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The White Dress. The most obvious and evocative symbol in Rebecca is Manderley, the manor house in which Maxim, and later the narrator, live. Manderley is a centuries-old estate, ruled by the de Winter family for generations. At the most basic symbolic level, Manderley is an embodiment of the past: a huge, sprawling place where tradition and ...
The narrator asks Mrs. Danvers if she’s been at Manderley for long. Danvers explains that she’s been at Manderley ever since the first Mrs. de Winter was married. As Danvers speaks of Mrs. de Winter, the narrator notes that she seems exhilarated and excited for the first time. Danvers stares at the narrator with pity and scorn.
- The Heroine. The novel's protagonist and narrator; we never learn her given name. A shy, self-conscious young woman from a lower-middle class background, she begins the novel as a paid companion to Mrs. Van Hopper, a wealthy American woman.
- Maxim de Winter. A cultured, intelligent older man, and the owner of Manderley, a prized estate and mansion on the English coast. When the novel begins, he has recently lost his beautiful, accomplished wife, Rebecca, in what the world believes was a tragic drowning.
- Rebecca. In life, Rebecca was the beautiful, much-loved, accomplished wife of Maxim de Winter, and the mistress of Manderley. Now a ghost, she haunts the mansion, and her presence torments the heroine after her marriage to Maxim.
- Mrs. Danvers. The sinister housekeeper at Manderley. She was fiercely devoted to Rebecca, and remains devoted to her even after death. She despises the heroine for taking her mistress's place.
He soon becomes a good friend to the second Mrs. de Winter, and helps her in the self-doubt of her inability to rule Manderley as its mistress. Rebecca attempted to seduce him in the past. Beatrice Lacy (formerly de Winter): Maxim's wilful and quick-witted sister, who develops an immediate fondness for the new Mrs. de Winter. Prior to the novel ...
- Du Maurier, Daphne, Dame
- 1938
The Dark Side. Mrs. de Winter officially crosses over to the dark side of the force after she learns that Maxim killed Rebecca. She's so psyched that Maxim doesn't love Rebecca that she doesn't even seem to care that he's a murderer. We are told that she "sat there on the carpet, unmoved and detached thinking and caring for one thing only ...
Summary. In the days that follow, the heroine feels adrift in the vast halls of Manderley. She loses her way frequently, having to ask servants for directions, and once she wanders into the closed-off, dusty west wing, where she encounters the sinister Mrs. Danvers and slips away as soon as possible. She constantly feels nervous, worrying that ...
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Why does the narrator ask Mrs Danvers if she's been at Manderley?
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Why does Danvers resent the new Mrs De Winter?
What happens at the end of Manderley?
How does Mrs Danvers worship Manderley?
Who is the narrator in Manderley?
Sep 24, 2024 · The story is set evocatively in the wilds of Cornwall, in a large country house called Manderley. One of du Maurier’s intriguing devices is her refusal to name her heroine, the first-person narrator, known only as the second Mrs. de Winter. The novel opens with her famously saying, “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”
