The Drive

Isabella Hajnos

H English Period D

15 May 2015

Topic E

The Drive

            On the drive back to Manderley from talking to Colonel Julyan, Maxim and the main character decide to stop for the night. When Maxim calls Frank to let him know everything that happened, Frank tells him that Mrs. Danvers left Manderley. Maxim gets a bad feeling and decides to go straight home. The tiring drive for the main character allows her to finally be alone with her thoughts. She keeps having these dreams in her uncomfortable sleep, there is one in particular that haunts her. She dreams of Rebecca’s ghost back in Manderley. She sees Maxim brushing her hair, with Rebecca’s hair turning into a rope, “[twisting] like a snake, and he took hold of it with both hands and smiled at Rebecca and put it round his neck” (du Maurier     ). This shows that Rebecca’s presence is still very strong, even though they know the truth about her and that she can’t hurt them anymore. As they drive up the ridge, they see Manderley up in flames, an inkling that Mrs. Danvers did it because she no longer has ties to Rebecca and can no longer sabotage the main character. Even though the truth of Rebecca is out and she can’t hurt them anymore, the name of Manderley was made by Rebecca- it’s her home. The main character and Maxim can never have a happy life so long as they live at Manderley. It seems as though burning it down is the best thing for them, because it finally gets rid of Rebecca once and for all.

A Sky Shot with Crimson

Blog Post #5
Topic F
May 15, 2015
By Kaeleigh Foecking

     In the scene leading up to the end of the novel Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, suspense grows more than ever before in the novel. Du Maurier uses intense yet vague imagery to build suspense, giving the reader a sense of foreboding. In this scene, the main character and Maxim are driving home to Manderly after investigating a lead in the case of Rebecca’s alleged suicide. Instead of boarding for the night and continuing the trip home in the morning, Maxim is very anxious to get home and opts instead to drive through the night and arrive home early in the morning. While driving home, the main character describes vivid nightmares, flashes of previous events in the novel. With growing suspense, the scene builds up to a climax when Maxim and the main character discover that “the sky on the horizon [is] not dark at all. It [is] shot with crimson, like a splash of blood. And the ashes [blow] towards [them] with the salt wind from the sea” (du Maurier 386). With those words, the novel comes to an end. By describing the surroundings in vivid detail, du Maurier uses the imagery of this scene to freeze time, stuck in the moment when the car tops the hill and the couple discovers Manderly in flames. Not only does the imagery seem to freeze time, but it also creates a feeling of fatality and finality. By describing the sky as looking "like a splash of blood", the reader knows that this is the end of Manderly as well as Maxim and the main character's life there.

Foreshadowing

Stephanie Storczer

Topic A

May 12, 2015

At the very end of the trial, when all seems to have worked out for the main character and Maxim, a bad feeling happens. Maxim expresses his desire to get home saying "something's wrong, I know it is. I wasn't to get home" (368). Reading farther in the final chapter, it is concluded that Maxim's feelings were correct. To ruin their happy ending was Manderley, burning down. It was a quick realization that it wasn't northern lights or a wrong direction but a burning home. It can be led to believe that when Mrs Danvers realized she hadn't won against MC, she burned down one of the only things holding them together - Manderley. This concluded Maxim's fear of a wrong problem, and he was indeed too late to prevent it.

Rebecca Lost

Isabella Hajnos

H English Per. D

08 May 2015

Topic A

The Truth

            We later find out in the novel that Rebecca did not drown at all, but Maxim killed her. Rebecca was an evil and cold woman who only hurt Maxim and deceived those around her. The main character finally realizes that “Rebecca had lost” (du Maurier 290). This quote clearly signifies that the main character was not defeated by the overpowering presence of Rebecca she felt for almost her entire relationship with Maxim. Maxim and Rebecca’s marriage was a scam and not real, and with this the main character’s insecurity is lifted and her confidence greatly rises. With Rebecca’s loss, Mrs. Danvers’ grip on the main characters confidence also dies, and Mrs. Danvers is now much more vulnerable when the main character begins to show herself in Manderley.
           Although the main character’s internal struggle is fixed, her external problems are only beginning with the discovery of Rebecca’s boat and body. They are interviewed by the coroner and Maxim tells him ‘what he knows’, obviously denying that he had anything to do with the sinking of the boat. Jack Favell later hears that the coroner declared Rebecca’s death to be suicide, and demands “to see justice is done to Rebecca” (du Maurier 329). Since Favell is drunk, when Maxim gets Colonel Julyan to come over and hear Jacks’ story, Julyan doesn’t take lightly to Favell. This all helps the main character in ‘winning’ against Rebecca in the fight for justice and confidence. Rebecca’s fight is over; she truly has lost. In thinking she can win, the truth always brings out the best and worst in people. In this case, it brought out the best in the main character, and the worst of Rebecca and Jack.

Gaining the Upper Hand

~Gaining the Upper Hand~

Blog Post #4

Topic C

May 9^th, 2015

By Joanna Badillo

               The Relationship between The Main Character and Mrs. Danvers has grown significantly and has helped the main character face her insecurities about herself. In the beginning of the book, when the Main Character went to Manderly for the first time, Mrs. Danvers intimidated her by her appearance of being “tall and gaunt…whose prominent cheekbones and great, hollow eyes gave her a skull face” (66). By describing Mrs. Danvers as skull like, gives the reader a sense that Mrs. Danvers intimidates her. This continues throughout the book, like when the main character answers the phone saying “Mrs. De Winter has been dead for over a year” to Danvers, or when Mrs. Danvers tries to show Rebecca’s room to the main character. Mrs. Danvers also uses this fear and intimidation to her advantage and convinces the main character to become more insecure and to feel overpowered by Rebecca. This Relationship between Mrs. Danvers continues throughout the book and is even in main parts of major plot points like the time Mrs. Danvers told the main character about the night Rebecca died and when she convinces the main character to wear the dress for the ball. The main character doesn't gain her confidence of herself until she confronts Mrs. Danvers after the ball. That encounter was the climax of their relationship together. It was the defining point that causes Mrs. Danvers to lose her last hope to get rid of the main character, and the main character to become stronger than Mrs. Danvers. After this encounter, as well as finding out that the marriage to Rebecca was a sham, the Main character was able to become herself again and to even start ordering people around. The Relationship between the main character and Mrs. Danvers has grown positively for the main character and negatively for Mrs. Danvers. 

Failure

Stephanie Storczer

Mrs Molyneaux

Blog Post 4

Topic D

5/8/15

Among many of the themes in Rebecca, marriage and failure seem to stand out. Constantly does the main character mention her discomfort in the stability of the marriage, and this is especially shown after the ball. Throughout the marriage, MC had feelings of doubt when Maxim would treat her as a child or snap at her, but after dressing in the same outfit as Rebecca and being accused of mockery, she knew the marriage was going downhill once and for all. She "no longer made any effort to pretend" that the marriage was going well (232). After the mistake, "last night had shown [her] too well. [Her] marriage was a failure" (232). MC feels that there is nothing to be done about the marriage and thoroughly feels that Maxim feels the same way. Making the mistake of bringing back Rebecca and her memories was the last straw. The motif of a failing marriage surfaced in the very beginning of the book and continued to grow until just the right thing could make it snap.

Caroline's Dress

Stephanie Storczer

Mrs Molyneaux

Topic E

May 3, 2015


After the death of Rebecca, Manderley's party days seemed to be over. Only after some great convincing and planning did MC decide to throw her first (and last) party at Manderley. MC has the great idea to take advice from Mrs Danvers and model her dress off of the old Caroline de Winter. It seems to be a success to her as she pulls on the wig, but when she goes down to meet everyone, "something was wrong, [and] they had not understood" (215). Maxim's face went white, and the rest of the guests stared in utter shock. It turns out that while this had been Caroline de Winter's dress, Rebecca, Maxim's late wife, had done the exact same thing with the exact same outfit.

Maxim thought of this as MC's way of playing a joke or mocking him and REbecca. It is likely that Mrs Danvers gave MC the idea to dress this way in order to cause grief to Maxim and embarrass the MC for replacing Rebecca. When the MC ran up to her room in shame, Mrs Danvers had the "face of an exulting devil, .... her face, loathsome, triumphant" (216). This may be Mrs Danvers' way of getting back at Mc and hoping to ruin the marriage. Hopefully, the MC learns not to trust Mrs Danvers if she wants to have any hope of overshadowing Rebecca.

The Ball

Isabella Hajnos

Mrs. Molyneaux

H English Per. D

Topic D

1 May 2015

                                                                         The Ball

            After the main character is at Manderley for quite some time, she reluctantly agrees to throw a ball with Maxim hosting to attempt to show herself over Rebecca. Mrs. Danvers comes in to assist the main character in finding a costume, and she suggests replicating a dress from one of the pictures in the hall of Maxims grandmother, Caroline. This, at first, seems like Mrs. Danvers is genuinely trying to help the main character. She even gives the main character the name of a dressmaker in London named Voce. As the party is getting set up, the main character is very excited about her dress and how it looks on her. She did not look “[herself] at all… someone much more interesting, more vivid and alive” (du Maurier 208). The main character is trying so desperately to show Maxim she is not a child and says “you won’t know me… you will both get the shock of your lives” to Maxim and Frank (du Maurier 208). This foreshadows what later happens at the ball.

As the main character comes down the steps in her beautiful gown, everybody’s jaw drops; however, this is not the sort of jaw-dropping the main character expects. She is very confused to see Maxim and Beatrice in complete shock. He forces her to change out of the dress, and as she embarrassingly runs away, she sees Mrs. Danvers’ “face, loathsome, triumphant. The face of an exulting devil… smiling at [her]” (du Marier 218). It is later revealed that Rebecca wore that gown at her last big event, and Beatrice implies that she thought Rebecca came back to life when the main character showed herself. This only adds to Rebeccas presence; that she is and will always be alive and thriving. Mrs. Danvers specifically chose that dress. She wanted to make the main character feel embarrassed and ashamed by the people of the ball and hated by Maxim. The ball is significant because it is the turning point of the novel and shows Mrs. Danvers’ true hate for the main character.

Rebecca's Undying Influence

Blog Post #3
Topic J
1 May 2015
By Kaeleigh Foecking
The title of the novel Rebecca alludes to the story's main conflict. It reflects Rebecca's domination of the main character's life and the overall story, and it further characterizes the main character.

It's interesting that Rebecca, a character not even alive in the novel, became the inspiration for the book's title. This is because Rebecca, although not physically present, becomes a huge mental presence in the main character's life. After moving to Manderly, the main character spends all of her time worrying that she will be compared to Rebecca and that she must live up to the expectations Rebecca previously set. The main character is very aware that Rebecca "had been before [her], had surely left an imprint of her person" (du Maurier 79), and that thought is a constant source of stress and anxiety for the main character. The title reflects this relationship, as the nameless main character's own story is overshadowed by Rebecca's legend and the standards she set.

The title also characterizes the main character, as it further shows her insignificance. The main character is not given a name and is very timid throughout the novel. She has none of her own opinions, or isn’t assertive enough to speak on them, as she always opts for agreeing with the opinion of the crowd. For example, when guests arrive at Manderly and begin to impose their opinions on bringing back the grand parties Rebecca had, the main character quickly crumbles and agrees to put on a ball (du Maurier 196). Too weak and afraid to assert her own opinion, the main character remains timid throughout the novel, resulting in the appearance that she has an insignificant personality. The title reflects this weak personality, as it shows that the main character is much less significant than Rebecca.

The Boat House

~The Boat House~

Blog Post #3

Topic C

May 1^st, 2015

By Joanna Badillo

         The boat house shows a lot of significance in the novel Rebecca. In the book, The Main Character finds the boat house after she chases Jasper, the dog, own on her walk to the beach with Maxim. There she finds a dusty cob-webbed room that is complete with a sofa bed, fine china, and a desk. Later, Maxim tells her that Rebecca and him would go to the boat house and have late night picnics, dropping the subject and hinting to the reader that there is more to the story. Later we find out from the book that Rebecca would go into the boathouse for long periods of time and even spend nights in there. We also find out, mainly from Frank Crawley, that Rebecca enjoyed sailing greatly and also spent long hours at sea. At the boat house Ben, another crucial character, is introduced to the novel. He is important, because he shows a non biased view to Rebecca and even shows a darker side of her that is never introduced in the beginning. Ben explains that Rebecca threaten to “have [him] put in the asylum” and even He even calls her snake-like (154). This view of Rebecca is unlike that of everyone else, including Mrs. Danvers, who speaks fondly of Rebecca and even calls her “beautiful"(169). I feel that the Boat house also shows significance in crucial points of the plot that the audience itself, isn't aware of until possibly later into the novel. I suspect that in the end of chapter 17, Maxim might have spent the night after the ball, in the boat house. The costume the main character wore; at the beginning of the costumed ball was exactly the costume Rebecca wore in her last ball. This of course caused discomfit in Maxim and caused Maxim to think that the main character is mocking him. That would then, give Maxim the incentive to find a secure place to think for a little and possibly relive good or bad memories from the past. The boat house would be a perfect place for Maxim to stand and do just that. The boat house showed a lot of significance in the plot of the book.