Rebecca

Welcome friend! A perfect Fall read, I returned to Rebecca after over a decade. I had it as creepy and interesting back then and today, it is amazing to see how much more I can write about a book. 🙂 If you don’t already know about this book, see below for what it is about. Read on for themes that spoke to me but be aware, there are some spoilers to properly talk about this book.

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Rebecca – Review

The narrator of Rebecca is the anonymous second wife of Mr Maxim de Winters. In the prologue, the two of them live far away from his home, Manderley. It burnt down in a fire. The 10 chapters of the book are in the past when she meets de Winters and eventually moves to Manderley, taking residence as the new wife. The story has dark takes on marriage (manipulation and doubt) while also addressing the lengths people go to in order to free themselves from emotional entrapment. 

The Shadow of Rebecca

Though the narrator knew of Rebecca and her demise before she married Maxim, she wasn’t prepared for the hold the Rebecca had on Maxim and Manderley during her lifetime. She comes from no known family while both Maxim and Rebecca were from a higher class and presumably, well suited for one another. The age gap between her and Maxim also makes her nervous. Coming into an established household, she doesn’t want to upset the way things were but that comes off as naive rather than taking initiative. Rebecca contrasts the narrator’s innocence and Rebecca’s established power.

And then there is the housekeeper, Mrs Danvers, who is hard to please. The new Mrs de Winters has lots of challenges in her new station, maybe some more mental than societal, but challenges for a young woman nonetheless.

The Haunting of Manderley 

In Rebecca’s time, Manderley was a well known estate, often the venue for parties and events. It seems like the cheer has gone out of Manderley now that Rebecca is no more yet Rebecca continues to have presence through her absence. There are too many memories associated with this house. Maybe that is why after Rebcca’s death, Maxim spent a long time away from it. Manderley serves as a character itself, reflecting the themes of memory and loss.

Returning with his new wife does not make the place less bearable. In fact, due to her youth, the transition is almost made more challenging. They haven’t established a relationship of complete trust yet and staying in a place that has so much history, it is hard for them to create new good memories together.

The prologue makes it clear that Manderley burns down in the fire. This was needed for the success of their marriage. It wasn’t just their marriage though that was affected by the house and Rebecca.

Obsession and Betrayal

Mrs Danvers, the housekeeper, came to Manderley with Rebecca. Part of what makes the story eerie is Mrs Danvers’ devotion to her old mistress. The fact that she kept Rebecca’s room in pristine order as if she would return any second was not healthy. The fire at the end of Rebecca is somewhat ambiguous, but it strongly suggests that Mrs. Danvers is responsible. 

Mrs. Danvers idolized Rebecca and saw her as irreplaceable. She took pride in knowing every detail of Rebecca’s life, viewing herself as Rebecca’s closest confidante. The revelation that Rebecca had a secret might have been a deep betrayal for Mrs. Danvers. 

Both Maxim and Mrs. Danvers are haunted and betrayed by Rebecca in different ways, and their responses—Maxim’s confession to his new wife and Mrs. Danvers’ potential setting of the fire—are about trying to escape her overwhelming presence. The fire is a dramatic and irreversible way of starting over, but it also speaks to the destructive power of obsession and loyalty when misplaced.

Moral Ambiguity and the Anti-Hero 

Maxim de Winter is the tortured anti-hero in this story. He marries a young girl to replace his dead wife and yet he is clearly not over Rebecca. But what the narrator assumes is love based on the positive things she hears of Rebecca, turns out to be guilt at his actions and pity for himself. His decision to stay in a loveless, toxic marriage with Rebecca out of fear of social ruin shows his weakness, and his eventual crime and cover-up cast him in a very dark light. Yet, he’s not entirely unsympathetic. I understood his motivations and the torment he endured through the lens of the time the story is set in. I really liked how the author showed him as both victim and perpetrator. 

Selfishness and Emotional Entrapment 

Selfishness and manipulation are central to many of the characters in Rebecca. Rebecca herself is perhaps the most selfish, using her beauty and charm to create a façade of the perfect wife while secretly pursuing her own desires. Her marriage to Maxim was a calculated move, allowing her to maintain her high social status and indulge in extramarital affairs. She controlled those around her, from Maxim to Mrs. Danvers, using their emotions and weaknesses to her advantage. Her threats to ruin Maxim’s reputation show how she weaponized her position to keep him trapped, even as their marriage disintegrated.

Maxim is selfish in a more complicated manner. Rather than confronting Rebecca or taking action when their marriage first fell apart, he chose to preserve his social standing by staying with her, even allowing her to manipulate him. His final decision to take her life was a desperate, selfish attempt to free himself from her grasp, yet it doesn’t really lead to peace.

The narrator, while less overtly selfish, also makes choices out of self-preservation. Her decision to stand by Maxim after learning the truth about Rebecca’s death shows her desire for security and stability, even if it means accepting a morally compromised life. Since the book is told from her perspective, I knew how she viewed her own actions and how she grew up due to the events at Manderley.

This web of selfish motivations creates a darker, more cynical view of human nature in the novel. It’s a very human tale where no one emerges unscathed or with a happy ending, adding to the novel’s brooding, complex atmosphere.

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For a short book, there is much to think about in Rebecca. I loved returning to it and giving myself time to address it. Have you read it? What did you think of the characters and themes I have highlighted above?

I see the appeal of reading it in book clubs. Rebecca was first published in 1938. It became one of Daphne du Maurier’s most famous works and it is no wonder that it has remained a classic of Gothic fiction ever since.

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