Scottie’s Psychosis: Root Cause Analysis


            Within Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo (1958), the protagonist, John “Scottie” Ferguson (James Stewart) suffers from numerous psychological disorders. The initial onset of acrophobia, or an irrational fear of heights, begins after a near death experience when Scottie slips during a roof top chase. However, acrophobia and vertigo are only the first of many abnormalities; depression, emotional immaturity, repression, withdrawal, fetishism, obsession, sadism, and implied necrophilia are soon to follow. While the traumatic work-related event provides a fault in the assumedly solid character’s visage, the root cause for Scottie’s fall into madness remains suspect. Why does Scottie lose his sanity after a near death experience when others face and overcome similar circumstances? Was the protagonist doomed by fate, merely a pawn being played, the victim of his own poor choices, or a combination of the three? Hitchcock uses Scottie as a psychological case study to imply a moral lesson; the road to madness may be on a character’s map based on fate (or traits inherent to the individual), and one may face formidable odds from external forces, but the first steps down any path are always a choice. Though Scottie’s weakness (illustrated through the director’s use of color) was exploited by outside influences, his lack of professionalism and unethical behavior toward a so-called client’s wife (Madeline) become the character’s leaping point from reality.
The director’s perfectionism and rumored obsessive control of detail equate to direct and/ or implied meaning in every seemingly trivial component of the film. There are no arbitrary or accidental details, but layers inviting interpretation cause engaged viewers to inquire why Scottie’s psychological deterioration occurs. Establishing an initial cause for the protagonist’s abnormal behavior, viewers immediately witness Scottie’s near death experience as the film opens. Acrophobia and vertigo have been triggered, and a sympathetic seed has been planted in the audience. When we meet Scottie at Midge Wood’s (Barbara Bel Geddes) art studio apartment later, an unknown amount of time has elapsed. An attentive viewer begins to feel a slight scratch of awareness as patterns of color begin to emerge around Scottie and Midge. We are relieved to learn that though battered, Scottie is on the mend, and our connection with him grows. The viewer is hopeful for his full recovery, but this is not meant to be; Scottie’s vulnerability is the vital link in a nefarious murder and related insurance fraud scheme.
In order to determine the root cause of Scottie’s psychosis, which is the result of witnessing Madeline’s staged suicide, one must examine Hitchcock’s painstaking associations of Vertigo’s three main characters with a color suited to their respective personalities; the pigments represent character identity, development, and through traits implied by each colors’ psychological and cultural connotations, each character’s fate. Scottie is associated with red, Midge with yellow, and Madeline / Judy are two shades of green. Consequently, the seemingly trivial patterns of color in the costumes, props, and sets throughout the film are significant in explaining why Scottie is repelled by Midge but inexorably drawn toward Madeline, thereby resulting in his mental deterioration. Scottie’s near death experience only opened the door of self-doubt and emasculation, through which Madeline (A.K.A. Judy) was able to enter without resistance. This lowering of defenses and ease into the protagonist’s heart (and psyche) can be explained anecdotally by fate or empirically with the evidence Hitchcock presents through Scottie’s association with the color red, and Madeline’s connection to the color green. Pivotal moments (especially when one character wears the color associated with another) allow the viewer to discover that each character’s behavior in stressful situations is predetermined by their traits, which are represented by the director with color.
Hints of color patterns begin in the film’s second scene. In Midge’s studio home, Scottie sits on two pieces of her red furniture, has a red front door at his own apartment, gives Madeline a red bath robe to wear, and takes her to the Redwood Forrest. Red is the color psychologically and culturally associated with strength, passion, danger, power, emotional intensity, rage, aggression, and longing[1]. Conversely, Midge touches and wears yellow in her home. She is independent, self-reliant, and talented; her color represents reality, truth, confrontation, intelligence, loyalty and honor. Per Color Wheel Pro, an online color software program, “men usually perceive yellow as a very lighthearted, childish color,” and yellow is also known to makes babies cry, which humorously implies why Scottie’s emotional immaturity drives him away from the one person in the film who truly cares for his well-being[2]. Despite rejection, Midge reaches out across the color wheel to relay her feelings during the self portrait presentation scene; she is wearing a red sweater (Scottie’s color), as Scottie wears a green sweater (Madeline’s color) after the water rescue. Shortly thereafter, Midge attempts to destroy the self-portrait in a temper tantrum, but there is no paint on the brush, which implies that no color will be able to accomplish her desired goal of winning Scottie.
Red and green (representing Scottie and Madeline respectively) are complete opposites on the color wheel, but they are defined as complimentary colors. As demonstrated with traffic signals, green indicates safety while red warns of danger[3]. Scottie and Madeline are also complete opposites, and the traits associated by color to each of their characters imply that once the two were brought together, the outcome was beyond their control and determined by fate. Symbolizing fertility, healing, hope, and wealth, Madeline Elster’s color is the timeless Oxford green seen in high-end billiard clubs and classic Ralph Lauren clothing. Her green gown, as we establish her moral portrait at Ernie’s Restaurant, contrasts with the red brocade wallpaper of the set. Her classic car is green (and even the cushions she sits on at Scottie’s apartment) are her color. Closely related, Judy Barton’s green is of a dated 1960’s avocado, pea-soup variety; however, this olive green is the traditional color of peace, which explains Judy’s passive aggressive behavior towards Scottie’s proposed changes to her physical appearance. Further, after Scottie leaves her apartment, the actress looks directly at the camera, and the screen briefly flashes red (Scottie’s color), symbolizing the unholy union’s irreversibility. Even Judy’s life is sacrificed in accordance with green’s association with peace, as the protagonist drags the leading lady up the steps of the San Juan Batista church tower, from where she plummets to her death.
Nevertheless, analysis indicates that despite character traits implying fate’s will, external forces most certainly contribute to the disintegration of Scottie’s mental faculties. Would Scottie have gone mad had his balancing lady in green not been planted in an act of deception? While the extent of the protagonist's fall into madness may not have been fully intended (or of concern), the factors were carefully orchestrated and convincingly executed. Scottie’s former college acquaintance, Gavin Elster (Tom Helmore) married well, but he was evidently unsatisfied with the arrangement. Though Gavin portrays himself as a successful shipping industry businessman with a genuine concern for his wife, the villain needs a pawn for his homicidal high stakes game of insurance fraud. Reading about Scottie’s accident in the paper, Gavin becomes aware of the former detective’s ordeal and hires an actress to impersonate the real Madeline Elster. Cognizant that she has snared her prey, our leading lady travels to the flower shop, Mission Delores cemetery, an art museum, the McKittrick Hotel, and the Golden Gate Bridge Park in order to complete the façade of suicidal tendencies and spirit possession. She plunges into the bay and fulfills Scottie’s fantasy of saving a damsel in distress. Eventually, Scottie is lured (as instructed) to the staged suicide setting where his acrophobia is exploited; our protagonist cannot ascend the San Juan Batista bell tower stairs to see that two female forms (and one ambitious Gavin Elster) occupy the space. Scottie’s disability was played (as though he were merely a piece in a game) to allow the body of the real Madeline Elster to be unceremoniously flung from the tower in a mock suicide, thereby concealing her murder and exonerating Gavin from suspicion regarding his fraudulent insurance claim.
One wonders if Scottie would have lost his grip on reality had he never been involved in Gavin’s carefully planned scheme. Was Judy hired based on her resemblance to the painting, or was the painting a recent addition to the gallery? Was Gavin a San Francisco history aficionado, or was the real Madeline Elster truly the granddaughter of Carlotta Valdes? While the audience is not privy to Gavin’s planning or the possible “what if” occurrences Scottie’s character may have faced had he not responded to the villain’s call for assistance, we are able to infer that the subterfuge initiated to conceal the deceptive plot triggered the protagonist’s breakdown. Though any life event producing significant trauma and grief may have had the same effect of psychosis, witnessing the staged death of his newly acquainted beloved was more than the damaged character could tolerate. The protagonist was chosen to be an unknowing witness because of his fragility. This weakness facilitated Scottie’s ignorant testimony about Madeline’s mental instability, which was provided as intended in order to exonerate Gavin of any nefarious involvement with his wife’s death. Scottie’s disability was intentionally capitalized on by a man seeking his wife’s wealth. Does this indicate that the poor choices and questionable behavior were not Scottie’s fault but Gavin’s? Was Scottie only responding to external forces beyond his control, or did he have free will to use judgment and adhere to the ethical standards professional law enforcement positions require?
Despite any excuse one could provide about fate, external forces, weakness, or the lack of self-esteem causing poor judgment, Scottie’s behavior in Vertigo is glaringly unethical and completely inappropriate. After rescuing Madeline from the icy waters of San Francisco Bay, the former police detective foregoes procedure. Standard operating procedures (S.O.P.) are so ingrained in law enforcement personnel that they kick in automatically during any stressful situation. Yet, instead of driving to a medical facility for an unresponsive victim of hypothermia, Scottie not only takes Madeline to his own residence, but he strips of her of clothing and places her naked in his bed. What transpired while Madeline was unconscious remains for speculation, but one ponders the hypothetical latent passions released upon a helpless and unconscious female after she was clandestinely surveilled and undressed without permission by a stranger. Most assuredly, the color of Scottie’s sweater (Madeline’s green), worn in his apartment as Madeline awakens, implies that he no longer sees her as the wife of a client and former college acquaintance. Madeline has become his, whether she or Gavin acquiesces. Scottie’s unethical choices (in direct violation of law enforcement S.O.P.) couple with unknown implied and thoroughly inappropriate behavior during Madeline’s unconsciousness.
Had he been acting in a professional capacity, even as a favor to a friend, Scottie would (and should) have removed himself from the situation once he realized that his feelings for Madeline were becoming personal and could not be controlled. This lack of professionalism is also evident as he attempts to fill the role of psychotherapist for the allegedly possessed damsel in distress. In fact, had he actually been trained to provide the psychotherapeutic service he was offering when “Madeline” gazed off, Scottie would have recognized the onset of Countertransference, “which occurs when a therapist transfers emotions to a person in therapy.[4]” An example is when “an attractive patient is never challenged because the therapist desperately yearns to be liked.” This is likely why Scottie doesn’t openly question Madeline’s absurd pretenses[5]. He also medicates both Madeline and Judy on numerous occasions with shots of alcohol, as though he were a medical professional providing a diagnosis and prescription; we also witnessed this Renaissance-man and jack-of-all-trades mentality during Madeline’s hypothermia treatment. Medical doctor, psychologist, police detective, make-over artist, sugar daddy, and knight in shining armor; Scottie is everything a woman could want… until he inadvertently kills her.
            Root cause analysis indicates that Scottie’s fall into madness was a combination or alignment of three influencing factors. His aggressively dominant and emotionally charged character after the accident (symbolized by the color red) was predisposed by fate, or a series of events beyond his control, toward a balancing shade of green for peace, security, and submission. Yet, the protagonist was played like a pawn by Gavin Elster, a successful business man with knowledge of the required maneuvers necessary to accomplish a goal. However, Scottie’s fate was ultimately the result of his choices; he could have refused the surveillance job to ascertain Madeline’s whereabouts and actions. He could (and should) have taken her directly to a medical facility when she was unconsciousness with hypothermia. He could have also chosen to ignore the necklace (replicated from the painting of Carlotta Valdes and worn by Judy on their last dinner date) and lived a happy life with a devoted and completely submissive partner. Yet, the color Hitchcock associates with Scottie’s character indicates that the damaged police detective may have been doomed to succumb to emotion based on his psychological deficiency, thereby resulting in obsession, disconnection from reality, and withdraw from society. Nevertheless, a moral lesson is implied throughout the film with Scottie’s psychological deterioration; we may be predisposed toward abnormality, and our path may be influenced by external forces, but the first step is ours alone to make. Only a single step down the wrong path is needed before one is no longer able to turn back.



[1] Parker, Regina. “The Meaning of Colors.” OnCourse Indiana University. resources.oncourse.iu.edu/access/content/user/rreagan/Filemanager_Public_Files/meaningofcolors.htm. Accessed 29 Mar. 2017.
[3] Parker, Regina. “The Meaning of Colors.” OnCourse Indiana University. resources.oncourse.iu.edu/access/content/user/rreagan/Filemanager_Public_Files/meaningofcolors.htm. Accessed 29 Mar. 2017.
[4] “Countertransference.” GoodTherapy.org. goodtherapy.org/blog/psychpedia/countertransference. Accessed 29 Mar. 2017.

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