TWD Journal 3

"After a moment Gina, wearing a hat and coat, enters by the hall door [...] Because Relling and Molvik are dropping in too" (157-158).

• Hjalmar tells Gina to return the Molvik's coat back to him early the next morning. The reason Gina is returning in the beginning of act three is because she is doing so. The fact that Hjalmar was already going to see Molvik the next morning, accompanied by Relling, emphasizes Hjalmar's need to protect his facade. If Hjalmar asks Gina to return the coat to Molvik without Relling, or anybody else knowing, helps protect the ideal self he is trying to accomplish.

"The bottom of the sea" (164)

• The bottom of the sea represents the real truth behind the family stories. "The bottom of the sea" goes along with the idea of a wounded duck plundging into the water and grabbing onto the moss at the bottom. These two ideas compare, because "the bottom of the sea" and the wounded duck at the bottom of the water" represent the real truth, and trying to hide from the real truth.

"My dear Hjalmar, I suspect you've got a bit of the wild duck in you" (170)

• Gregers is using "the wild duck" in a negative view. Gregers is accusing Hjalmar of being a wounded duck grabbing onto the moss at the bottom of the water: Hjalmar is wounded by the lies, but is trying to hide from the real truth

"In my house nobody talks to me about ugly things" (170)

• By Hjalmar stating that nobody talks to him about negative, or harmful things, identifies Gina's protection over him. Hjalmar used to be suicidal; he used to be mentally fragile. Gina is afraid that if Hjalmar was to find out about the "real truth" that he would become suicidal once again, believing that he lives for nothing.

"He is suffering from an acute case of moralistic fever" (178)

• Relling is referring to morals as a disease that swept over Gregers. Diseases sicken, or sometimes impairs people during, so by Relling calling it a "fever" suggests that Gregers is only doing this because his strong morals has temporarily impaired him of thinking right.