"We can never go back again, that much is certain."

In the beginning of chapter two, Rebecca is talking about how she cannot return to Manderley anymore. She doesn't specifically say why, but she does say that something horrific happened there. She also gives a description of a man that she is with, perhaps her husband(?), and says that whatever did happen at Manderley has changed him so much that he is not the same person again. Rebecca then recalls a time that she is sitting outside, enjoying nature, and is interrupted by Jasper.

We find out that Rebecca is living in a hotel with this man. She goes into delicious detail about her tea time and all the extravagant baked goods she had. She also brings up two new people: Mrs. Danvers and Favell. Wait, stop the press, the narrator isn't Rebecca, "Instinctively I thought, 'She is comparing me to Rebecca'"(8). The narrator also introduces Mrs. Van Hopper and explains how she met Max de Winter, the owner of Manderley. She describes how Mrs. Van Hopper eats her food in a piggish, sloppy way, so it wonders me if she is truly a good friend, or if she is just one of those people who the narrator is forced to be friends with. She is forced! She must work for her in some way. In chapter 3, she is ordered around like a slave to get her coffee and to answer to her every beckon call. -5/1/24 She employed by Mrs. Vane Hopper to be her campion: "She's not really a friend, she's an employer. She's training me to be a thing called a companion, and she pays me ninety pounds a year" (23). -5/2/14

Who is Jasper? Her dog who is a spaniel. -5/1/14

"We can never go back again, that much is certain" (5). Why can't they go back? Mrs. Danvers (assumed) burnt the mansion down.

Vocabulary:

furtive (5)- attempting to avoid notice or attention
panacea (5)- a remedy
premonition (5)- a strong feeling that something is going to happen
melodrama (5)- a sensational dramatic piece
ennui (6)- a feeling of listless or dissatisfaction
sorrel (6)- a European plant
ablutions (6)- the act of washing oneself (note to self: lavantanse)
deriding (7)- express for contempt
strodgier (8)- not a word
gaucherie (9)- awkward, embarrassing, unsophisticated
staccato (10)- with each sound or note, it is deeply detached from the others
lorgnette (11)- a pair of glasses, opera style

Literary Devices & Important Quotations
Characterization

"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again."

The beginning of the book goes into excruciating detail about Rebecca's home at Manderley. The reader can conclude through the details of abandonment that the home no longer is inhabited by anyone, as the landscape of the mansion has significantly declined from what she remembers it as. By the end of the chapter, Rebecca says that she is in a hotel room when she wakes up from the dream, and that she is no longer owns Manderley.

Thoughts:

Will we find out why Rebecca is no longer lives in Manderely? Well, Rebecca isn't who this question was referring to. This question was directed at the narrator; however, we do find out in chapter four that Rebecca drowned. -5/2/14 Was there a downfall in her relationship? Did she have a relationship in the first place? Why is Manderley no longer hers? Did something significant happen there? A murder? She says, "We would not talk of Manderley..."(4). Who is 'we'? Is it her husband?

Vocabulary:
encroached (1)- intrude on
tenacious (1)- tending to keep a firm hold on something
impediment (1)- a hinderance or obstruction in doing something
mullioned (2)- the middle part of a door, window, etc.
sentinels (3)- a soldier or guard whose job is to keep watch of something
hitherto (3)- until now, or until the point of the discussion
sepulchre (3)- a small room or monument

Literary Devices & Important Quotations