Description
What is our place in the natural order of things? What happens when human beings push the patience of the environment too far? How does the natural world push back?
First published in 1952, Daphne du Maurier’s story The Birds, imagines answers to these questions in her now iconic and chilling story about birds taking control of a community and subjugating people to their whim.
Du Maurier was often referred to as a “romantic novelist,” a label she resented. Her short stories are more sinister, expertly written tales of fear that challenged and surprised her readers. One of her most successful novels was Rebecca (1938), sold 3 million copies between 1938 and 1965, and won du Maurier a National Book Award.
Captivated by the surreal and terrifying notion of birds putting people in their place, Alfred Hitchcock was inspired to make his film “The Birds” based on du Maurier’s story. This 1963 film is now considered a cinematic masterpiece — a frightening vision of a world in which people have pushed the limits of the natural world, and nature pushes back.
