The Wild Duck Journal 3

In both Oedipus and the Wild Duck, I was not that fond of the main character in the play. Oedipus was both overconfident, and condescending to the other characters, and lacked respect for even the gods. Hjalmar is not much different. He is ungrateful, and rude. When he walks into his home after the dinner party, he is very demanding from his wife and daughter, and does not show them too much kindness. He is more kind to his daughter, but shows a complete lack of respect and appreciation for his wife. He waits on him and does whatever he asks. When he asked for lunch, he demanded that she make what he wanted, and that she make some for his friends. He asks her to do his work for him, and does not even thank her. It was very selfish of him to react the way he did to the new that Gregers gave him about Gina and Werle. After all that she had done for him, and that he had put her through, he had no right to react the way he did over something that happened in the past. Even when he plans to move out and leave Gina, he still eats the food that she prepares for him.

The author adds to the effect of the tragedy by making the main character unlikable. The characters see the bad things unfold, while it is the likable characters that suffer. Jocasta, though her actions were not very nice, was made to be liked by Sophocles. She was the character that ended up killing herself in the end. In The Wild Duck, Isben kills the arguably most likable character in the play, Hedvig.