Mr. Alving's many affairs on the other hand, including with their maid (resulting in Regina's birth), though not exactly condoned by society are not frowned upon as much as Mrs. Alving's leaving. This hypocrisy forms one of the central conflicts of the play, and is also one of the major sources of controversy. Another issue that is raised in the play is inheritance. Mrs. Alving is building the orphanage at least in part so that no one, especially her son, can benefit from the fortune that her husband made. She considers everything that Mr. Alving ever touched to be corrupt, and therefore corruptive for others. She sent her son to live abroad so that he would not be exposed to his father's debauchery, but he seems to exhibit many of the same negative qualities that Mrs. Alving hated so much in her husband. The inheritance would have been yet one more thing passed from father to son that would have continued to corrupt the family. When Regina learns that she is actually Mr. Alving's daughter, she becomes determined to collect some share of the inheritance as well. Her ambition is seen throughout the play, suggesting that the character of her biological father passed on even without her knowing who he was, but her desire for the...

Mrs. Alving sees her orphanage, which was meant in part as a source of redemption, burned to the ground, also destroying her plans for revenge by using up her husband's inheritance. Oswald is not only left without the hope of a fortune, but is in fact dying from a disease contracted due to his father's infidelities. Even the Pastor, who though not always agreeable is one of the most morally consistent characters in the play, ends up corrupted via the blackmail Engstrannd practices.
Ironically, Engstrand himself is actually one of the few characters to end with the prospect of a better future. Despite knowing the truth about Regina's birth, he raised her and loved her as though she were his own daughter. This seems to suggest a basic goodness on his part that is lacking in the other characters, and his soon-to-come fortune is the possible reward. Yet the corrupt manner in which he begins this fortune promises future doom for him as well, just as Mr. Alving's own corruption eventually led to the downfall of his family and name.