Study and Research Questions for Rebecca

• Who authors a film? Who are among the most important agents in the production of a film? What can you discover about the relationship of screen writer, director, and producer for Rebecca?
  
  
• What can you find out about the reception of Rebecca? Did it win any awards? Who are the cast? Were they the first choices? Was there anything significant about the year it was made? What can you find out about Hitchcock's connection to Hollywood in the making of this film?
  
  
• What do you find to be memorable about Hitchcock's style in this film? What film terms could you use to describe this style? Have you seen any other Hitchcock films to which you could compare Rebecca? Name them and briefly compare.
  
  
• What are the most memorable scenes of the film? Are there any special techniques employed in those scenes? What can you describe about camera shot and camera angle in those scenes? How is lighting used?
  
  
• We can compare the film to the novel on several grounds, but perhaps the most important one is that of the narrative told in each. What are the major points of departure from the novel that the film makes? Discuss what significance these differences might have.
  
  
• Another major point of comparison between novel and film would be the techniques used by each to carry forward the narrative. Compare novel and film on the basis of these three aspects: narrative point of view, characterization, symbolism and imagery.
  
  
• In what genre could you classify du Maurier's novel? Are there other genres into which this novel might fit as well? The genres you've identified are often considered to have formulaic structures. List and discuss the elements of such formulas that you can find in Rebecca.
  
  
• This novel clearly charts the course of feminine development in its main character. What can you identify as the major points of that development? How feminist is the main character's evolution? Compare the main character's development into female maturity in both the novel and the film.
  
  
• What novels might be in the ancestry of this novel as major influences on its story? Discuss their connection to Rebecca.
  
  

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