Was there a Mr. Danvers?
Surely, a Mrs must have a Mr. somewhere. How come there is no reference to him?
shareThere was almost certainly no Mr. Danvers (my impression from the novel as well). Back during that era in grand households, it was the norm to give senior female staff such as housekeepers and cooks the courtesy title of "Mrs." even if they had never been married.
I've also seen this in other films and TV series. For instance, in Upstairs Downstairs the cook who was never married is called Mrs. Bridges.
Thank you for that clarification. I can't even imagine a Mr Danvers!
shareYou're welcome! No, Mrs. Danvers apparently had no husband, children, family, friends, or in fact life of her own. Her life was Rebecca.
In the novel (though not the film) it explains that Mrs. Danvers looked after Rebecca from childhood as Rebecca's mother died when she was young. This sheds some light on her obsession, albeit unhealthy and twisted as it was. There was never a hint of a Mr. Danvers.
Plus, Mrs. Danvers is quite obviously a raging lesbian. She really had nothing to do with men at all during the film, which is interesting. There was barely any interaction between her and any other male character.
shareBut in an early episode of UpDown, the one where Mrs. Bridges steals the baby, she mentions her deceased husband.
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