Ghosts

Henrik Ibsen's social commentary, Ghosts, addresses the issue of a person and a society living life for the sake of others. According to Ghosts, a person ceases growing and begins dying when their purpose in life does not match what they want their purpose to be. This rift is clearly present when the characters in the play experience acute mental illness. It is implied at the end of the poem that this mental illness is the result of their distance from the true path of their existance, or "the sun." In order to live, in whichever context it may be taken, one must live for the express sake of themselves.