Alfred Hitchcock and Narcissism
Shayna Clark
1213-02B: English Composition II
Professor Hammett
July 29, 2024
Alfred Hitchcock and Narcissism
Alfred Hitchcock was best known for directing some of the most gruesome and suspenseful movies and TV programs, like a modern-day Stephen King. But he is best known for his cruel and unusual tactics as a director behind the scenes, “He tended to stalk women, then become obsessed, and traumatize actors on set (Rampton, J.2012, December 26).” Hitchcock being a narcissist, would believe that narcissism was an acceptable behavior.
Alfred Hitchcock’s first example of his cruel narcissistic behaviors is the way he preyed on young actresses and stalked them as one article states, “He was a famously uxorious husband said to have preyed upon his actresses and assistants (Sehgal, P.2021, April 6).” In another article, it states: “Ignoring the warnings of his long-suffering wife Alma (Imelda Staunton), he soon fell head-over-heels in love with this untouchable Nordic blonde. But when she spurned his advances, the director’s passion soon turned to spite. (Rampton, J.2012, December 26)” The article also stated that Hitchcock became the worst type of stalker boss. He had analyzed Hedren’s handwriting and ordered his assistants to follow her home to ensure she wasn’t seeing any other men. Hitchcock would have thought this behavior was appropriate due to his narcissistic personality, therefore would not see anything wrong with what he was doing, treating people like a possession rather than a person. With his narcissistic personality stalking would be something that was completely in character and in line with narcissistic personality disorder.
Another example of his cruel tactics is his obsession with the actresses who worked in his movies and TV shows. One example from an article is “He had this clichéd ideal of a woman. He found this amazing woman who had never acted before and thought he could mold her. In his mind, he was creating the perfect woman – he even told Tippi what lipstick to wear. At first, she adhered to it, unaware that it was not usually happening on a film set. Gradually, he became more and more obsessed with her (Rampton, J.2012, December 26).” Hitchcock seems to have a very dark side to himself and relishes the fact of inflicting pain on others, especially women who worked for him or who were on the set of his movies—trying to mold them into what he thought was the perfect woman. This would create a sense of control for his narcissistic personality and if he had done this correctly would ultimately create the best woman, actress, and employee. Narcissism could have helped him become so successful, but it is also something that more than likely made others not want to work under his authority as a producer or director.
Another example of his narcissistic behaviors on his set is an article that states:
“In their next and final collaboration, Marnie, insisted on subjecting her character to a brutal rape scene that he seemed to relish. Hedren refused to work for the director again, and as she was under contract to him for seven years, that spelled the end of her career. It’s a deeply disturbing piece. In fact, it’s rather like one of Hitchcock’s own films – Trauma: The Movie (Rampton, J. 2012, December 26).” Hitchcock created some of the most memorable films in history, but it’s the trauma behind the scenes on set that some will remember the most rather than his life accomplishments. Another article states that while making the movie The Birds. Tippi Hendren who played Melanie in the movie was under the impression that would only use mechanical birds in a very short sequence of the movie. When she arrived on set and would find several cages with angry starlings that the cast would chain to her and throw at her body for a full five days leaving her covered with scars and deeply traumatized. (Rampton, J. 2012, December 26).
The way Alfred Hitchcock treated women with his cruel tactics of traumatizing them on set is something very troubling. His narcissistic behavior is something that would feed this fetish of his, to hurt others, to make himself feel good.
Alfred Hitchcock was a troubled man with narcissistic tendencies. Hitchcock was a man who stalked women, a man who became obsessed with women, and a man who enjoyed traumatizing women. These are words that could describe Hitchcock's narcissistic personality.
References
Barsons, M. (2024, June 4). Alfred Hitchcock. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alfred-Hitchcock
Rampton, J. (2012, December 26). Obsession: The dark side of alfred hitchcock. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/obsession-the-dark-side-of-alfred-hitchcock-8431033.html
Sehgal, P. (2021, April 6). The many selves of Alfred Hitchcock, Phobias, fetishes and all. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/06/books/review-twelve-lives-of-alfred-hitchcock-edward-white.html
