Critical Essay On Rebecca By Daphne Du Maurier

In the beginning of Daphne du Maurier’s novel Rebecca, we are told that Maxim’s first wife Rebecca de Winter died from drowning. Moreover, everyone including the second Mrs. de Winter was not only convinced that Rebecca was a kind and warm woman but also that Maxim and Rebecca were very much in love. However, as the story continues it is revealed not only how kind Rebecca really was, but how she died, and how happy Maxim and Rebecca really were.
To elaborate, for the majority of the novel everyone believed that Rebecca de Winter drowned due to a boating accident. However, towards the end of the novel it is unveiled that Rebecca’s death was not caused by a boating accident; she was actually shot dead by her husband Maxim. When this was revealed, it was rather confusing at first because throughout the entire book there was an emphasis on how much Rebecca and Maxim were in love and obviously one does not kill somebody they love. Mr. Maxim de Winter clears up this confusion during his confession to the second Mrs. De Winter by explaining the true circumstances of his marriage to Rebecca and what brought him to kill her.
As Maxim explained to the second Mrs. de Winter, Rebecca and him were not in love as many believed them to be. In fact, they despised each other from the very beginning. Maxim explained that Rebecca was not the kind and warm woman she made herself out to be. She was actually very cruel and manipulative, and would use this manipulation to make everyone believe her and Maxim were happy and in love. However, away from the public eye she would save her true colors for Maxim by constantly tormenting him and having affairs. However, as Maxim clarified something much worse pushed him to kill