ipl-logo

Daphne Du Maurier Rebecca

975 Words4 Pages

Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989), author of Rebecca, started to write this novel in the late summer of 1937, and it was published in 1938, when she was only 30 years old. Daphne du Maurier was born into a prosperous family; her father was a famous actor-manager, and her grandfather was an artist and writer. Because her childhood was filled with literary and artistic experiences, there’s no doubt that du Maurier had a very vivid imagination and a love for reading and writing. Du Maurier married her husband in 1932, but their marriage was detached, as she was quite distant to her children especially when immersed in her writing. As a young woman, she realized her audience being mainly women, so Du Maurier made most of her protagonist’s women, staying …show more content…

At, Milton Hall in Cambridgeshire, an estate which Du Maurier visited when she was young, Du Maurier thought of the character Mrs. Danvers. The housekeeper of Milton Hall was tall, dark, sinister, and Du Maurier never said a word to her. As a young adult, she discovered her love for Menabilly, a mansion, hidden in the trees, and a winding path that led to the beach cottage. Menabilly had many similar features as Manderly, such as the oak floors, high ceilings, formal gardens, and a beautiful drawing room. Years later, Du Maurier resided there for a happy 26 years. Frankly, Du Maurier always has said to loved places more than people. Thus, Menabilly soon became the beloved Manderly, the mansion where most of Rebecca takes place. The core plot of the story focused on Daphne Du Maurier’s jealousy of Jan Ricardo, the first fiancée of her husband, Frederick Browning (otherwise known as “Tommy”). After Ricardo split with Tommy, and shortly upon the publication of Rebecca, she committed suicide by throwing herself under a train in the Second World War (coincidental or not). Ricardo was a beautiful woman with long dark hair. Undoubtedly, Daphne Du Maurier always wondered if Tommy was still in love with Ricardo; the idea haunted her. In fact, Maurier would often find and read through letters and journals from Ricardo, along with other

Show More
Related
282 Words | 2 Pages

Daphne Odjig was born in September 11, 1919 to Joyce Peachey and Dominic Odjig. She grew up with siblings Stanley, Winnifred and Donavan in the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve (Manitoulin Island, Northern Ontario). Odjig was educated in art in Ottawa, then moved to Sweden to continue her studies. Her first major art piece was her pen and ink drawings of Cree people from northern Manitoba. In 1973, she became a founder of the Professional Native Indian Artists Incorporation, and in 1974 she opened the first Canadian gallery representing First Nations art in Winnipeg.

Read More
478 Words | 2 Pages

Mandelet wants to inquire about another possible man in Edna's life, but refrains because of Leonces probable negative reaction. Edna's father is in New Orleans preparing for his youngest daughters wedding. Edna takes her father for dinner at Mrs. Ratignolles. She later feels acquainted to him for the first time, and takes pleasure in catering to his every need. Horse racing is the major talking point between Edna and her father.

Read More
1196 Words | 5 Pages

Laurel Thatcher Ulrich uses Martha Ballard’s diary to portray life in rural New England in the late 1700 and early 1800’s. Using this diary and other historical material she recreates the 27 years of life that Martha has disclosed in her diary. By using Martha’s life and words she recreates what living was like during the pre-industrial era. She features the role that midwives and women in general played in the economical survival of families during this era.

Read More
885 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel Rebecca that was written by Daphne du Maurier, Manderley is a constant reminder that Rebecca's death still overshadows the property because she does not want to be replaced or forgotten. Manderley adds a great mystery to this novel because it has a large effect on many of the characters. Certain characters feel as if Rebecca is still in control and that her spirit still watches over Manderley. After the new Mrs. deWinter arrives at Manderley, it seems as though Rebecca still lives in the house because no one disposes any of her items. It is very hard for those living at Manderley to eliminate Rebecca from their lives because they all adored her.

Read More
1265 Words | 6 Pages

Though the novel represents many feministic ideas in relation to marriage, it should not be read and discussed solely from this perspective. This statement is commented by Ramsey who claims that the story is “both a precursor to the modern feminist agenda yet also a reactionary tale embalming Hurston’s tender passions for a very traditional male” (1994: 38). In spite of the fact that the scholar agrees that Janie gains some self-belief and self-realization in the course of time, he still perceives her as a woman who cannot survive without a man by her side who would support her. It seems that she has a strong need to have someone by her side to support her when something goes wrong. This argument is confirmed by another researcher, Jennifer Jordan, who states that the protagonist “never perceives herself as an independent woman” (1988: 115).

Read More
842 Words | 4 Pages

He looked-and this is said in all contempt for the babbled slander of his harden-as if he had "killed a man" (Fitzgerald 134). People who chase something all their life just to find out that it 's no longer within their grasp can lose their grip on reality. People with a damaged psyche can lose sight of themselves if enough time is given for them to do so. Mrs. Danver cared for Rebecca and spent much of her time looking after and caring for her throughout the day leading to her hatred of Mrs. de Winter after Rebecca 's death. After finding out that Maxim de Winter had married again Mrs. Danvers began to become obsessed with the idea that she could get rid of Mrs. de Winter due to her love for Rebecca.

Read More
278 Words | 2 Pages

In Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca, Mrs. Danvers, the gothic housekeeper of Manderley, makes the life of the new Mrs. de Winter a living hell due to her obsessive loyalty to the original Mrs. de Winter, Rebecca. When she sees the narrator in a fragile mental state, she uses it to her advantage to push her over the edge by telling her that, “none of us want you… It’s you that ought to be lying there in the church crypt, not her. It 's you who ought to be dead, not Mrs. de Winter”, sending the narrator into a temporary lapse in judgement (Du Maurier 246). The anger that Mrs. Danvers feels against the narrator is due to her undying loyalty to Rebecca, which is slightly irrational because the narrator had no part in the death of Rebecca.

Read More
660 Words | 3 Pages

The exploration of gender roles and the plight of women in Hurston’s novel continues to be relevant in today’s world, despite the fact that Their Eyes Were Watching God is now 79 years old. Janie struggles with this conflict, but eventually overcomes the issues that once withheld her from pursuing what she really wanted in life. Although the novel was published in a different time, the central message to pursue the destiny that one truly desires still reaches women and girls all around the world

Read More
1075 Words | 5 Pages

It may skew her thinking and at times be subjective. The intended audience is someone who is studying literature and interested in how women are portrayed in novels in the 19th century. The organization of the article allows anyone to be capable of reading it.

Read More
826 Words | 4 Pages

Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca has captivated audiences since its initial release in 1938. Upon its initial publication, the novel did not receive the kind of critical acclaim one might expect from a novel with the commercial success at the time of its first publication and with such lasting influence. Sally Beauman writes in the afterword to the novel that while “some critics acknowledged the book’s haunting power and its vice-like narrative grip, but — perhaps misled by the book’s presentation, or prejudiced by the gender of the author — they delved no deeper” (Beauman 431). The novel was not merely overlooked, however. With the novel following the “the archetypal scenario for all those mildly thrilling romantic encounters between a scowling Byronic hero (who owns a gloomy mansion) and a trembling heroine (who can’t quite figure out the mansion’s floorplan)” (Gilbert and Gubar 337), it was and often continues to be seen as a rewriting of Jane Eyre into a more modern timeframe.

Read More
869 Words | 4 Pages

Margaret Atwood Margaret Atwood's writing has been influenced by her early life experiences. In addition to this, the people she met throughout her life have largely influenced the topics and themes of her writing. Her love of reading contributed to her passion and skill as a both a poet and an novelist. Feminism and gender roles have been reoccurring themes in Atwood’s works (“Atwood, Margaret (1939 -)” 1). Atwood's tales of female protagonists have drawn to the forefront the issues of gender roles and inequality in modern society.

Read More
1409 Words | 6 Pages

Most critics around the world believe the play led to increase awareness on the need for women’s rights in all continents, on the other hand some critics opine that the play depicted women as inferior creatures and dolls who have no personality of their own. Nora Helmer the main character strives to achieve the perfect concepts of life set by the society and her husband. Nora is trapped in her home where her Torvald has built a wonderful life for his ‘doll wife’. Nora’s transformation comes when she discovers the role in doll house imposed on her by the society and her husband and she is desperate to free herself in order to discover her identity.

Read More
655 Words | 3 Pages

It's you that ought to be lying there in the church crypt, not her. It's you who ought to be dead, not Mrs. de Winter.” Concluding that Daphne du Maurier explores the issue of jealousy through Maxim de Winter of Rebecca’s many lovers, The narrator (The Second Mrs. de Winter) living up to this dominate women figure from Maxims past- Rebecca, and Mrs. Danvers jealous of Maxim and the narrators new love. Daphne du Maurier shows jealousy and its destructive power through the ghost of Rebecca, which soon threatens Maxim and the narrator and blinds the narrator throughout the novel of Mrs Danvers’s manipulative personality to get rid of anyone who threatens Rebecca’s reputation at

Read More
660 Words | 3 Pages

I've found a scene in Rebecca that begins comfortably and quickly changes and becomes the exact opposite, to be the ideal representation of du Maurier's larger literary goals. Both the marriage and the haunting are only getting started in this scenario. “He did not look at me, he went on reading his paper, contented, comfortable, having assumed his way of living, the master of his house. And as I sat there, brooding, my chin in my hands, fondling the soft ears of one of the spaniels, it came to me that I was not the first one to lounge in possession of the chair, someone had been before me, had surely left an imprint of her person on the cushions, and on the arm where her hand had rested. Another one had poured the coffee from that same silver coffee pot, had placed the cup to her lips, had bent down to the dog, even as I was doing.”

Read More
1141 Words | 5 Pages

With that purpose in mind, she revises some aspects of women’s place/absence in history, society, and literature and mixed it with some fiction in order to explain how she came to adopt that thesis. For example, she asks herself what would have happened if Shakespeare had had a sister

Read More

More about Daphne Du Maurier Rebecca

Related Topics

Open Document