Constructing Fantasy in Hitchcock's Vertigo Essay

In this essay I have chosen to analyse two key scenes, each from two of Hitchcock’s most critically acclaimed films, ‘The Birds’ (1963) and ‘Psycho’ (1960). Both of these scenes from both films display the female protagonists at their most vulnerable, facing the threat and fear of death.

In “A Century of Cinema”, Susan Sontag explains how cinema was cherished by those who enjoyed what cinema offered. Cinema was unlike anything else, it was entertainment that had the audience feeling apart of the film. However, as the years went by, the special feeling regarding cinema went away as those who admired cinema wanted to help expand the experience.

The authors are able to convey the theme of poverty by creating similar settings in New York City and Ireland. Lutie, the main character of The Street, walks down the frigid sidewalk of New York observing the setting surrounding her. The author illustrates the cold by writing, “She shivered as the cold fingers of the wind touched the back of her neck…” (Petry). This quote shows the way the author portrays the wind. She uses personification to give it life.

In Stephen King's "Why we Crave Horror", the famous novelist argues for a rather depressing explanation of society's fixation with horror movies. He insinuates today's generation's obsession over gory and demonic storylines is a result of our internal need for violence that must be satisfied. Such claims may shock readers at first, however, King's use of diction, imagery and tone leave us no choice but to agree with his analysis of human behaviour. He uses these rhetorical tools to prove to the naive reader that we truly are "mentally ill".

In the passage from The Spectator, English satirist, Joseph Addison depicts through a diarist the superficiality and insignificance of life in a bystander society created by wealth. His satiric purposes is unveiled as through reading the diary of a bland man who is a product of a privileged society he conveys the pettiness of the issues they are concerned with. Throughout the passage it’s shown that the diarist’s society is no better than him as it’s an essential part of his insignificant life. This piece satirizes the superficiality and lackluster carried in the bystander’s life while looking at his daily routine and the minute details within his diary.

Hitchcock's Psycho Psycho first hit our screens in 1960 directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It faced major controversy, as it was different. Horror films before this were more unrealistic and gruesome. Psycho was a groundbreaking film of the horror genre. It was more realistic the events could happen in reality.

In Stephen King’s somewhat subjective essay in the 1984 Playboy magazine, Why We Crave Horror Movies, King describes his reasoning behind why so many people are fond of watching movies residing in the horror genre. The content of his essay, though inserted in an unconventional area for

In Herman Melville’s novel “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street”, the narrator, through his own experience, is critical for readers to understand the story about Bartleby. While Bartleby’s behaviors remain mysterious, readers rely on the narrator’s point of view to understand Bartleby. Therefore, the narrator is, other than Bartleby, the most critical character that readers should focus on.

Alfred Hitchcock is arguably the greatest director of all time. Many of his films are considered standards of American cinema and inspired many of today’s directors. Even though Hitchcock is known as timeless director, he had an understanding of philosophy that was beyond his time. Hitchcock had a brilliant perception as to how the mind works and human reaction. Hitchcock’s understanding of philosophy can be seen in his film Vertigo and illustrates how many theories can be debilitating in everyday life.

going back to the other views to see where the policeman is and how is

Alfred Hitchcock's film Psycho Psycho, by Alfred Hitchcock, was shocking for its time. Made in the 1960's when film censorship was very tight to today's standards, Hitchcock pushed the limits of what could be shown and did with psycho things that had never been done before. The cinematic art, symbolism and sub-conscious images in this film were brilliant for the time and still are now. Realised for this, psycho has been copied in many ways and the things that made it great have become very clichéd.

Throughout cinema, there has always been space in our hearts for the gore and intrigue that come from horror films. Though they come with different plots, there remains “the monster”, the character that brings along disgust, horror, suspense, and even sympathy. In Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960), our monster is Norman Bates, the boy next door. This was one of the first times in American cinema that the killer was brought home, paving the way for the future of horror movies. According to Robin Wood in “An Introduction to the America Horror Film” (183-208), Bates follows the formula of the Monster being a human psychotic. This is conveyed through his normal façade portrayed with his introduction, the audience’s ambivalence, the use of

Both characters will be analysed to show how they, debatably, stand for different values, and share contrasting views towards money and the leisure class. The extract is further scrutinised to show what is being communicated to readers through the style, imagery, language,

Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows is a satirical reflection of the English social structure of the late nineteenth century, during a time of rapid industrialization throughout Europe. Also considered a children’s story, this novel conveys Grahame’s belief in the ability of one to live an unrestrained and leisurely life, free of the obligations of the working class, and entitled to this life through high social status and wealth. The River Bank characters, especially Toad, represent those who live this idle life of the upper class. In contrast, the stoats and weasels of the Wild Wood resemble the proletariat, and an animosity between these two classes existed. The lower classes of the

In The Uncanny, Freud discusses the different definitions and claims that various theorists have made regarding the feeling of uncanny. He defines the different factors that provoke the uncanny in humans and demonstrates how these factors elicit that strange and seemingly inexplicable feeling. Similarly, in Vertigo, Alfred Hitchcock, adopts the various factors that cause the uncanny to alter Scottie’s identity and beliefs. Ultimately, when Scottie is transformed from a rational being to a psychotic obsessive, it serves to indicate the severity of Scottie’s mental instability and his detachment from reality.