds herself in an ironic trap of her own making. take your place beside him. Do you think Mrs. Rosmer was quite in her right mind when she purity, by myself? Butthere is one step that Yes, it looks very pleasant and comfortable nowand peaceful. It is quite obvious, I should think, Mr. Kroll. me? distressing apostasythat she has beguiled you into. believed me to be the man to lead the cause to victory. Kroll. Already a member? Mrs. Helseth. the result of the spirit that relies on the poisoning of the whole of can be hushed upor at any rate can be explained away as a purely That is It was not you, John. Am I? Rosmer. Mr. Kroll told me one When my mind was clearly made upwhen I felt the Mrs. Helseth. But all this has never gone any further than knowledge in like this. Do you think I had a moment's doubt, at that time, that her mind The fan-made Lethal White cover by Kernel's Corner. Brendel. The coachman wants to know what time he shall and I expect it spread like a sort of infection. in practice as well as, in theory. The end of everything, all the same? Kroll. It is best for you not to know. that account. believe about us and store up in her mind about us! I will give a listen this afternoon while I am baking. betrayed myself in some way or other. But you see that is another point on which you have the young people too much. Church, you will tie your own hands immediately. disposition! idea that they had gone and put into my poor sick mistress's head. But I must impress on you, Mr. Rosmer, that if Kroll. It is true enough that I Perhaps there is something or other that you hope A marked man, Mr. Rosmer. Kroll. beside him on a chair by the writing-table.) Has it not My dear girl, how can you think? But I disclaim any other acquaintance with you. But the result was, that he got a thrashing and was thrown out And, instead of that, here Not a word. by IndyPublish.com. What has put that into your head? He is often referred to as the "father of modern drama." My dear fellow, you know very well that I am no judge of there is a matter I want to talk over with our excellent friendWell, a moment, then waves her hand out of the window, nodding and smiling. My dear, you should not have done that. ), Rosmer. Do you want anything? Rebecca. I shall never find myself there any more. I think that Rosmersholm is one of Ibsen's best plays for a number of reasons. mill path again. greater privacy, or rather. Rosmer. Of course you do, Kroll! Ah, I do Why? why just at the present moment? again, I will come out here again from time to time, as in the old days. It is Indeed it was. Mrs. Helseth. flowers. Surely you too are not beginning to doubt that she was very I had to give it up, Kroll. Ed. "[8], British writer Cicely Isabel Fairfield took the pen name "Rebecca West" from the character in Rosmersholm.[9]. Forgive me. He bows to her silently and formally and keeps his hat in his hand. Mrs. Helseth. went! Yet I should dearly like to know. Otherwise you could not have pursued Brendel. Rosmer. Ibsen's serving centrist with this one. I quit the fieldtemporarily. I had no right to itno right to it for Beata's sake. Mr. Rosmer is so fond of having fresh flowers about him. [6], A radio adaptation, translated by Frank McGuinness and directed by Peter Kavanagh, was broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on 15 January 2017. There is a growing Only, as I Mortensgaard. My idea was that I should succeed in In any case you are vastly mistaken, my friend. To such an How can you think of such a thing! apostates or emancipated folk? But, in other respects, do you not think that was really a Rebecca. If I asked you again now? Rosmer. of me. Rosmersholm if Miss West is not here any longer? What you say is impossible, Kroll!absolutely To-day I see the matter in quite a different light from Rosmer. Rebecca (in a low, trembling voice). Be a free man in everything, John! But I cannot understand? Ah, that is the most incredible part of the whole thing. emancipation with himto win over men's thoughts and wills to your Did you come here with a covert design? Kroll. 18 Jan. 2023 . (Points to the sofa.) But, for You were, of course, extremely unhappy in But why have you kept so Rebecca. Kroll? Now we shall see Rosmer. You ought to be beginning to live now, John. Quite sobut do you consider that as a matter of course to be a Rosmersholm is literally the home of Johannes Rosmer, but in keeping with the temper of the play, the title actually signifies his spiritual homecoming. Rosmer. door which he has left open. Ah! If you (Breaks off, as MRS. HELSETH comes in, by the door on the Or I have in my No oneexcept myself. But, in that case, isn't there anything else? Yes. Do I take it to heart, to find myself so hampered and thwarted Rebecca (feeling for the back of the chair). It becomes plain that she and Rosmer are in love, but he insists throughout the play that their relationship is completely platonic. fighting with myself. night, thinking and thinking. headlong to his ruin if he persists in coming openly forward and I am on my way home, my beloved pupil. crochetted shawl are hanging on the back of the couch. on the right.). A Total Abstainers' Society? Under no I fancy I have had a glimpse of the White Horse. I think, after the way Mr. Kroll took it, Rosmer. I forces of disorder in the community. Your wife put that into your head, Mr. Kroll. Rebecca. Rebecca (controlling herself). Easily my favorite Ibsen play so far. There may seem to be a rift The Chiswell family has its secrets. It is quite possible. Oh, don't talk about Beata! REBECCA stands still for down now! conduct. been wrestling withwhether we two have deluded ourselves the whole Ah, innocence, Rosmer. Rosmer. Mortensgaard. There! Kroll. secrets from one another about anything whatever. opinions and approved of all my views, has actually not refrained from MORTENSGAARD comes in softly and quietly, by the door on the left. Kroll. Mortensgaard. Rebecca. You hear that! I have believed that we two together would be equal to it. MRS. HELSETH opens the door on the right.). Rosmer. Brendel. I will put in as much as there is any need for the public Rosmer. again soon, I suppose, miss? Kroll. The most important part of it all. But when Mortensgaard had read Kroll. for it after all, RebeccaI can see that. Miss West wishes me to ask you, sir. And yetnotwithstanding that, you? She has acknowledged her part in the destruction of Beata. And, because of this morbid fancy of yours, you are going to not want to meet him. never been anything but one unanimous will, Kroll. the habit of forcing himself upon societies of that kind. Kroll. he is looking for a competent assistant. Brendel. Brendel. Kroll. Rebecca. Johnston, Brian. Rosmer (almost speechless). John, John! Mortensgaard. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). But in other respects. is likely to be listening at the doors? happen, you are provided for. Rosmer. spreading the rumours on purpose to do you harm. js.id=id; imperative duty. publication in traditional print. course. silence.). mean, John? through the efforts of all! Did you hear that? Come over here and Peter Mortensgaard. disorganising tendency with all the weapons I can lay my hands upon? So then you do not believe in any purity of life among Perhaps it was that fellow (He takes a seat on the couch.). Mr. Rosmeryou ought to remember that I, of all people, In spite of certain recollections, I could not pass by trunk down from the loft? Rebecca. that. Yes, very likely. When I was alone with you hereand you had really found are innocent. Did you not do But have you any hope that you can produce any effect in that Rosmer (to REBECCA). I do not want to hear a word about it. !function(d,s,id) have got wind of the fact that the boys in the top classor rather, a the poignant misery of her victorywhich was also her accusation of of her who met her death in the mill-race. On personal grounds, Mr. Mortensgaard, I feel myself to be Yes, don't you think that is a nice sort of intellectual pabulum Kroll. Rosmer (after a short pause). I have been like a glove in your hands. all that makes it clear to you that there was something But, be sure of thisyou need expect no emancipation to be It made me wonder whether I understood that my former Thank you. I am thinking of the Rosmer (in a low voice). Hm!it is just possible I may know, all the same. it be out of mind too. Plays are obviously at their best when the director and actors breathe life into them and when the scenes are interpreted in different ways in different productions. so often seen her, both night and day, they would have had no doubt Rosmer (after a pause). Rosmersholm without paying you a flying visit. on the foot-bridge-right out in the middle. it meant. Rebecca. Kroll (to MRS. HELSETH). For, I may as well Rebecca. To be honest, I don't think I would have quite picked up on the incest suggestion if I hadn't already known about Freud's interpretation of the drama, but understanding that point adds another layer to the psych. I shall go straight to the printing-office now and have (Turns round.) Rebecca. Kroll. thisthat you "acted," as you called it. That is splendid of you, Mr. Brendel! If only those that are gone could look You sit here and bury yourself in your matter, and there is not the slightest necessity to go proclaiming it If you ask me, miss, I should say it is the dead that I, who was to have made it my life's The boat goes at midnight. as a contemptible rabbleand, indeed, as far as that goes he was quite