As their conversation continues in the brightened room, she lapses into her former friendliness. Rank points out that she seems even more relaxed in his company than with Torvald. Nora explains that “there are some people one loves best and others whom one would almost always rather have as companions.” When living with Papa, she used to steal into the maids’ rooms because “they never moralized at all and talked to each other about such interesting things.” She concludes with unconscious significance that “being with Torvald is a little like being with Papa.”
At this point, the maid hands her Krogstad’s visiting card. Finding some pretext, Nora excuses herself from Dr. Rank and confronts the moneylender, who has just received Torvald’s letter of dismissal. Krogstad informs Nora that he has no further interest in the money and will keep the bond in a gesture of blackmail. With this weapon, he will have the power to make Torvald guarantee his employment at the bank and to eventually attain a higher position.
Nora declares that her husband would never submit to such humiliation and hints she would rather sacrifice her life than have Torvald suffer blame for her crime. She is sure his protective nature would make him assume all the guilt, but Krogstad has a much lower opinion of Torvald’s character. Turning to go, he tells her that he is leaving a letter informing Torvald of the forgery. Nora listens breathlessly as the footsteps pass downstairs. As they pause, she hears something drop into the letterbox, then the steps gradually diminish.
Returning to Christine, Nora tells of the forgery and the letter. She begs her friend to act as a witness “if anything should happen to me.” Were someone to take all the blame, all the responsibility, Christine must “remember that I alone did the whole thing.” With mounting emotion, Nora says, “A wonderful thing is going to happen. But it is so terrible, Christine, it mustn’t happen, not for all the world.” Christine insists upon paying Krogstad a visit right away. On the strength of their past love, she will ask him to recall the letter.
Torvald is accustomed at this hour to read his mail, and Nora tries to distract him. She tells him that she is so nervous about dancing the tarantella for the party that he must help her practice until the last minute. Agreeing to do nothing but instruct her dancing—not even open his mail—Torvald watches as Nora begins her dance, Rank playing the piano accompaniment. Despite her husband’s instructions, Nora moves more and more violently, dancing “as if her life depended on it.” Torvald suddenly cries “Stop! This is sheer madness. You have forgotten everything I’ve taught you.” He embraces his nervous wife, suspecting that she is afraid of a letter Krogstad may have written. He promises not to look in the letterbox. “The child shall have her way,” murmurs the comforting amorous husband. “But tomorrow night after you have danced—” “Then you will be free,” she answers significantly.
Christine returns and tells Nora that Krogstad is out of town, but she left a letter for him. Alone, Nora resigns herself to suicide, reckoning that, until the end of the party, she has thirty-one hours left to live. “Where’s my little skylark?” calls Torvald returning from the dining room to fetch her. As Nora stretches her arms out to him, the curtain falls.
