Hitchcock Midterm Study Guide

1. The opening credits of VERTIGO feature spiral designs created by Saul Bass. these spirals serve what purpose in the film

They are used to foreshadow Scotty Ferguson’s life spiraling out of control

The main protagonist and Vertigo is…John “Scottie” Ferguson

John “Scottie” Ferguson

1. The main antagonist of the film is…

Gavin Elster

What is Midge’s relationship to Scottie Ferguson?

ex-fiancee

From what kind of phobia does Scottie suffer?

Fear of Heights (acrophobia)

On the surface, Scottie appears to be a well-adjusted, happy man, however underneath suffers from major emotional issues. this can be classified as what kind of theme?

appearance V.S. reality

One of Scottie’s tragic character flaws is…

having romantic delusions

All of the following mythological allusions are present in the film except…

Oedipus The King

What city does Hitchcock use as his setting?

San Francisco

Ostensibly (on the surface) why does Gavin Elster want Scottie to follow his wife, Madeline?

He believes she is possessed by her dead ancestor, Carlotta Valdes

Which of the following places is not visited by Madeleine?

a jewelry store

What does Scottie notice about the style of Madeleine’s hair?

Her hair is combed in a spiral exactly like the portrait of Carlotta

To where do Scottie and Midge go to learn about the history of Carlotta Valdes

Pop Label’s Argosy Bookstore

How does Scottie “save” Madeline’s life the first time?

He jumps into San Francisco Bay after she jumps into the water.

Scottie tells Madeline that the translation of the scientific name of the sequoia tree is…

“always green, ever living”

When Midge sees Madeline leaving Scottie’s apartment, her reaction can best be described as…

hurt and jealous

Scottie recognizes the setting of Madeline’s dreams as what famous landmark?

Mission San Juan Bautista

Why does Scottie react so angrily after midge paints a relic of Carlotta’s portrait with Midge’s face on it instead?

he has fallen in love with Madeline and it seems to Scottie as if midge is making fun of the love he feels for Madeline

As Scottie pursues Madeline up the bell tower, what does he see from the window?

Madeline’s body falling to her death

Why is Scottie so uncomfortable at the coroner’s inquest of Madeline’s death?

It Seans rear the coroner is blaming Scottie for Madeline’s death

After the coroner’s inquest, the first place Scottie goes in to

Madelines Gravesite

When Scottie has his vivid nightmare following Madelines death has visions of all of the following except?

a boque of flowers suddenly exploding

Where does scottie spend an entire year after manliness death

in a physciatric hospital

According to midge’s conversation with scottie’s doctor, even though Madeline is dead..

scottie is still in love with her

What does Scottie first notice about Judy Parton when he first sees her?

her profile looks very much like that of Madeline

when Scottie quizzes Judy about her identity, she claims that

a department store clerk from Salina, Kansas

Before Judy goes out to dinner with Scottie, what does she do immediately after he leaves the room

begins to pack her suitcase

In Judys letter to scottie, what does she confess?

The she was an accomplice in Gavin Ester’s plot to murder his wife Madeline

What does Judy do with her letter to Scottie?

rips it up 

When scottie buys Judy a single flower stand, it’s symbolic of?

the fact that Judy doe not yet quite posses scotties ideal image of Madeline

Which of the following is not somthing scottie asks Judy to do to become more like Madeline

take a college course in etiquette (manners)

In what color is Judy bathed as she appears fully transformed into Madeline.

green

How does scottie react to Judy’s complete transformation?

with passionate ecstasy

How does Judy slip and reveal her former fake identity as Madeline?

she wears Carlottas necklace that she once wore as “Madeline”

To where does Scottie take Judy after he learned her real identity?

he takes her to the bell tower of Mission San Bautista

Which of the following sentiments is not expressed by Judy as Scottie drags her up the stairs?

Hatred and ridicule for scottie allowing himself to be so easily fooled.

What does scottie do to Judy when they reach the top of the tower?

embraces her and tells her “there’s no bringing her (Madeline) back now”

What startles Judy into falling out of the tower?

the shadowy figure of a nun

What are the final words spoken by the nun?

“God Have Mercy”

All of the following are traits of scottie being an “everyman” character except ?

even though he is retired detective he still wants to feel useful and this is why he agrees to help Gavin Elster

The main purpose (theme) of the article is

remember vertigo on the 50th anniversary of its release

What are some adjectives one could use to describe the narrator?

Grieving, Obsessive, Moody

How does the narrator respond to the noise he hears at “the chamber door”?

He opens the door expecting to find Lanore which shows he hasn’t fully accepted her death

What does the narrator ask of the raven and what is the bird’s repetitive response?

Nevermore, he asks where his dead wife is

During the course of “The Raven,” what changes occur in the narrator’s attitude toward the bird and what brings about this change?

three changes: amusement, anger, dispair

What does the speaker eventually order the raven to do?

He orders the bird to get out

What does the raven eventually come to symbolize?

represents eternal grief 

Morrow

the following day

Surcease

relief or consolation

Entreat

ask someone earnestly or anxiously to do something

Obeisance

a gesture expressing deferential respect, such as a bow or curtsy.

Beguile

harm or enchant (someone), sometimes in a deceptive way

Countenance

a person's __face__ or facial expression

Craven

cowardly

Discourse

conversation

Placid

calm

Melancholy

a feeling of pensive __sadness__, typically with no obvious cause

Ominous

giving the impression that something bad or unpleasant is going to happen

Plutonian

of or associated with the underworld

Pallid

pale, typically because of poor health.

Chamber

bedroom

What point does the narrator stress to the audience about himself in the opening paragraph

The narrator says he's not a madman but his actions don't say that. He acts like a madman but says he's not. Audience begs to differ. (The unreliable narrator)

What was the narrator’s reason for killing the old man

He believes the old man's evil eye is haunting him (pale blue eye)

What made the police arrive at the house? How does the narrator take care of this problem?

A neighbor reported because he heard a scream. The narrator had it all planned out. Said he was away in the country and the scream was his from a dream

What “sound” drives the man to confess to the crime? What is REALLY happening which makes him confess

He confesses because of the heartbeat. What really is going on is that he is guilty and paranoid. He hears his own heart beating, not really the old mans.

Why does the narrator invite the police to sit down on the exact spot where the old man is hidden? What do you think he is trying to prove to himself and anyone listening to his tale?

To show how calm he is and prove to the audience he's not insane.

What does the term “tell-tale” mean and why do you think Poe used these two words in his title?

Tattle tale, snitch, give somebody away. He used these words because the police eventually found out about what he did.

The short story is a classic example of Poe’s use of verbal and dramatic irony. Remember you read Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” back in ninth grade and that story had a similar mood/atmosphere/tone. Give SPECIFIC examples of Poe’s use of verbal and dramatic irony in “The Tell-Tale Heart.”

1. Dramatic: The audience knows the young man is planning to kill the old man because of the eye. When police don't know the body is under them but the audience knows.

2. Verbal: When he speaks nice to an old man but is planning to kill him. When he tells police the old man is out in the country visiting relatives.

The establishing shot in the opening is set in

San Francisco

What element of FORESHADOWING is present when Melanie looks up into the sky?

The birds are swarming. 

Hitchcock makes one of his famous cameos where?

Leaving the pet shop with his two dogs in San Francisco.  

Why is Melanie Daniels at the pet shop?

She wants to get one of those birds that talk as a gift for her aunt. 

Why is Mitch Brenner at the pet shop?

He wants to buy two love birds to give his sister for her birthday. 

Even though Mitch knows Melanie is lying about working at the pet shop, he plays along with her act. Why?

He wanted to give her a taste of her own medicine, prank her back

From where does Mitch recognize Melanie?

Court (her prank broke the window)he is a lawyer defining whoevers window was broken he likes to see justice given

How is Melanie able to track down Mitch’s name and address?

From the license plate (father’s money helps her). 

After the opening ten minutes of the film, to where does the setting move and stay for the rest of the film?

Bodega Bay

Who is Annie Hayworth?

A school Teacher, is also kinda cold

How does Melanie get to the Brenner farm?

She took a row boat

What is Mitch’s reaction when he sees Melanie in his binoculars?

He’s happy to see her. He is okay with being chased by her. 

What happens to Melanie when she is ready to dock the boat?

She is attacked by a seagull, cuts her face and makes her bleed, and Mitch helps her dock the boat and saves her from the bird.

What is Lydia’s reaction to Melanie when Mitch introduces her in the diner?

She is very standoffish, coldly polite

After having dinner with the Brenners, Melanie and Annie have a lengthy discussion about Mitch and Lydia at Annie’s house. What important expository elements are given to the audience?

Annie tells the audience that she once dated mitch. Mitch lost his father and Lydia did not take it well, she forced Mitch to break up with Annie.

What happens at Annie’s front door and what film/literary element does this represent?

This is an example of foreshadowing, it foreshadows Annie’s death, her and the bird are both sprawled out on the front porch.

What background about Melanie’s childhood does the audience get which may help to explain how she has been CHARACTERIZED up until this point?

Her mother left her when she was little, her dad spoiled her with his money which gave her a boosted ego/ mindset about herself.

What happens at Cathy's birthday party and what has the audience begun to notice about the bird attacks up until this point?

They start to realize that the birds are going crazy and actually planning the attacks. 

After the birds come down the Brenner’s chimney and neighbor Dan Fawcett is found dead by Lydia the next morning, how has Hitchcock’s TONE of the film changed from where it was during the first fifty-five minutes? How does this help build the SUSPENSE?

The tone changes to ghoulish/ dark. his helps because we go from feeling the romantic comedy vibe with melanie and mitch into a more horror movie scene with the birds attacking.

During the lengthy dialogue scene between Lydia and Melanie, Hitchcock explains Lydia’s rather cold behavior toward Melanie throughout the first half of the film. What is this explanation?

This is because Lydia is afraid of losing Hitchcock, she never finished grieving her husband's death which led to her strong attachment to Mitch so she never wants him to abandon her.

While Melanie is waiting for the children to be dismissed for recess so she can take Cathy home, the birds begin to gather menacingly on the playground behind her although she is not aware of it, but the audience is. This is an example of what type of IRONY

Dramatic irony, we know she's in danger but she doesn't. 

When Melanie gets to the diner after the attack on the school, what is the reaction of many of the people to whom she tells her story?

The people do not believe her and they think she is mistaken. 

What do you think is the purpose of having the ornithologist, Mrs. Bundy in the film?

She is there to calm people down, and reassure everyone that just a few birds won’t bring about the end of the world. 

What do you think is the purpose of having the drunk (“It’s the end of the world!!!!”) in the film? What literary/film element does this represent?

He is there for comic relief

When Helen the waitress calls out “Sam, three southern fried chickens…,” which kind of irony is being used?

Verbal irony

When the birds attack the town and Melanie is forced to take shelter in the telephone booth, Hitchcock uses a number of inventive photographic shots to share her terror with the audience. What does he want to emphasize? What do you think is SYMBOLIC about her green suit which she wears throughout the movie?

He is emphasizing that she is feeling claustrophobic, which shows that the birds are imitating her being in a cage compared to birds typically being kept in cages. It symbolic towards the love birds in the cage, her blonde hair also represents the birds. (She’s a bird in a cage) 

When the “hysterical mom” yells at Melanie, she blames Melanie for bringing this disaster with her to Bodega Bay. At what is the woman really yelling?

 She is really yelling because she is upset and just wants someone to blame. (scape goat)

After Cathy tells Melanie and Mitch about how Annie died, what does the audience realize about the SYMBOLISM of her death?

She died saving Mitch’s sister because she still loves him. 

What is SYMBOLIC about the boarding up of the house?

We are now the birds in the cage and the birds are wandering free

What is SYMBOLIC of the fact that Lydia smiles at Melanie and Melanie squeezes Lydia’s hand at the end?

It shows that Lydia finally accepts Melanie into the family and accepts she is in a relationship with Mitch.

In keeping with Daphne Du Maurier’s ending of the short story, Hitchcock deliberately leaves the ending of the film open-ended. Why?

He wants the audience to do some of the work and use their imagination. 

Science Fiction works about disaster, plague, alien invasions often beg to be read as ALLEGORIES for something else. For example, the novel ***I AM LEGEND*** (1954) can be read as an allegory to the Cold War (1945-1990). In addition, George Orwell’s ***ANIMAL FARM*** can also be seen as an allegory about the Russian Revolution of 1917. How can the film ***THE BIRDS*** be seen as an allegory?

It can be seen as an allegory to communism spreading.