One of the many social issues dealt with in Ibsen's predicament plays is the lack of freedom bestowed upon women limiting them to a domestic life. In Hedda Gabler, Hedda struggles with an independent intellect and satisfying her ambitions in the slender role society allows her. Incapable of being creative the way she wants, Hedda's passions become destructive to herself and others around her.

With a father that is a general, Hedda is more of a leader than an ordinary housewife. She manipulates her husband George due to the fact she is unable to have the authority she craves. She tells Thea, "I want the power to shape a man's destiny." Just the mention of her pregnancy displays impatientness and evasiveness because of her unsuitability for a domestic role. She tells Judge Brack, "I've had no leanings in that direction." This seems to point out her unwillingness to...