Rebecca | Literary Precedents
Rebecca follows the tradition of the Gothic novel and is largely responsible for the genre's resurgence in the twentieth century. First created by Horace Walpole when he wrote The Castle of Otranto (1764), the Gothic novel typically takes place in an eerie mansion or castle. Usually, a young heroine's life is threatened by secrets in the manor until the man she loves rescues her. Rebecca follows this formula except that Maxim, the hero, does not rescue anyone from the evil in Manderley. To the contrary, Maxim is responsible for the death of his first wife and is unaware of the danger his...
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