Mrs. Danvers

Mrs. Danvers is the main antagonist of Daphne du Maurier's 1938 novel Rebecca. She is the housekeeper of Manderley, a stately manor belonging to wealthy Maximillian "Maxim" de Winter, where he once lived with his openly unfaithful wife Rebecca. Rebecca died in a boating accident the previous year and Mr. de Winter, who has been traveling, has brought home a new bride. Mrs. Danvers (whose first name is never given) remains rigidly faithful to Rebecca's memory, insisting that the house be kept just as it was when Rebecca lived there. She continually brow beats the new Mrs. De Winter whenever the young woman attempts to make any sort of change to the house.

Danvers wants desperately to get rid of the new Mrs. de Winter and tries to break up the marriage. Late in the story she suggests that Mrs. de Winter wear a particular dress to a costume ball. She knows full well that it is a dress that Rebecca wore to the costume ball the year before. It angers Mr. de Winter and when she confronts Mrs. Danvers about her deception (she finds her in Rebecca’s room), Mrs. Danvers attempts to manipulate her into jumping out of the second floor window. The spell is broken when a signal flare is sent up signaling that a ship has run aground.

In the end, having failed to break up the marriage, Mrs. Danvers sets fire to Manderley. She tells the new Mrs. de Winter that she would rather burn the place down than see them happy there. Mrs. de Winter escapes but Mrs. Danvers dies in the fire.

Portrayal on film

Mrs. Danvers was first, and most famously, portrayed by Dame Judith Anderson in Alfred Hitchcock's 1940 film adaptation. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, but lost to Jane Darwell for The Grapes of Wrath. Mrs. Danvers would later be played by several actresses for television adaptations, notably: Dorothy Black in 1947, Nina Foch in 1962, Anna Massey in 1979, Diana Rigg in 1997, and by Mariangela Melato in an Italian language adaptation.

Changes from the book

In the book, Mrs. Danvers is given a back story. In the Hitchcock version, and all subsequent film adaptations, her past is never mentioned. Her first name is never revealed. Furthermore, she is depicted as having a "skull's face" with high cheekbones and sunken eyes, traits not exhibited in the film versions.

Lesbian overtones

In the 1996 documentary The Celluloid Closet, screenwriter Susie Bright suggests that Mrs. Danvers harbored romantic and sexual feelings for the late Rebecca. She cites a scene in which she shows Rebecca’s underwear drawer to the new Mrs. de Winter, showing how easily she can see her hand through the garment.

Suggestions of ghostly possession

Some have suggested that Mrs. Danvers represents the angry spirit of Rebecca that won’t let her husband move on and be happy in a new life. Hitchcock, in particular, wanted Danvers to never appear to be walking but rather floating. This way, she could always appear in the room from anywhere at any time.

Mrs Danvers in popular culture

The LGBT related Mrs Danvers (band) takes its name from the character.

The character of Mrs. Danvers is alluded to numerous times throughout Stephen King's Bag of Bones. In the book, Mrs. Danvers serves as something of a boogeyman for the main character Mike Noonan. King also uses the character's name for the chilly, obedient servant in "Father's Day," a tale in his 1982 film Creepshow.

In Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series, in the bookworld, they have accidentally made lots of Mrs. Danvers clones, which they use as troops against The Mispeling Vyrus, and other threats, including as an army.

In the brit-com As Time Goes By (TV series) episode, "Visiting Rocky", Jean is told by Lionel to think of Mrs. Bale as Mrs. Danvers. Jean has a rather funny slip of the tongue with this later on as well.

External links

• Article about sexual ambiguity in "Rebecca", by Cathy Pryor in the London Independent
• Rebecca Book Notes at Literapedia
• [1] A character listing of actresses who have played Mrs. Danvers.