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Du Maurier wrote “The Birds” in December 1951, during a time of austerity, uncertainty, and upheaval for the British Empire. For the first half of the 20th century, the English endured a severe economic depression sandwiched between two devastating global wars. Even after World War II, a victorious but battered Britain faced severe economic hardship. The rationing of food and supplies continued into the early 1950s. Du Maurier’s harsh winter setting in “The Birds” reflects the austerity the English were forced to endure. The way the winter appears overnight also reflects the change the English may have felt. The wars and the depression quickly ended the days of relative peace and abundance. That the cause of the sudden change in “The Birds” is the east wind is also historically significant. In addition to the domestic challenges during this time, the British Empire faced opposition from various colonies around the world, most of them to the east. Britain sought to redefine its role globally as new superpowers emerged and a new threat mounted with the Cold War. Although Russia had been an ally in World War II, the Korean War and the rise of communism positioned Russia as a new enemy to democracy and capitalism. The threats from the east meant an uncertain and scary future for Great Britain.

World events and the onset of the Cold War would have seemed uncomfortable and disorienting to people in England. Real stories of Soviet espionage were disquieting. In 1951, a United States court sentenced Julius and Ethel Rosenberg to death for conspiracy to spy for the Soviet Union. In England, two British diplomats fled to Russia to avoid trial as double-agent spies working for Stalin, and the British government kept the MI6 Intelligence Officer who tipped them off under surveillance for suspected espionage. More ominous, an arms race gathered steam between the United States and the Soviet Union in their battle for dominance. Both the United States and Russia made multiple nuclear weapon tests throughout the year, and in October 1951, Stalin announced the USSR possessed an atomic bomb. The central idea behind “The Birds,” that a strange and terrible force could materialize overnight and destabilize English society, was reflected in the world events of the day.

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