The use of Freudian themes in Alfred Hitchcock's

Psycho and Vertigo.

Barbara Wróbel 1MA/6

1. Introduction

Having been considered one of the most essential directors of all time, Alfred Hitchock has
undoubtedly revolutionised cinema and contributed to the further development of the thriller
and horror genre. Alfred Hitchcock's films are very often referred to as psychoanalytical
thrillers due to the fact that many aspects and problems raised in those movies are deeply
rooted in psychoanalysis. It seems that the Freudian ideas have been consciously adapted by
the director. Some critics point to the fact that the structure of a typical Hitchcockian plot
unfolds in the manner that is "akin to the experience of witnessing patient's recantations"
(McLaughlin 2003: 1). According to Sandis (2009: 62), "like Freud, Hitchcock time and again
presents us with the ordinary and familiar before revealing a twisted picture of what lies
beneath". This essay is going to ponder on how the elements of Freudian theories are present
in the two, classic Hitchcock films, 1960 Psycho and 1958 Vertigo and how the ideas
associated with psychoanalysis have an impact on the fate of the presented characters. Before
an actual analysis of the two chosen works is going to be provided, let us reflect on the
underpinnings of the Freudian theory of personality and unconscious.

2. Theory of personality and unconscious

It is important to mention that psychoanalytical theory has had an immense impact on the
whole discipline of both literary as well as film studies. That is why it is employed in the
interpretation of a full range of works. Sigmund Freud introduced the division of the human
self into three parts: the id, the ego and the superego. According to Sandis (2009: 61), the id is
"chiefly comprised of innate biological drives, instincts and dispositions" that are closely
related to "the wishes, feelings and memories of past experiences that are typically associated
with them". Ego is an entity that is developed during childhood. It is constructed on the basis

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of "those mental phenomena relating to whatever environmental considerations constrain the
id" (Sandis 2009: 61). Finally, the superego that is concerned with "internalized
representations of social values and morals and our related moral judgments" (Sandis 2009:
61). In order to describe the human psyche, Freud used the metaphor of an iceberg. What is
visible on the surface is only a small part of the whole iceberg, the actual structure of an
iceberg is hidden under the surface of water. According to Freud's theory, the human mind is
built in a similar way: the conscious is something that is visible; nevertheless, there is an
underlying unconscious experience beneath "the surface". It is possible for a patient to
recover what has been hidden in the unconscious.

3. Psycho
The 1960 film Psycho is probably one of the most famous of all of Hitchcock's films.
Freudian themes are very clearly visible in the movie in the character of the protagonist,
Norman Bates. The plot seems to be revolving around oedipal themes evident in Norman's
close relationship with his domineering mother. It tells a story of a very obviously troubled
owner-manager of the secluded Bates Motel. When Marion Crane checks into the motel, she
has a conversation with Bates and from the very beginning, there seems to be something odd
about Norman. He has supper with her in a room decorated with stuffed birds during which
they discuss their lives. Norman describes his life in the following way:

You know what I think? I think we're all in our private traps, clamped in them, and none of us
can ever climb out. We scratch and claw... but only at the air, only at each other, and for all of
it, we never budge an inch (...) I was born in mine [trap]. I don't mind it anymore. (Stefano
1959: 37-38)

He refers to the fact that throughout the whole of his life, he lived under the supervision of a
domineering mother. During Marion's stay in Bates Motel, there are scenes in which one may
hear Norman having fierce arguments with his mother in the house. What is crucial is that
those arguments are always overheard by other characters and Bates' mother is never actually
shown on the screen. After supper, Marion goes to her room where she is soon murdered in
the shower by a mysterious figure, whose identity is not revealed until later on. The body is
found and disposed of by Norman. Then, a detective inspecting the disappearance of Marion
is killed in similarly mysterious circumstances. It turns out that Mrs. Bates has been long dead
and the conversations between her and Norman were actually conversations Norman held

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with his split psyche. The reasons for his split personality are explained by the character of a
psychiatrist:

You have to go back ten years... to the time Norman murdered his mother and her lover (...) He
was already dangerously disturbed, had been ever since his father died. His mother was a
clinging, demanding woman... and for years the two of them lived as if there was no one else in
the world. Then she met a man and it seemed to Norman she "threw him over" for this man.
That pushed him over the thin line... and he killed them both. Matricide is probably the most
unbearable crime of all... and most unbearable to the son who commit it. So he had to erase the
crime, at least in his own mind (Stefano 1959: 107).

Norman keeps the mummified corpse of his dead mother and acts as if she was still alive, has
conversations with her. As it is further explained in the movie:

So he began to think and speak for her, gave her half his life, so to speak. At times he could be
both personalities, carry on conversations... at other times, the mother-half took over
completely. He was never all Norman, but he was often only mother. And because he was so
pathologically jealous of her, he assumed she was as jealous of him. Therefore, if he felt a
strong attraction to any other woman, the mother side of him would go wild (Stefano 1959:
107).

It is then revealed that the crimes were in fact committed by the "mother-half" of Norman's
personality. It seems that Norman Bates has a maldeveloped psyche and thus, his ego is not
capable of controlling drives dictated by the id and the superego. That is why he eventually
develops two separate personalities: his id and his superego are two completely different
psyches.

4. Vertigo
The 1958 Vertigo was a yet another of Hitchcock's films, which is frequently interpreted by
means of psychoanalysis. It tells the story of a detective, John "Scottie" Ferguson, who suffers
from vertigo. As defined by The Penguin concise English dictionary, it is "a disordered state
in which one loses balance and the surroundings seem to whirl dizzily" (Allen 2002: 996). In
the opening scene, Scottie experiences vertigo on a rooftop. His colleague tries to rescue him
and falls to his death as a result. According to Berman (1997: 976), since the accident Scottie
struggles with experienced trauma and "makes desperate efforts to rescue himself from
chaotic, fearful regression constantly lurking behind the brittle shell of his reality". After he
retires, he is asked by his friend Gavin Elster to take care of his distraught wife, Madeline. It
seems as if Scottie starts acting like a psychoanalyst, interpreting her dreams and recovering
her lost memories in order to seek "the integration of [her] dissociated personality fragments,

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striving to liberate Madeline from the claws of her enigmatic obsession" (Berman 1997: 976).
Scottie gradually falls in love with Madeline. He manages to save her from suicide once;
nonetheless he fails to prevent her second suicide attempt as his vertigo makes him unable to
follow Madeline up the steep staircase of a tower. Madeline falls to her death and thus, Scottie
suffers yet another and similar trauma. Up to this point, it seems obvious that Scottie's
affliction of vertigo is the reason for his misery and a factor that prevents him from dealing
with the experienced trauma since it is a direct cause of another one.
A
After Madeline's death Scottie is devastated. He soon meets Judy, who reminds him of
his dead beloved, although at first one may assume that this is most probably caused by
Scottie's obsession and grief. Nonetheless, it turns out that Judy is in fact Madeline as "it was
Gavin Elster who killed his actual wife, exploited dressed-up Judy as a decoy" and
"manipulated Scottie (...) to use him as a witness to Madeline's apparent suicide" (Berman
1997: 977). Judy and Scottie develop feelings for each other, yet the relationship is very soon
doomed: after Judy confesses to Scottie about her involvement in Madeline's murder and
makes an attempt at helping him to overcome his vertigo, she falls down from the top of the
very same tower Madeline allegedly did. According to Spoto (1976: 337), Vertigo conveys
"the struggle between the constant yearning for the ideal, and the necessity of living in a
world that is far from reality, whose people are frail and imperfect". Moreover, as stated by
Wood (1977: 78), it is a tragic portrayal of "the immense value of human relationships" and of
how trauma and the unconscious may interfere with the character's psyche, their ability to
succeed as well as their relationships.

5. Conclusion
As it has been observed in this essay, the use of Freudian themes is easily noticeable in the
chosen movies directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The very construction of the plot is similar to
the actual process of psychoanalysis: the viewer is first presented with what is on the surface,
the conscious. Only later and after a significant amount of consideration does one find out
about what is actually hidden behind the character's inhibitions and semblances, the
unconscious. Psycho portrays a tragic conflict within one's self that eventually leads to the
breakup of the personality of Norman Bates. Clearly suffering from an extreme case of the
Oedipus complex, Norman represses the memory of an act of matricide, which is the direct
cause of the decay of his psyche. In Vertigo, one is presented with the depiction of how
haunting a traumatic experience may be and the story of how a protagonist struggles and

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ultimately fails to overcome his trauma. It is important to mention that Hitchcock very
frequently "grants us [the viewers] with information which is not available to the characters
on screen" (McLaughlin 2003: 12) and thus, allows his audience to act as psychoanalysts
themselves. The construction of the complex characters that Hitchcock presents to his
audience as well as the suspensive unfolding of the plot make it possible for the viewer to
autonomously analyze such characters as Norman Bates or John "Scottie" Ferguson.

References:

Allen, Robert (ed.). 2002. The Penguin concise English dictionary. London: Penguin Books.

Berman, Emanuel. 1997. Hitchock's Vertigo: the collapse of a rescue phantasy. In: The
international journal of psychology 78/1997. p. 975-996.

Hitchcock, Alfred. 1960. Psycho. Universal Pictures.

Hitchcock, Alfred. 1958. Vertigo. Universal Pictures.

McLaughlin, Kayte. 2003. Psychoanalytic theory and the narrative trajectory of Alfred
Hitchcock's films. Place of publication: not specified.

Sandis, Constantine. 2009. Hitchcock's conscious use of Freud's unconscious. In: Europe's
journal of psychology 3/2009. p. 56-81.

Stefano, Joseph. 1959. Psycho. (www.imsdb.com/scripts/Pycho.html) date of access:

28.04.2014

Spoto, D.1976. The Art of Alfred Hitchcock. New York: Hopkinsom & Blake.

Wood, Robin. 1977. Hitchcock's Films. South Brunswick: Barnes.