What is the opening line of Rebecca
Sarah Rodriguez
Published Feb 13, 2026
“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”
Why is the first line of Rebecca famous?
– Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier (1938) As the opening line suggests, the entire tale is told retrospectively, from a time and place far away from the dramatic and distressing events the second Mrs. de Winter has lived through.
What the most famous opening lines for books are?
- ‘Call me Ishmael’ …
- ‘I am an invisible man’ …
- ‘The story so far: in the beginning, the universe was created. …
- ‘Mother died today. …
- ‘It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York’
Where does Rebecca begin?
Rebecca begins with the sentence, “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” The heroine, dreaming, sees herself as a ghost, flitting through the charred ruins of the once-beautiful mansion Manderley, where she once lived. When she awakes, she resolves not to speak of the dream, for “Manderley was ours no longer.What is the first line of Wuthering Heights?
Wuthering Heights begins, “I have just returned from a visit to my landlord – the solitary neighbour that I shall be troubled with“, which pitches you straight into the story.
What is the meaning of first paragraph of A Tale of Two Cities?
This phrase points out a major conflict between family and love, hatred and oppression, good and evil, light and darkness, and wisdom and folly. Dickens begins this tale with a vision that human prosperity cannot be matched with human despair.
WHO said last night I dreamed of Manderley?
Quote by Daphne Du Maurier: “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”
Was Rebecca pregnant in the novel?
On the night of her death, Maxim had demanded a divorce, and she had refused, and told him that she was pregnant with Favell’s child. … But instead, it turns out that Rebecca was dying of cancer, and that furthermore she was infertile; she had lied to Maxim about her pregnancy.What's the twist in Rebecca?
Mrs Danvers sets fire to Manderley at the end of the film as an act of revenge for the death of Rebecca. We see her plummet into the sea to join Rebecca, a final act of love. While this is an unhappy ending for Mrs Danvers and Rebecca – who has been murdered – it’s a happy ending for Maxim and his wife.
Did Mrs Danvers love Rebecca?Lesbian overtones Danvers may have harbored romantic and sexual feelings for the late Rebecca. She cites Mrs. Danvers’ admiration of Rebecca’s underclothes, and Danvers lovingly showing the new Mrs.
Article first time published onWhat is the best opening sentence?
- Revealing Personal Information. “School was hard for me, for lots of reasons.” – …
- Mirroring the Reader’s Pain. …
- Asking the Reader a Question. …
- Shock the Reader. …
- Intrigue the Reader. …
- Lead with a Bold Claim. …
- Be Empathetic and Honest. …
- Invite the Reader In.
What is the first line in war and peace?
First Line: ” ‘Eh bien, mon prince, Gênes et Lucques ne sont plus que des apanages, des estates, de la famille Buonaparte. ‘ ” (Well, my prince, Genoa and Lucca are now no more than possessions, estates, of the Buonaparte family.)
What is the opening line of Anna Karenina?
The first sentence of Tolstoy’s novel Anna Karenina is: “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way” (Tolstoy, 1875-1877/2001, p.
What is the first line of Tom Sawyer?
Once upon a bye, there was a mischievous boy named Tom Sawyer, who was always getting into trouble, getting off on danger. Like that time when he conned all the boys in town to paint aunt Polly’s fence, while making a sizable profit.
What is the last line of Catcher in the Rye?
For sheer teenage disaffection, it’s matched by the last line of Catcher in the Rye: “Don’t tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.” And also from the US, let’s not forget Margaret Mitchell’s ending to Gone With the Wind: “After all, tomorrow is another day.” Pure hokum, like the novel.
What is the first line of Emma?
” Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her.” The opening sentence of Jane Austen’s novel Emma is a sentence from fiction.
Who set fire to Manderley?
The implication in the novel is that Manderley was set on fire by housekeeper Mrs Danvers, who was furious that her attempts to break up the marriage between Maxim and the new Mrs De Winter were futile.
What do you think Manderley is why?
Manderley is a centuries-old estate, ruled by the de Winter family for generations. At the most basic symbolic level, Manderley is an embodiment of the past: a huge, sprawling place where tradition and remembrance are all-important.
How is Manderley described?
Like Menabilly, Manderley is a natural paradise, complete with woods, beach, and sea. It’s isolated from the larger society, and it comes with a whole staff of servants. But Manderley is more than just a house and some land. It is a way of life, which holds locals and tourists alike in its sway.
What is the opening line of the book A Tale of Two Cities?
The famous opening lines from Charles Dickens’ seminal novel on the French Revolution: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it …
What is the last line of Tale of Two Cities?
The last line of the novel is spoken by Sydney Carton before he is executed at the guillotine. He says: “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done, it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.” This is another iconic line from the book that is loved by many.
How does the opening paragraph of A Tale of Two Cities reflect the historical era?
The opening two paragraphs describe the condition in England and France in 1775, the year the novel begins, establishing this as a historical novel (it was published in 1859). Dickens points out that the condition he describes is very much like the “present period,” or his own times, too, universalizing his theme.
Why is Mrs Danvers obsessed with Rebecca?
She believed Rebecca was about jealousy, and that all the relationships in it – including the marriage between De Winter and his shy second wife – were dark and unsettling.
Why did Maxim hate Rebecca?
Maxim killed Rebecca after she told him that she was carrying her lover’s child, that he would have to raise as his own. He does eventually reveal to his new wife that he never loved Rebecca, but not until several months of marriage have passed.
What was the second Mrs de Winter's name?
To the second Mrs. de Winter, Rebecca personifies glamour and gaiety, and she does not think that she can compete with this dead paragon to win Maxim’s love. Mrs. Danvers, the sinister housekeeper, especially wounds the narrator by constantly mentioning how much Maxim had loved, and would always love, Rebecca.
Why does Mrs de Winter not have a name?
Names. Mrs. de Winter’s narrative is a personal reflection, taking place inside her mind. So, when she hides her first name, she’s hiding it from herself. And it’s not that she doesn’t remember it, or that nobody calls her by it.
Why do you think Rebecca was smiling at the time of her death?
Chapter 20 Quotes We never loved each other, never had one moment of happiness together. Rebecca was incapable of love, of tenderness, of decency. She was not even normal.”
Is Rebecca on Netflix scary?
And while it’s not a very scary movie (especially when compared with the Oscar-winning 1940 Alfred Hitchcock film adaptation), it has the potential to send a chill down your spine.
What is the last line of Rebecca?
Rebecca ends with Maxim and Mrs de Winter carrying on with their lives in Cairo and the ending voiceover from Mrs de Winter is a hopeful one: “I can see the woman I am now and I know that I have made the right decision. To save the one thing worth walking through flames for. Love.”
Does Maxim de Winter love the narrator?
Like any good gentleman, Maxim is obsessed with his public appearance. As a result, he doesn’t divulge the truth about Rebecca, his first wife, to the narrator until towards the end of the novel—as far as she’s concerned, Maxim loved Rebecca, and continues to love her even after her death.
Did Mrs Danvers raise Rebecca?
This is no accident, for Rebecca de Winter, the first wife of Maxim de Winter and the mistress of Manderley, used to love sea and sailing. Mrs Danvers, who raised her and then moved with her to Manderley, was her symbolic harbour. The one that Rebecca de Winter could always safely return to.