Rebecca Marriage Quotes
How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
"An appalling tragedy […] the papers were full of it of course. They say he never talks about it, never mentions her name. She was drowned you know, in the bay near Manderley..." (4.93)
This is one of the very first things that readers, and Mrs. de Winter, hear about Rebecca's death. Mrs. de Winter instantly assumes Maxim is mourning his wife. What did you think?
Quote #2
"No, I'm asking you to marry me, you little fool." (6.55-57)
Best marriage proposal ever, right? Is Maxim's temper flaring even here? Or is he just being playful and ironic?
Quote #3
"[T]ell me something – do you mind how soon you marry me? […] Because the whole thing can be so easily arranged in a few days. Over a desk, with a license, and then off in the car to Venice or anywhere you fancy." (6.82)
This makes us a little suspicious. We want Maxim and our narrator to hurry up and get married, but we also wonder what the rush is all about. As the tale unfolds, it's clear that Maxim just really needs a wife. He needs a wife to help him forget Rebecca and to stand by him if he's discovered as Rebecca's killer.
Quote #4
"Not in a church?" I asked. "Not in white, with bridesmaids, and bells, and choir boys? What about your relations, and all your friends?"
"You forget […] I had that sort of wedding before." (6.82-84)
This is the sort of thing that makes Mrs. de Winter feel like she's playing second fiddle to Rebecca. But that's because she's already decided that Maxim is still in love with Rebecca. In reality, he's trying to do everything the opposite of how he did it with Rebecca in hopes it will turn out better.
Quote #5
"Of course," she said, "you know why he is marrying you, don't you? You haven't flattered yourself he's in love with you? The fact is that empty house got on his nerves to such an extent he nearly went off his head. He admitted as much before you came into the room. He just can't go on living there alone..." (6.119)
As Mrs. de Winter later learns, Mrs. Van Hopper's words, though not entirely accurate and surely mean-spirited, have some truth in them. It's never clear whether Maxim actually loves her when he asks her to marry him. He doesn't tell her so until after she agrees to love him as the murderer he is.
Quote #6
"I came here when the first Mrs. de Winter was a bride," [Mrs. Danvers] said, and her voice, which had […] been dull and toneless, was harsh now with unexpected animation, with life and meaning, and there was a spot of colour on the gaunt cheek-bones. (7.79)
We don't know how long Rebecca and Maxim were married. But we do know it was long enough for the azalea and rhododendron trees Rebecca planted to flourish and long enough for lots of hate to build up. Notice also how Mrs. Danvers brightens up a tad when she talks of Rebecca.
Quote #7
It seemed to me, as I sat there in bed, staring at the wall, at the sunlight coming in at the window, at Maxim's empty bed, that there was nothing quite so shaming, so degrading as a marriage that had failed. Failed after three months, as mine had done. (18.5)
Even today, a failed marriage can be a big source of shame. Mrs. de Winter isn't the first woman to prefer an outwardly successful, but inwardly terrible marriage. What she doesn't know is that Maxim made just that choice when he stayed married to Rebecca.
Quote #8
"She knew I would sacrifice pride, honour, personal feelings, every damned quality on earth, rather than stand before our little world after a week of marriage and have them know the things about her that she had told me then. She knew I would never stand in a divorce court and give her away, have fingers pointing at us, mud flung at us in the newspapers." (20.42)
Here we see Maxim echoing the narrator's unspoken thoughts on marriage. Even though it's no excuse for murder, we can see the social pressure under which Maxim finds himself. Divorce is definitely a big taboo, and shame seems to be a major motivator for his actions.
Quote #9
"I found her out at once […], five days after we were married. You remember that time I drove you in the car, to the hills above Monte Carlo? I wanted to stand there again, to remember. She sat there, laughing, her black hair blowing in the wind; she told me about herself, told me things I shall never repeat to a living soul." (20.35)
We'll never know exactly what Rebecca confesses, but we can assume it's of a sexual nature. Leaving it obscure makes it even more suggestive, perhaps, than providing specific details.
Quote #10
"Were relations between you and the late Mrs. de Winter perfectly happy?" (22.134-36).
Oh, how we wish Maxim had gotten the chance to answer that question. He probably would have lost his notorious temper! Everybody, including him, seems to realize that Mrs. de Winter's fainting spell is what keeps him under control.
Quote #11
"We'll start again, once this thing is behind us. We can do it, you and I. It's not like being alone. The past can't hurt us if we are together. You'll have children too." After a while he glanced at his watch. "It's ten past six," he said, "I shall have to be going. It won't take long, not more than half an hour. We've got to go down to the crypt." (23.88)
Maxim is just too romantic, combining baby-making, love, and a visit to the crypt to bury the real body of his first wife, who he murdered. Marriage is so fun!
Quote #12
"All married men with lovely wives are jealous, aren't they? And some of 'em just can't help playing Othello. They're made that way. I don't blame them. I'm sorry for them. […] I can't think why fellows can't share their women instead of killing them." (23.157)
What do you think of the points Favell is making? Are married men naturally jealous? Did Maxim kill Rebecca because he was jealous, or is it something else? Is Favell suggesting that marriage is a dangerous institution?