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Definition of Allusion
In literature, an allusion is an unexplained reference to someone or something outside of the text. Writers commonly allude to other literary works, famous individuals, historical events, or philosophical ideas... read full definition
In literature, an allusion is an unexplained reference to someone or something outside of the text. Writers commonly allude to other literary works, famous individuals... read full definition
In literature, an allusion is an unexplained reference to someone or something outside of the text. Writers commonly allude to... read full definition
Allusions
Explanation and Analysis—The Cold War:
Throughout the story, du Maurier repeatedly subtly alludes to the Cold War, the conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union.
The end of World War II saw a new world order with the emergence of the communist Soviet Union as a significant force, challenging the U.S.'s growing international power and dominance. Britain's strength as an empire was waning. The 1950s were a time of heightened xenophobia and paranoia. The U.S. and its allies, including Britain, portrayed Communism as an ideological threat trying to infiltrate their societies, overturning the given order of the "old days." The Soviet bloc was associated with the East, demonized as an Asiatic "Other" with values distinct from the valiant Western traditions. The framing of the east wind itself, as a force of sudden madness and disorder, echoes these fears of eastern thought.
When Nat first remarks on the birds' strange behavior to Mrs. Trigg, she cannot believe that the hostile birds are everyday English songbirds and suggests that they're "foreign birds, maybe." Later, Mr. Trigg has a similar sentiment, noting that people in town are saying that "the Russians have done it. The Russians have poisoned the birds." Nat, for his part, wonders how that could be possible, but Mr. Trigg merely says, "Don't ask me. You know how stories get around."
The birds are immediately perceived as a weapon of the ultimate enemy, Russia. Nat repeatedly describes the birds as acting in "formation," like an army. Nat's wife, too, references geopolitical conflict, asking: “Won’t America do something?” She then notes that the United States have always been allies of the British. "Surely America will do something?", she laments. In saying this, Nat's wife implies that the birds are attacking people not on the basis of being human but on ideological and national grounds. Although "The Birds" certainly makes use of this Cold War rhetoric, du Maurier suggests the actual threat is more frightening. This army, unlike the Russians, can't be defeated by British aircraft or the "top minds of the country." The Cold War conflict and the specter of Russian spies is more understandable to the characters (and to the readers) than the reality Nat surmises at the end of the story, which is that the birds are acting on their own imperative. The conflict goes beyond ideology to something more primal: Nature turning against Mankind itself.
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