Refiguring The Birds as Modern Female Gothic in the Kennedy Era

This essay examines the Alfred Hitchcock cult film The Birds, situated in the transitional era of the Kennedy presidency, from the perspective of the enduring historic female Gothic in literature and film. The feminist reading expands John Hellman's historical critique by focusing specifically on the representation of women characters—situated in the Kennedy era, but also reflecting the underlying energy and restlessness of women throughout the "long 1950s," (1946-1964) which preceded the transition into second wave feminism. Melanie, Annie, Lydia, Cathy, and even some of the minor female characters reflect gender role tensions of the era. Far from victims of patriarchy brutally reasserting itself, most of the women, though partially thwarted, do exercise agency in their struggle to break free.