Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.

The Danger of Human Arrogance and Complacency

There is an important juxtaposition at the heart of “The Birds” that highlights the danger of human arrogance and complacency. On one side is Nat’s wife, the Triggs, and much of the general populace who mock or make light of the threat and rely on technology to save them. Mr. Trigg represents human arrogance. He light-heartedly talks about the birds’ strange behavior and seems to regard it as nothing more than a curiosity. When the reality of the birds’ threat materializes, Mr. Trigg arrogantly thinks he can defend himself with a gun. He is so confident he can best them that he treats it as a game and promises seagull for breakfast. The military displays a similar level of arrogance, with at least one person in command who believes airplanes and guns will be effective. 

Nat’s wife is less arrogant but she represents human complacency. She enjoys her simple life and believes everything will be fine. The general populace, as represented by the newsman on the wireless, is likewise complacent and seems to think life will go back to normal. Nat, on the other hand, remains humble in the face of the birds’ threat. He understands how vulnerable humans are to this terrifying development. Far from being complacent, Nat recognizes the risk and takes action immediately. The difference in Nat’s mindset means he can foresee the uselessness of Mr. Trigg’s guns, the Army’s planes, and especially the head-in-the-sand complacency of much of the civilian population. The fact that Mr. Trigg and his family do not survive the second night, and Nat’s family does, shows the danger of arrogance and complacency. 

The Folly of War

Numerous references to the senselessness of violence in “The Birds” suggests the folly of war in general. Du Maurier’s decision to use birds as the aggressor in her story establishes a sense of absurdity. For many of the characters, the idea of birds coordinating a species-wide attack on humans is almost comical. The absurdity of the idea makes it difficult for many of the characters to make any sense of it. No answer is ever given as to why the birds attack, adding to the feeling of senselessness. The terrible violence that ensues appears to have no purpose or aim. In this way, Du Maurier forces the reader to reflect on the value of war in general. 

It is true that Nat’s experience as a soldier allows him to survive longer than other characters, but even that is tempered by other factors. For one, the end of the story suggests Nat’s survival might be temporary and the birds will soon breach his cottage’s defenses. For another, the resourcefulness Nat learned from war only goes so far. He makes good use of ordinary items to ward off the birds and defend himself, but a blanket is hardly a shield, and a hoe has little potential to be effective. The ridiculousness of these “weapons” adds to the sense that war is pure folly. Nat also recalls building blackout boards and a shelter for his mother in Plymouth during the war, but he concedes these preparations were useless in the end. This admission hints that his mother was a victim of the bombing raids. Even World War II, which most English people in the 1950s would consider a “good war,” resulted in incalculable loss for Nat personally. Moreover, each attempt in the story at using violence to solve the problem of the birds proves totally useless, from Nat’s hoe to Mr. Trigg’s gun to the military’s fighter planes. Given the context, in which Europe has only just come out of four decades of devastating on-and-off war, the message is that war only leads to misery.

The Illusion of Power and Authority

“The Birds” questions the validity of power and authority by presenting a threat that exposes it as an illusion. Humans in the twentieth century grew accustomed to having their way with nature, either by adapting to live in its more challenging habitats or by wrestling it into submission using technology. Mr. Trigg is a symbol of the supposed power of the human species over nature. As a farmer, he has tamed an area of land and manipulated it to produce goods. He controls his destiny and has authority over his employees and the natural world around him. Mr. Trigg has no reason to believe his power is at risk and displays his sense of confidence when he foolishly tries to defeat the birds with a gun. His foolhardy attempt shows that Mr. Trigg believes his authority to extend beyond human concerns and into the realm of the natural world itself. But his swift death reveals his authority to be an illusion. Mr. Trigg’s power is a result of human social structures and hierarchies. In the face of the raw power of nature, his authority evaporates. 

The military is another symbol of human dominance, but its power is quickly rendered useless by the birds. The wireless falling quiet is yet another metaphor for the true fragility of human authority. There is no one to tell anyone else what to do. Even Nat, who prepares as best he can for the birds’ attack, sees his authority exposed as illusory. Nat, as a man in 1950s England, assumes authority over his family. He takes charge of preparing the cottage, keeping everyone busy, and scavenging for supplies. At the end of the story, though, as he listens to the hawks scratching the door, he relinquishes the idea that he has the power to out-wait or out-maneuver the birds. Lighting his final cigarette suggests Nat may soon see his power and authority exposed as meaningless. The human species may too be on the verge of such a reckoning.