Journal #3 - The Wild Duck

In The Wild Duck, there are three characters at fault for the events that transpire. the first, most direct character would be Gregers. He is the character that acts as a catalyst for the plot. He pushes Hjalmar into discovering the truth, which ultimately leads to the death of Hedvig. The second character is Gina, who is the one who spins the lies around Hjalmar that are ultimately torn down. The third, most insidious character Old Werle. He is the man who set a trap for Old Ekdal back when he was still wealthy. Due to this, it is not doubtful that he also placed Gina in Hjalmar's arms, in fear of a illegitimate child. Old Werle can be considered as the origin of the problems that surface in this play.
The truly innocent character of The Wild Duck is Hedvig. Hedvig is portrayed as the young innocent that happens to be caught up in the events of the play. The heat of the arguments avoid her, and she is left in the dark. She does not understand her father's sentiments when he tries to push her away after discovering the truth. "There's no one who knows her, and no one who knows where she's come from, either" (164).
The characters of Gregers, Gina, and Old Werle share equal blame for the events. Without at least one of these characters' actions, the events would not have transpired. However, other characters share the blame, too. Hjalmar's reaction to the events ultimately causes Hedvig to commit suicide, while Mrs. Sorby's delivery inadvertently brings light to the possibility that Hedvig is an illegitimate child.
In spite of this, none of the characters take the blame for the events, except for one. Hedvig is the only character that moves to take the blame. After Hjalmar's reactions, she believes that she is the cause of the problem that begins tearing the Ekdal family apart. With pushing from pushing from Gregers, she decides to shoot herself to solve this problem.