1. Allusion
“Listen, my sweet. When you were a little girl, were you ever forbidden to read certain books, did your father put those books under a lock and key?... Alice-in-Wonderland. That was a good idea of mine. Have you bought your sash and your hair-ribbon yet?” (Maurier 202).
Maxim explains that when he first met Mrs. de Winter she had an expression on her face. It was one of curiosity. When Mrs. de Winter is oblivious, she carries this expression but for a moment the expression had gone and she appeared deceitful to him, like she had a flash of knowledge. He says that it wasn’t the right kind of knowledge and she asks what that means. He doesn’t explain and states that he would rather keep it a secret from her, similarily to how Alice's father from Alice in Wonderland kept books from his curious little daughter.
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2. Character
“These things disturbed me, I was not happy about them. I wanted to forget them but at the same time I wanted to know why they disturbed me, why they made me uneasy and unhappy. Somewhere, at the back of my mind, there was a frightened furtive seed of curiosity that grew slowly and stealthily, for all of my denial of it, and I knew all the doubt and the anxiety of the child who has been told, 'these things are not discussed, they are forbidden'” (Maurier 120).
This quote expresses the inner dialogue of the heroine, which reflects her thoughts and feelings of anxiety and curiosity. Mrs. de Winters is known to be a curious girl and she often feels disquietude. A thought of Ben with his narrow, blue eyes and sly smile disturbs the heroine. She doesn't know why, but it sparks curiosity in her and provokes the thought similar of a child who has been told, "these things are not discussed, they are forbidden."
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3. Theme
“He did not notice, every day, as I did, the blind gaze of the old dog in its basket in the library, who lifted its head when it heard my footstep, the footstep of a woman, and sniffing the air drooped its head again, because I was not the woman it sought. Little things, meaningless and stupid in themselves, but they were there for me to see, for me to hear, for me to feel” (Maurier 137).
This quote portrays the lingering presence of Rebecca. Although Rebecca is gone, the heroine still feels irrelevant in comparison to her. She feels as if she is just a generic replacement of Rebecca, and is often put down to feel as if she's not good enough to fill up the hole that Rebecca's departure left in everyone's hearts. The main character just wanted her and Maxim to be happy together, even though she is constantly reminded of Rebecca's existence. Even though she can't help the fact that she is not Rebecca, she and Maxim can still be happy together. The theme this quote portrays is that two people can be happy together despite their pasts.
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