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Hitchcock's Use Of Escapism In The Birds By Alfred Hitchcock

1934 Words8 Pages

As a society we are constantly turning to television and film as a form of escapism from daily life, be it mundane, stressful or relaxed. However, many directors and creators choose to use their platform as a social and humanitarian commentary which, more so than simply making their work teachable and moral, they expose an uncomfortable side of human nature which is often avoided as a discussion point in wider society. One such director is Alfred Hitchcock who remains one of the most well-resected film directors even today. During his career Alfred Hitchcock proved himself as a competent master of tantalising his audiences and became renowned for using such themes of voyeurism and madness in his work. Whilst primarily used to feed the ‘horror’ …show more content…

In this feature film Hitchcock chooses to focus on the rather common human fear of birds. This phobia, named Ormithophobia, is often attributed to previous negative experiences with them such as a past random attack or being trapped in a room with a frightened bird eager to escape. Indeed, Hitchcock’s The Birds itself has been linked to highlighting ormithophobia and painting birds in a vicious light. However, whilst the theories are greatly numbered, we must ask why Hitchcock chose to use this theme as the subject for his classic work and what social commentary he was attempting to imply, if any at …show more content…

I believe that Hitchcock is attempting to highlight the thin line between normalcy and madness, and how

Whilst the initial themes of both films, cold-blooded murder and uncontrollable mass bird attacks, may seem out of the ordinary and possibly freak incidents Hitchcock manages to include a realism to both works, emphasising uneasy and disturbing subjects and highlight their relatability. As humans we are easily coaxed into believing that it is only truly disturbed individuals who would commit such an act of inhumanity as murder and yet Psycho drives the idea that we are all capable of crossing the border.

Both of these films manage to somewhat agree with some of Freud’s theories, particulary his ideas regarding the Oedipus comples

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