Why does hitchcock use birds in psycho

The parlor behind Norman's office is filled with stuffed birds with the largest of them mounted on the walls. The first two we see through Marion's eyes as she enters the room: the spread winged owl and a large black crow or raven, both mounted on the walls. Marion sits on the couch, which happens to be under the crow on its perch on the wall, to eat the sandwiches Norman brought her. He sits in a chair in the corner across from her, in front of the wall with the owl, and another large bird, possibly a type of hawk.

Smaller songbird types are seen displayed around the telephone on the table next to Marion, and, a pheasant along with a long pointy beaked bird sit on the bureau behind Norman. A couple of inferences could be drawn from the physical depiction of the room with the types of birds and, part of the conversation between Marion and Norman.

The songbirds are next to Marion with the crow above her. At the beginning of their conversation Norman tells Marion that she "eats like a bird", meaning a songbird, not a predator.

Janet Leigh seems to illustrate this by picking at that one piece of bread for practically the whole conversation. He goes on to say that the statement is actually a falsity because "birds really eat an awful lot" and that he prefers to stuff birds because "they look well stuffed, because they are kind of passive to begin with".

He places his hand, almost affectionately, on the smaller bird next to him when he is describing his hobby as filling his time.

Marion's denial of her reflection leads her to the Bates Motel, and her subsequent disappearance results in the uncovering of Norman Bates's dark and twisted world.

It is telling that after Marion is dead, the narrative immediately shifts to Norman. It is as if Hitchcock is using Marion's madness as a way to organically lead his audience to Norman's much more sinister secrets. Throughout Psycho, Hitchcock uses uneaten food or the refusal to share food - the interruption or denial of a natural act - as a way to reinforce his characters' inability to communicate - either with their innermost desires or with each other. Eating is a communal activity, but by refusing to indulge, the characters in Psycho increase their own isolation.

During Sam and Marion's lunchtime tryst in the hotel room, we see her uneaten sandwich sitting on the night table; the lovers are arguing about whether or not to get married.

Later, Norman's mother won't let him invite Marion over for dinner, so he brings food to her - but he doesn't eat his serving and she only picks at hers. Concurrently, Norman and his mother are arguing over Marion, and then, Norman and Marion get into a disagreement over Mrs. When Arbogast comes to the Bates Motel to inquire after Marion, Norman offers him candy, but the detective refuses. Norman later conceals the true nature of Marion's disappearance. Finally, Sam and Lila reject Mrs. Chambers's offer to file police paperwork over dinner.

In that scene, we see that Sheriff and Mrs. Chambers believe that Norman is alone at the Bates Motel, while Sam and Lila think that something else is going on and want to take matters into their own hands. The visual motif of eyes underlines the theme of voyeurism and surveillance in Psycho; Hitchcock is telling his audience that this film is showing us what we shouldn't be seeing.

Your email address will not be published. Username or Email Address. Remember Me. To use social login you have to agree with the storage and handling of your data by this website. Search Search for: Search. Follow us facebook flickr pinterest reddit youtube telegram. Table of Contents. See more Previous article What is a shah in Islam? What do you think? Comments Our site Facebook.

Hitchcock first introduces birds in Psycho during the scene in which Marion Crane is eating dinner with Norman Bates in his parlor. As Norman begins to discuss his mother, Hitchcock deviates from the previous match cutting to introduce a new shot of Norman, in which he is sitting on the right side of the frame while a large, ominous owl looms over him on the left side. When Norman admits that he could never defy his mother, he sits back in his chair, making the owl more prominent within the frame.

This, again, helps to demonstrate the immense power mother has over Norman, as if she is literally looming over him and watching his every action.

Birds loom over Norman, but they prey on Marion. When she first enters the parlor, Hitchcock places a close-up of the previous owl in between two shots of Marion, worriedly looking up at it. Even before Norman talks of his mother, the birds in the parlor have a predatory relationship with Marion.

Hitchcock establishes a sense of uneasiness in the scene through her worried expression, but what is making her worried?

The birds.