The Birds by Daphne du Maurier (Book Analysis) E-Book

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• Kategorie: Bildung
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• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 18

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2019

Beschreibung

Unlock the more straightforward side of “The Birds” with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!

This engaging summary presents an analysis of “The Birds” by Daphne du Maurier, which centres on Nat Hocken, a farmhand and ex-soldier whose life is turned upside-down one night when a flock of birds begins attacking his family’s house. Although no one else seems to pay his warnings any heed, it soon becomes clear that this is no imagined threat: the birds’ sudden aggression is not an isolated incident, and attacks begin to occur around the country, with no apparent motivation other than an echo of the turning of the tides. The tension continues to grow throughout the story, as Nat does his best to gather supplies and protect his family, even as his hopes of survival begin to dwindle… “The Birds” is one of Daphne du Maurier’s best-known short stories, and is regarded as a cult classic of the horror genre.

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This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you:

• A complete plot summary
• Character studies
• Key themes and symbols
• Questions for further reflection

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Leseprobe

DAPHNE DU MAURIER

ENGLISH PLAYWRIGHT, NOVELIST AND SHORT STORY AUTHOR

Born in London in 1907.Died in Fowey in 1989.Notable works:Rebecca (1938), novelThe Apple Tree (1952), short story collectionThe Scapegoat (1957), novel

Daphne du Maurier was a widely popular author and playwright in her time, with several of her novels and short story collections selling in the millions – as well as seeing numerous film adaptations – and her plays running hundreds of performances. While popular, however, critics saw du Maurier as unimportant to literary canon: “dismissed with a sneer,” as she herself said, “as a bestseller” (p. xv), though posthumously she has been granted far more respect. Her novels often focused on romance, which is perhaps the reason for this disregard, but her short stories typically invoked far darker moods and themes, dipping into the gothic as well as supernatural and horror genres.

THE BIRDS

RURAL HORROR STORY

Genre: short story, horrorReference edition: Du Maurier, D. (2007) The Birds. In: ‘Don’t Look Now’ and Other Stories. London: The Folio Society.1stedition: 1952Themes: horror, survival, family, environmental disaster, the country and the city, war/postwar

Winter comes over Britain. Nat Hocken, a part-time farmhand, begins to see huge flocks of restless birds, of all species, gather everywhere. At first unconcerned, the situation shifts from strange, to menacing, to deadly as the birds come closer to civilisation and Nat’s home, then begin to attack. “The Birds” is one of du Maurier’s most popular short stories, and went on to be adapted as a film of the same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock (British director, 1899-1980), cementing it as a landmark in horror fiction. And an odd one at that, for the typical horror work of the time (for instance, the works of H. P. Lovecraft [American writer, 1890-1937]) tended to use a singular and outwardly terrifying creature or person as its antagonist, whereas common birds are at once non-intimidating and multiple, a fundamental subversion of the genre.

SUMMARY

WINTER, AND THE BIRDS, ARRIVE