Rebecca question

I'd like to think that Maxim and our heroine lived happily ever after; however, there is an eery similarity between her life with Maxim post-Manderley and her life as a paid companion to Mrs. Van Hopper. In both circumstances, her life is kind of bland and hopeless. After Manderley, she resumes the role of companion, no longer paid yet still striving to earn Maxim's affection.

i believe Maxim de Winter does find an escape from his haunting past of Rebecca in the form of his second wife.However the fact that Rebecca,being the protagonist who permeates the novel throughout like a lurking shadow,despite being dead since the outset maybe indicative of the fact that it is impossible for the De Winters to push her away completely into oblivion for the rest of their lives.the burning down of Manderley on the other hand can also symbolically depict an elimination of Rebecca from the De Winters' lives.the open endedness of the novel i think is intentional on the part of Du Maurier,a feature of most of her short stories in The Breaking Point that i'm reading currently.

I like to pretend that the second Mrs de Winter grew an industrial sized set of ovaries and went back to England and filed charges against Jack Favell and Mrs. Danvers for grand theft (Rebecca's furs & jewels) and arson. Or at least paid some thugs to break their legs.

I vote for happily ever after for a couple of reasons. First, no more servants like Mrs. Danvers to deal with. They don't have to watch their fortunes ebb away paying to care for such a huge estate. A new place will be their home, not just his home.

I think they were haunted. British aristocracy would never get over losing a family estate, not to mention all the other horror that went on. I think they were survivors but happily ever after doesn't seem likely.

I think that the second Mrs De Winter would have to grow up pretty quick- i felt that she was naive and her life held her back. Entering into the grown up world of Manderley and the Mrs Danvers would be horrifying for her. For them to live happily ever after would mean that she would have to be given given the chance to become a woman. also a name would be good!

I wouldn't say lead a "normal" life based on the characters personalities. But maybe life could be a little easier, if the memories burned down with the house.

No, they didn't live happily ever after. Maybe he lived happily ever after but yes, Rebecca is gone. And the looming Manderlay but they are living in a puratory until death comes. Is that life? No. The second Mrs. De Winter has no home, no real family and evidently no personality of her own.

No chance of happiness here, unless she dumps her pathetic husband and decides to lead her own life. I think Rebecca and the narrator are two aspects of Daphne's Du Mauriers own personality. The woman she wanted to be, and the woman the constraints of her society made her become.

I think that at the end of the story when Manderley burns to the ground, Maxim becomes a broken man. He sees his reputation tarnished and his beloved Manderley destroyed. Whether he admits it to himself or not, the guilt is eating him. Maxim and Mrs. DeWinter could continue this half life of travelling from hotel to hotel OR they can redeem themselves. I hope that after living a few years in the purgatory that they have created for themselves, they choose to redeem themselves. Maxim has lots of money - he might have insured Manderley - he can rebuild Manderley as a hospital, orphanage, or a rest home (the war is coming). He can build a smaller mansion for himself and his wife on his estate. By rebuilding Manderley, he not only redeems himself but has also restored his (and his wife's) purpose. They have the opportunity to live meaningful lives.

Im sure they did. After all Maxim got away with killing his first wife and still seems to have enough money to live comfortably. Whilst it clearly took a toal on him, he'll manage. The second Mrs Manderley is practical and as long as her man is alright, she is alright, poor sop. So, I am sure they will have settled down somewhere within an English community and then the DeWinters will patronise the rest of the world as usual.