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13.05.14 15:23

She was categorically not satisfied with the adaptation of the story "Birds". But the film was shot by the same Hitchcock, who once so successfully staged a thriller based on the most famous book of the writer - the bewitching "Rebecca".

Dreamer and booklet

Dame Commander (the British woman was elevated to this honorary rank in 1969) Daphne du Maurier is a native of London. She had an amazing family! Grandfather-cartoonist, father-actor, sisters: the eldest is also a writer (albeit less well-known) Angela and the younger Zhanna, an artist. At the beginning of the twentieth century, home education was almost the norm for noble children (and the du Mauriers belonged to an ancient British family). Experienced governess Wadell invested a lot in the sisters.

Daphne was an avid bookworm, literally "swallowed" the books of Walter Scott, Wilde, the Bronte sisters, Maupassant. The future writer herself all the time tried to fantasize, to invent some not hackneyed plots. She assigned herself the role of the protagonist (not the heroine!). Perhaps this is where her bisexuality originates (already being married, Daphne had affairs with ladies).

The best books of Daphne du Maurier

Fateful debut

She wrote her first stories at the age of 18. She continued her studies in France. The proximity of Paris turned her head, and the British did not get tired of wandering through its streets and paying tribute to the famous places and sights of this city.

The debut novel, The Spirit of Love, was published in 1931. This is the biography of a family of shipbuilders. One of the main characters, Janet, in love with freedom, the sea, dreaming of distant wanderings and princes, is forced to change her dreams for the everyday life of a family lady. This work was fascinated by Major Frederick Browning. He did everything to meet the writer. Soon they got married and lived together for 33 years. The couple had two daughters and a son. Having been widowed, Daphne, Lady Browning, settled in her beloved Cornish town - Kilmarth, where she spent the rest of her days.

sources of inspiration

American Ellen Doubleday (she was the mistress of an Englishwoman) inspired du Maurier to write a novel. This book (My Cousin Rachel) plays on the idea that there is only one step from hate to love. The young man is pre-configured to have very negative feelings for the wife of his adored cousin. Having met a young widow after the death of a relative, he (contrary to previous prejudices) loses his head from his newly-made cousin.

But "The Jamaica Inn" is inspired by adventure literature, in particular, Stevenson's novels. Adventurous and spooky, he talks about smugglers.

Another fairly well-known work of the author ("The House on the Shore") is Daphne's tribute to her beloved Cornwall. The plot develops in two time layers at once, because the central character is able to travel from the 20th century to the Middle Ages.

Disagreements with Hitchcock

The acclaimed novel "Rebecca" has been moved to the screen 11 times! After its publication, du Maurier was compared with the recognized masters of Gothic (Stoker, whose talent we owe the birth of the "father of all bloodsuckers" Count Dracula, and Mary Shelley - her genius gave us the scientist Frankenstein and his offspring - a monster). They were accused of plagiarism. No wonder: after all, the plot outline is quite common: a poor, but sweet and open-hearted girl marries a rich man much older than herself and faces the odious figure of her former wife - a kind of vamp woman. The Oscar-winning Hitchcock movie starring the charming Joan Fontaine and the legendary actor Laurence Olivier is considered the best adaptation of Rebecca.

Short story collections were successful: "The Apple Tree", "Not Later than Midnight", and also the one that included "Birds". Written in a thriller directed by famed compatriot and horror master Alfred Hitchcock, the lady was nonetheless critical of The Birds. But the master's additions were dictated by common sense: there was not enough material for a full-length picture.

Mystical, bewitching books by the British take pride of place on the shelves of many celebrities, including Stephen King and fantasy novelist Stephenie Meyer.

Du Maurier Daphne (1907-1989) today is undoubtedly a classic of the thriller genre. Her works, for all their romanticism and unusualness, belong to full-fledged literature. No discounts on the "genre" of her novels and short stories are needed. Her books (“My Cousin Rachel”, “Scapegoat”, “House on the Shore”, “Blue Lenses”, “Birds. Stories” and many others) are full of drama, tension, sharpness ... The final almost always presents a completely unexpected denouement. There is some kind of understatement in her works, something that gives reading a unique aftertaste.

Family

Rod Du Maurier has been known since the end of the 18th century. Three daughters were born in the family of creative people Gerald du Maurier and Muriel Beaumond.

Du Maurier Daphne was born on May 13, 1907 under the sign of Venus. Grandfather drew cartoons for Punch magazine, and then, when his eyesight worsened, he wrote the famous novel Trilby. In addition to Gerald's children, he had five more grandchildren, whose characters served as the starting point for creating images in the novel "Peter Pan".

Childhood and youth

Gerald du Maurier's children were educated at home. As a child, Daphne read a lot, and at the age of 18 her first collection of stories was published, which was called "The Thirsty". Then she left to continue her education in France, near Paris. At this time, she pondered the issues of financial independence and seriously engaged in literature. At the age of 24, her first novel, The Spirit of Love, was published, which brought success and the desired independence.

Marriage

This novel drew the attention of a young Major Browning. He met a charming author, and the young people started a family in 1932. For valor in the war against Nazism, the major will receive the rank of lieutenant general and will be knighted. Marriage and the birth of children did not distract the writer from creativity. In 1936, Du Maurier published a new novel, inspired by the spirit of Stevenson's work, The Jamaica Inn, only it has a mystical and terrible character.

A novel that has been filmed many times

The young 31-year-old woman already has three daughters. In addition, an agreement was concluded with the publisher, who was shown a plan for a new novel. There are quite certain terms, and an advance payment has been received. The plot is ready, but the draft of the author does not suit. He is discarded by Daphne Du Maurier. Rebecca (and we are talking about this novel) will be written with a delay, but in record time. Leaving the children for a while, just four months after visiting Alexandria with her husband, in the same breath she is preparing a new manuscript for publication. The publisher predicts a long-term recognition of the novel. Daphne herself believed that he was too bleak, shrouded in darkness, suggesting very gloomy thoughts and forebodings, and therefore did not expect success. However, time has shown that Daphne Du Maurier was mistaken. "Rebecca" was first on the list of the hundred best detectives of the century. In 2000, the novel was generally named the best work of the 20th century.

famous novel

The book immediately plunges the reader into an atmosphere of fear, loneliness and mental anguish. The novel is spoken in the first person, and the name of the heroine is never mentioned. We'll call her Mrs Winter. A shy young girl was the companion of the wealthy Mrs. Van Hoper. This overweight lady, gossip and not very smart woman, was much older. On the Côte d'Azur, Maximilian de Winter took notice of our heroine, and Mrs. Van Hoper was quick to tell her companion that his wife, Rebecca, had died a year ago.

When Mrs. Van Hopper fell ill, the two main characters spent a lot of time together. No one had ever cared for a girl, and her soul from the first love was light and joyful. Mrs. Van Hoper recovered and decided to go to America. In desperation, the young creature rushed to say goodbye to Maximilian, and he made a silly girl an offer to become his wife. Mrs. Van Hoper uttered venomous words to her companion and was forced to let her go.

At Manderly Manor

Before entering, Mrs. Winter panicked. Even the flowers looked like monsters to her. The housekeeper gathered all the servants to look at the new mistress. Mrs. Denver immediately cast cold and contempt on the young mistress of Manderley. She showed in every way, talking with ill-concealed malice, that Rebecca, who was raised by her nurse Denver, a creature of the highest order, a young de Winter, is a nonentity.

All the time behind her stood the invisible shadow of Rebecca, illuminating everything with her unearthly beauty and mind of a higher order. It was something to go crazy, especially since Denver tried to push Maximilian's young wife to commit suicide. Maximilian's sister, Beatrice, immediately arrived at the estate, along with her husband Giles. They defuse the situation somewhat, but not for long. Things are getting more and more tense for Mrs. de Winter. This state is strongly supported by Denver, who hates everyone and everything. De Winter believes that her husband still loves his dead wife, an extraordinary beauty and intelligence.

Costume ball

Daphne Du Maurier's novel is rapidly approaching its denouement. As under Rebecca, the hosts had to give an annual ball. Mrs. de Winter should have ordered an evening dress. She did this after listening to the advice of the treacherous Denver. The husband was taken aback and was seriously angry when he saw his wife in an evening dress. He demanded that she quickly change clothes while no one saw her. And Denver had the face of an evil demon, triumphant and repulsive. It was a copy of Rebecca's last year's dress. Maxim's sister, Beatrice, did her best to console de Winter, who was in distress and discouraged. And Denver was jubilant.

denouement

It is only in the very finale that it is revealed what a true vile and nasty face Rebecca had. The novel by Daphne Du Maurier keeps the reader in suspense from the first to the last phrase. Rebecca was so disgusting to her husband that he could not stand it and killed her. Rebecca had a lover, her cousin, who had not a penny in his pocket, and she supported him.

When the investigation ended in favor of Maxim, then, returning to Manderley from the city, they saw how their estate was blazing.

First translations of early stories

Today, the Russian reader has access to previously unknown works that Daphne Du Maurier created in the early years of her work: “Rendezvous and Other Stories”. The new collection will present many surprises to fans of the writer's work. These short stories were written in the 20-30s and 40-50s. 14 stories will surprise you with a rich genre and plot diversity. Here the author's love for the Gothic entourage, theatricality in the spirit of Chekhov, fairy tales and parables, satire, as well as terrible and intense intrigue will manifest itself. 12 stories have been translated into Russian for the first time. We wish the reader to have a good time, plunging into the world of Daphne du Maurier.

• The father dreamed of having a son, and another girl was born. Therefore, Daphne in her younger years created a “second self”, male. She even wrote part of her novels on behalf of men.
• The house in Fowey where she lived is described in Rebecca as Manderley. Now it belongs to the family of her son Christian.
• The house in Kilmarth is featured in the novel Shore House and has become a landmark in Cornwall.
• A staunch royalist, in 1969 she was awarded the Order of the British Empire and promoted to the rank of lady commander.
• She was not a public person and did not like to give interviews.
• There was a lot of gossip about the lesbian nature of the writer, which is completely rejected by both close relatives and the author of the biographical book Margaret Foster.
• The Canadian company Imperial Tobacco Canada Limited produces Du Marier brand cigarettes. This production began in 1929 with the permission of Daphne's father to cover his additional taxes.

Instead of an afterword

Du Maurier Daphne tries not to impose clear and precise assessments. It does not fall into the "morality" inherent in bad, tabloid literature, but, on the contrary, causes a desire for active empathy, sympathy for the main characters and the situation described in the work. Daphne Du Maurier writes books in such a way that you can always feel what is called the elusive shades of the human soul. Subtle, seemingly insignificant details are extremely important for creating in the reader's mind the images of the main and secondary characters of the writer's works. In general, like every good, great writer, Du Maurier Daphne does not create insignificant heroes, they all matter in the patterned canvas of her narratives.

Daphne du Maurier Born in London to actor and theater impresario Gerald Du Maurier and actress Muriel Beaumont. Her grandfather, George Du Maurier, was a famous writer: his novel about the life of the Parisian bohemia Trilby was extremely popular at the end of the 19th century. Daphne was the middle of three daughters - the older sister Angela also became a writer. The Du Maurier family had many friends among writers, crime thriller author Edgar Wallace and Peter Pan's "dad" James Barry visited their house.

After graduating from one of the schools in London, Daphne moved to Paris, where she continued her studies. The first published work of the writer was a short story published when she was still a teenager in a magazine edited by her uncle. He also found a literary agent for her, who helped in establishing contacts with publishers. Du Maurier's first novel, The Spirit of Love, was published in 1931 when she was 24 years old.

In 1932, Daphne married Lieutenant General Frederick Arthur Browning, who received a knighthood for his brilliant command during World War II. The couple had three children - daughters Tessa and Flafia and son Christian. It is also known about two novels of Daphne with women: American socialite Ellen Doubleday and British actress Gertrude Lawrence. Especially for Gertrude in 1948, Daphne wrote the play "September Tide". A love affair with Ellen inspired Daphne to write another of her famous works, My Cousin Rachel, in 1951.

However, the greatest passion of the writer, the love of her life, was Cornwall. Almost all the money she received from the publication of books, she spent on the restoration of the 17th century mansion, which she rented for twenty years. This house became the prototype of the Manderly estate, where the events of the novel "Rebecca" unfold. After the death of her husband in 1965, the writer moved to Cornwall, where she spent the rest of her life.

Daphne has been writing all her life, she wrote detective and historical novels, biographies - books about the life of famous people, theater plays, wrote a book about the county of Cornwall. Most of Daphne's stories are written in the psychological thriller genre, and her most famous novel, Rebecca, is a classic gothic novel. Many works were filmed, and the paintings themselves, as well as their literary basis, went down in history.

In 1969, for her contribution to English literature, Daphne Du Maurier was awarded the Order of the British Empire and promoted to the rank of Dame Commander. Daphne Du Maurier died at her home in Cornwall on 19 April 1989 at the age of 81. The entire progressive press of the world responded to the death of the writer. In particular, the London Times published an obituary where it called Daphne Du Maurier "one of the most famous writers in the English-speaking world." In accordance with the will, the body of the writer was cremated, and the ashes were scattered on the rocks near her house.

Daphne Du Maurier did not like to give interviews, and in the last years of her life she led a secluded life. About publicity, she once spoke as follows: "Writers should be read, not heard or seen". The main literary heritage of Daphne Du Maurier, including drafts, diaries, letters, materials of the literary work of her sister Angela, an archive of papers from her father and grandfather, is stored in the library of the University of Exeter.

The most famous fantasy work of Daphne du Maurier is the short story "Birds", which became popular thanks to the film adaptation of the same name by Alfred Hitchcock. Some of her novels and stories are also devoted to mystical and inexplicable phenomena - such as "Monte Verita", "Don't look back" and "Breakthrough". Fantastic motifs are also present in the novel "House on the Shore", in which a biophysicist invents a drug that makes it possible to move into the past.

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Bibliography last checked: 15/06/2016