The Birds

Structure and point of view are the key narrative elements that give “The Birds” its Gothic horror characteristics, which include a sense of uncertainty and isolation as well as an all-encompassing fear of the unknown. The narrative is plot-driven and follows events in chronological order—except for brief moments when the protagonist’s point of view touches on memories triggered by events in the plot or by the manner in which other characters react to those events. Because the narrative point of view is confined to Nat’s perspective as he navigates the plot in real time, readers are isolated from knowing what is happening elsewhere, what other characters are experiencing, or why the birds attack the way that they do. Readers know only what Nat knows, and they discover that his knowledge is based on observation, intuition, and memory.

As Nat’s singular point of view on the birds reveals the Gothic fear of nature behaving in unnatural ways, even the story’s formal elements underpin a theme of The Uncanny Natural World. The narrator’s short exposition about Nat’s life and personality reveals that Nat knows a good deal about birds and their habits because he enjoys birdwatching; he has observed the birds in all seasons, knows their names and how they hunt for food, so he can tell when their behavior is not normal. The birds “[have] been more restless than ever” this autumn and are more numerous and clamorous (60), and Nat’s scrutiny of their odd behavior foreshadows how familiar aspects of nature will turn uncanny and upend his peaceful life as well as existentially endanger the country.

As the plot progresses, the story’s point of view and structure develop other complex themes, including Humanity and War and Individual and Collective Memory. Nat sporadically remembers preparing for and surviving the Blitz, when the Nazi German Luftwaffe bombed British cities and ports at the start of World War II. Memory, specifically Nat’s memory, helps him make the connection between the birds’ tactics and the Blitz, whereas the other characters either do not remember or do not have basic knowledge of the Blitz, which leaves Nat in the lonely position of being the only character who knows how to prepare for an air-raid. When he witnesses the eerie sight of clouds of birds separating into groups that fly in every cardinal direction, he thinks, “They’ve been given the towns, […] they know what they have to do. We don’t matter so much here. The gulls will serve for us. The others go to the towns” (76). His memories of the Blitz, his knowledge of the birds, and his intuition inform him—and the readers—what is about to happen and how he must protect his home.

However, although Nat is mostly certain about what the birds plan to do and how he must prepare, his thoughts reveal one uncertainty: When he sees the birds split into units, his use of the passive voice—“They’ve been given the towns”—does not specify who (or what) is “giv[ing]” the birds their targets. Nat can’t determine whether the birds are acting on natural instincts long dormant, or organizing because someone gave them orders, just as the Nazi pilots had their orders from Berlin. The unknowable haunts Nat with the ambiguous threat of a larger supernatural foe, which is a traditional component of a Gothic horror story. What Nat knows for certain about the birds’ incitement—ever since he fought the small birds in the children’s bedroom—is that there is something wrong with how the east wind brought a sudden hard winter overnight: “Something was happening, because of the east wind and the weather, that he did not understand” (70). The east wind’s constant presence becomes an ominous motif in the story. At times, the east wind seems like a character aiding and abetting the birds in their cause, perhaps even manipulating their unnatural violence, but neither the narrator nor Nat personifies the east wind fully into a villain; its role in the plot remains indefinite. Such ambiguity is typically even more frightening for readers, who may imagine explanations that more effectively chill their blood than a thorough description from the narrator could.

The remaining characters have clearly defined roles, but due to the story’s restricted point of view, they are not well-rounded. Nat’s interactions with them are limited, and he thinks little about their personalities or appearances. The narrative focus is on the outward plot events and how Nat reacts to them, and his family’s safety is his primary motivation. Nevertheless, through their words or their social situation in relation to Nat, some of these characters animate the story’s sociohistorical setting. Mrs. Trigg divulges the story’s Cold War context in her few lines of dialogue with Nat when she refers to Russia, the Arctic circle, and foreign birds; and when Mr. Trigg informs Nat that people in town are saying the Russians poisoned the birds, his remark illustrates the contemporary society’s paranoia during the Cold War. The children Nat instructs to go home live in council houses, indicating that their families are members of the rising middle class in 1950s Britain. The story’s realistic backdrop pointedly contrasts with the horrors of the plot and accentuates the disruption to Nat’s normal life.

This disruption to normal life constitutes the core Gothic horror of “The Birds.” As Nat’s world descends into chaos, readers see how fragile normality is when a comfortable society faces war, natural disasters, and other problems beyond their control. This precarity further engenders a quality of horror when so few of the characters treat the situation with appropriate gravity, creating a sense of futility, helplessness, and isolation for the protagonist. Readers observe through Nat’s perspective how oblivious ordinary people are about the unknown dangers. His neighbors have metaphorically shut their eyes and literally refuse to board their windows, and it’s the eyes and the windows that are the first targets of the birds’ violence. The downfall of those who are mentally unprepared, who have never experienced the trauma Nat experienced during the Blitz, are doomed. Yet, although Nat foresees the birds’ war and knows how to survive in the short term, he and his family are left hoping for rescue. The ambiguity of the ending leaves Nat and the readers in a state of desperate suspense. There is no guarantee that life will be normal again.