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.
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.
Originally published as the November 2023 dispatch
Daphne du Maurier is a novelist and short-story writer whose stories are more sinister, expertly written tales of fear that challenged and surprised her readers. One of her most celebrated works, along with “The Birds,” is Rebecca, published in 1938 and a winner of a National Book Award.
du Maurier was born in Regents Park, London, in 1907, but spent most of her adult life in Cornwall. This backdrop served as inspiration for several of her works, including Rebecca and Frenchman’s Creek.
