Characterization: Claire Zachanassian
What others say about Claire:
Specific Example / Page / Interpretation1. ILL: ‘Clara: I can still see her…with her red hair streaming out, slim and supple as a willow, ah tender, ah what a devilish beautiful little witch.” / 14 / Does the playwright intend Clara to appear evil? Perhaps, it is not the playwright’s main intention to portray Clara as evil. It may just be the consequence of his true purpose, which is to show the audience a version of the world and reality.
The words “devilish witch” is suitable as she works her charms and powers of money over the town’s people, who give into sinful temptation.
2. ILL: “Clara loved justice. Most decidedly.”
Mayor: “love of Justice” / 15 / First indication in the play, as to why Clara might be visiting the town, hints of her ulterior motive to kill Ill, who had impregnated her and abandoned her years ago. Does Clara herself possess a sense of justice, when she instigates the town to murder Ill, in exchange for a million? Does she get justice eventually?
3. ILL “She was generous too. Everything she had she shared. She stole potatoes once for an old widow woman.” / 15 / Humorous, shows Clara’s twisted sense of generosity in her childhood, her strange attitude seems to have remain unchanged even now, as she wants murder in lieu of her donation to the town.
4. Mayor: “it is my honor to welcome you, a child of our native town.” / 20 / Reminder to evoke a sense of bonding and attachment to the town, a technique to conquer Clara’s sympathy for the poverty stricken town, and hence acquire the mammoth sum of a million.It is also a reminder of the power that money possesses, and its ability to entice others into temptation.
5.ILL: “my little wildcat”, “ my little sorceress” / 20,
21,
51 / Terms of endearment, wildcat may hold significance to Clara’s panther, symbolic of Ill in her hunt down to kill him.
Ill- “its me you’re hunting down, me!”
6. Mayor: “cases, cases...There was a panther in it. A black wild animal.” / 26 / Again, the black panther symbolizes Ill, and adds to his characterization. Her pet name for him during their younger years was “black panther.” The idea that the black panther is Claire’s pet shows that she is superior to Ill, and is capable of manipulating him and the forces surrounding him.
7. School master: “She had the coffin put in a spare room. Curious” / 26 / Symbolizes Clara’s eccentricity, her passion to collect the dead bodies of her husbands. Possibly an omen directed towards Ill, implying his awaited death.
8. School master: “I only learnt what horror is one hour ago. That old lady in black robes getting off the train was a gruesome vision. Like one of the Fates she made me think of an avenging Greek Goddess. Her name shouldn’t be Claire, it should be Clotho. I could suspect her of spinning destiny’s webs herself.” / 26 / Playwright invites the audience to view her as a heroine from a Greek Tragedy.
A creature from the underworld a spinner of Fate, with a controlling influence on the remaining characters and the course of the drama itself. There are numerous instances throughout the play when we see just how Claire is able to control the thoughts and actions of the others around her. For instance, when the citizens begin paying on credit/account, we begin to see the seductive effect of money, leading to the demise of Guellen’s ideals and principles.
9. School master: “That conspicuous consumption of husbands; she’s a second Lais.” / 27 / Lais- part of Greek Mythology; a beautiful and expensive prostitute. Playwright emphasizes Clara’s character as a prostitute (+ her physical appearance), made to dance to the world’s tune, and later on in the play the audience sees an inversion, as Clara turns the world into a brothel.
10. ILL: “ I’ve been living in hell since you went away” / 29
57 / Her presence is like the devil; she has also caused devastation in Ill’s life, like the Devil. Link with School masters “Sinister.. Infernal Regions (pg 27)
Ill- its hell.
Priest- You are your own Hell—Echoing Clara’s idea that Ill is the cause for his own downfall.Later on, the Priest advises Ill to examine his conscience and repent for his sins, as this is the only way that he will find peace within himself.
11. ILL: “Clara are you all artificial?” / 31 / Refers to her artificial and plastic beauty, yet at the same time extends the question to her emotional stability and ability to feel, Clara may have possibly become desensitized to anyone else after Ill left her alone and helpless. She is numb and emotionless.
12. ILL: “Clara has such a golden sense of humor! I could die laughing at one of her jokes! / 33 / Dramatic Irony, at this point in the play there is a great possibility that Ill may actually die or rather be murdered, besides his comment seems rather jovial but it takes on a more serious note. Link with how policeman tells Ill to treat Clara’s deal as a joke.
13. Mayors speech: “My Clairie…prodigal return” / 34,
35 / Her mother died to TB, Father constructed a community restroom and hence she too is worthy, remembered, never forgotten by the towns people, yet the mayor draws out his notebook to list her achievements, suggests that Clara was a petty insignificant or possibly a notorious character in town.
“ Your achievements as an example to others in nature studies the most essential ones they were astonishing, a revelation of your sympathy for every living creature, indeed for all things in need of protection. / 34 / Ironic, as it seems like Clara no longer has any sense of compassion and selflessness in her nature, the world is like a trading zone for her now, deals are deals, she has become selfish and only her interests motivate her to do things, her protection, her justice is what matters and nothing else.
14. Mayor:” Justice cant be bought. / 36 / Claire believes that money is capable of buying justice, although her logic of justice is distorted. In fact, she believes that money can buy anything and everything, which is something she learned from her experiences as a prostitute. For instance, her first husband, the Armenian millionaire, was able to buy himself a wife.
15. Butler: “ And there you have the full story. One Judge, one accused, two false witnesses a miscarriage of justice in the year nineteen ten” / 38 / Clara’s reason to avenge Ill.
16. Man Two: “You can get anything you want with money.” / 46 / Echo of Clara’s voice (pg 36)-‘Everything can be bought.’
17. Doctor: “what a monstrous thing!” / 66 / Illustrates his shock, when Clara rejects their business proposal in exchange for saving Ill, she also condemns them for their useless self-sacrifice and labels their lives as a “useless waste”. She now already owns the entire Guellen, this shows the enormity of measure she takes to destroy Guellen, shows how deep rooted and ugly her desire for revenge is.
18. School master: “heroine from antiquity: Of Medea..Cast away those evil thoughts of revenge / 66 / Greek Literature, Classical Allusion, Playwright invites us to see the more compassionate side of Clara, as the schoolmaster appeals to her sense of humanity.Despite the fact that Claire has transformed into this wicked creature, she is nevertheless, still human. In reality, extreme love for someone and oppression can result in
19. Man one: “sweet Madam Zachanassian”
Mrs. Ill: “ Good hearted” / 68 / Change of heart of the Guelleners, sympathizing with Clara, scales of pity tilt towards poor Clarie, who was tortured by Ill.
20. School master: “that brazen arch-whore changing husbands while we watch, and making a collection of our souls?” / 76 / Reminds us of Clara as a prostitute, the Devil and a monstrous thing. Link with references to Hell.Again, an aura of superiority is attached to Claire. The image of Claire hovering over society reinforces the allusion of her being a spider spinning the web of life and an avenging Greek goddess.
21. Clara’s name: Clara Wascher / - / Slang word for scrubber, ironic as she now is a millionaire, with large disposable sums of money.
22. Post script: “Claire Zach. Doesn’t represent Justice or the Marshall Plan or even the Apocalypse………logical as the law books of antiquity.” / 106
107 / It is possible that the Playwright’s intent is not precisely to present a moral to the story, as it may initially seem, but rather, an actual world. He says that thatClaire “doesn’t represent Justice or the Marshall Plan or even the Apocalypse, she’s purely and simply what she is, namely, the richest woman in the world and, thanks to her finances, in a position to act as the Greek tragic heroines acted, absolutely, terribly, something like Medea.” He is merely pointing to the reality of the power that money possesses. It has the ability to lure people into immoral temptation and can influence others to commit the most heinous acts.
What Claire says:
Quote / Page / Interpretation“Boby, give him a thousand.” / 18 / This shows just how wealthy Claire is as she can easily dispose of a thousand. This foreshadows how money will be used as a medium to gain and exercise power in Guellen. Especially because Guellen is in severe need of donations to improve their impoverished and squalid conditions, the power of money is fortified.
“Don’t be daft. I’ve grown old and fat as well. And lost my left leg. An automobile accident. Now I only travel in express trains but they made a splendid job of the artificial one, don’t you think? / 21 / Claire is aware of her deformed physical appearance. She is no longer made of human parts, but artificial limbs, and she seems to be perfectly comfortable with this. This physical distortion also extends into her inner, emotional disposition. As a result of Ill’s maltreatment, she has become emotionally hardened and her thinking and judgments have also become distorted. She believes that money can buy everything, to the extent of altering the legal system, and that she is allowed to deliberately harm others in the process of attaining “happiness.”
To the policeman – “Can you wink a blind eye to things from time to time?”
To the priest (regarding the death penalty) – “It may be reintroduced.”
To the doctor – “Next time, diagnose her heart attack.” / 22
22
32 / In all three instances, Claire seems rather indifferent when discussing death, which is a very grave matter. She is very frank and casual when she asks the policeman whether he can occasionally wink a blind eye to things. This further supports her being a puppet master, as she tries to control the minds and actions of the others around her. Of course, her money is the key to tipping the scale. The way in which she tells the Priest that the death penalty should be reintroduced in Guellen and orders the doctor to diagnose a heart attack further highlights her desensitization.
“Since my accident I only go about in sedan-chairs. Roby, Toby, bring it here.” / 24 / Again, the image of Claire riding the sedan-chair, which is carried by Roby and Toby, solidifies her superior position and the schoolmaster’s allusion to her as an avenging Greek goddess and a spider spinning the web of life.
To Ill - “She had money”…”Now it’s me who has money” / 29 / Money is a recurring motif in this play. Claire learns, as a result of her prostitution in the past, that male sexual desires can be satisfied by wealth, and thus, sex can be purchased. The purchase of sex is a physical manifestation of power, and presses the one who is purchased into a corrupted, degraded state. For Claire's first husband, the elderly Armenian millionaire from whom Claire had inherited her fortune, wealth was able to purchase a wife. Now that Claire has risen out of this prostitution, she attempts to turn the world into her own, personal "brothel," as she announces to the Doctor and the Schoolteacher. If in the past, she was a prostitute and a recluse, now, she is the opposite as she hovers above society like an avenging Greek goddess by imposing her own legal system to attain her distorted perception of justice. She employs the lessons that she learned through her real life experiences, which is that all desires can be bought, if one has the money.
“And I’ve grown into hell itself.” / 29 / Echo of schoolmaster’s remark (inferior) – “ I could suspect her of spinning destiny’s web.” (p.26) – The schoolmaster recognizes the evil in her and conjures up the image of Claire as an avenging Greek goddess.
“No you’re wrong. It’s artificial too. Ivory” / 31 / Supports Claire’s inner wreckage. Aside from the fact that she is physically deformed, her emotional temperament is also torn into bits and pieces, which is why her perception of personal justice (based on vengeance) is corrupted.
“I’m unkillable.” / 31 / This line shows Claire’s arrogance and belief in her omnipotence and supremacy. She previously indicated that she was the sole survivor of a plane crash, which relates to the idea of Claire being somewhat immortal and potent. Her anger and pain has exceeded the will of life, and her only purpose now is to avenge the crime committed against her and to seek retribution on the people who have caused her to become the monster that she is.
“I’ll tell you on what condition. I’m giving you a million, and I’m buying myself justice.”
“I can afford it. A million for Guellen if someone kills Alfred Ill.” / 36
38 / Because of Ill’s crime against her, Claire has become a vengeful and dangerous woman. She believes that she deserves to gain justice for herself, although this is deep seethed in vengeance. As a millionaire, she believes she can buy anything, even justice. She has obviously transformed into a wicked creature, as she is willing to intentionally hurt others to achieve her happiness, or at least a tainted version of it. The playwright seems to hint thatClaire can only gain her true happiness by turning back time and erasing the memories, but this is evidently impossible. Therefore, she would rather have tainted happiness than no happiness at all.
“It lived one year.”
“I only saw the thing once. At birth. Then they took it away.”
“I think it had black hair. But then new-born babies often have black hair.” / 38
87
87 / These three instances portray Claire’s callous indifference to her baby’s death. As opposed to the maternal instinct and innate loving nature that mother’s are expected to possess, Claire seems emotionally cold and hardened, especially as she refers to her child as “it,” something inferior to a human, much like an animal. She displays this matter-of-fact tone when discussing her baby with Ill, suggesting that Ill’s mistreatment of her in the past has completely destroyed and altered her rational view of the world.
“My third husband. The Foreign Minister.”
“He’s coming, my dress-designer’s coming. My fifth husband, my best-looking man. He still creates all my wedding-gowns.” / 43
51 / The numbering of husbands illustrates Claire’s being a puppet master, who is able to control the lives of others around her. She shows her superiority and power over the rest of the world, which is further secured by her money. The fact that Claire is able to marry various types of men, from foreign ministers to dress designers, fortifies her dominant position. She is able to manipulate others and persuade them submit to her every desire.
“Still I love this barn and the smell of hay and straw and axle-grease. Memories.” / 62 / Claire clearly loved Ill. She often recalls the happy moments they spent together, and although she hates Ill, she continues to cherish their good memories. As she mentions later on, her love for Ill did not die, it merely transformed into “an evil thing.” Therefore, love seems to have destroyed Claire’s life and was the root of all evil, but at the same time, it seems to be the only force that can bring true happiness to Claire.
“I own those too. And all the factories, Puckenried Valley, Petersens’ Barn, the entire township, street by street ad house by house. I had my agents buy the whole ramshackle lot and shut every business down. Your hopes were lunacy, your perseverance pointless, and your self-sacrifice foolish; your lives have been a useless waste.’ / 66 / Claire's power and wealth do indeed, as she has claimed, entitle her to alter the very foundation of the legal system. The audience has seen her "buying" justice several times throughout the play, such as when she pulls the emergency brake on the express train and escapes punishment, but it is only here that the true scope of her power is revealed.
“Feeling for humanity, gentlemen is cut for the purse of an ordinary millionaire; with financial resources like mine you can afford a new world order. The world turned me into a whore. I shall turn the world into a brothel. If you can’t fork out when you want to dance, you have to put off dancing. You want to dance. They alone are eligible who pay. And I’m paying. Guellen for a murder, a boom for a body. Come on, the pair of you, off we go!” / 67 / The allusions to sexual services, through words such as "brothel," directly refer to Claire's past. She has suffered because she gave birth to a child and then became a prostitute, which labeled her as an unfitting member for societal inclusion. Her clients, however, were free to satisfy their own desires because their wealth gave them the ability to do so. Even her first husband, from whom she inherited her wealth, was rich enough to purchase a beautiful young wife even though he was old and decrepit, “a gold lecher,” as she says (p.29). Claire's real-world experiences have convinced her that anything can be bought, marriage, justice (or revenge), personal services, and even life, itself. The only things that money cannot buy, which are perhaps the things that Claire wants most, are a way to erase the past and regain romantic love. Durrenmatt appears to believe that it is romantic love that provides true happiness. In a notable moment of irony, Ill's wife tells the reporters that "Money alone makes no one happy" - although she, along with the rest of the town, clearly equates wealth with happiness.
“You only have husbands for display purposes, they shouldn’t be useful.” / 86 / Again, she views men as material objects. The fact that she casually says that they are for “display purposes” and should be “useless” reinforces her emotional coldness and detachment.
“The way I was, when I was seventeen, when you loved me.” / 88 / Claire often asks Ill to talk about her and how he loved her in the past. Deep inside, she longs for the romantic love that they shared to return. This love was the root of all Claire’s joy and pain, and what has caused her to transform into this monster, a completely different person from who she was in her youthful years.
“I shall take you in your coffin to Capri. I have had a mausoleum built, in my Palace Park. It is surrounded by cypress-tress. Overlooking the Mediterranean. / 88 / Claire has successfully proven that money can, indeed, purchase "justice". While Claire was never able recapture her youthful innocence, she has achieved her goal, which was tocontrol the actions of the man (Ill) who had dictated the course of her entire life. For Claire, this is perhaps the only kind of happiness that she can ever know. She has truly become a monster, someone who can find peace only when inflicting pain upon others.
“A dead man beside a stone idol. Your love died many years ago. But my love could not die. Neither could it live. It grew into an evil thing, like me, like the pallid mushrooms in this wood, and the blind, twisted features of the roots, all overgrown by my golden millions. Their tentacles sought you out, to take your life, because your life belonged to me, forever. You are in their toils now, and you are lost. You will soon be no more than a dead love in my memory, a gentle ghost haunting the wreckage of a house.” / 89 / Claire’s love did not die, it merely transformed into something evil. She realizes that she is a wretched creature because of her love for Ill. Her thirst for revenge will only be quenched by killing Ill, as the crime he committed deprived her of truly living again. The saying that “revenge is sweet” does not apply to Claire as she is clearly miserable. She would rather have tainted happiness than no happiness at all.
She uses the “pallid mushrooms” and the “blind, twisted features of the roots, all overgrown by golden millions” as analogies to the transformation of her love into this “evil thing.” This shows how detached she has become from reality. She is “blind” and “twisted” indicating that she is distorted emotional state and irrational perception of the world. She is “overgrown by my golden millions,” which provides the image of Claire drowning in her wealth, which is why she can so easily dispose of large sums. The fact that nature imagery is being used conjures up the idea of man’s essential illness.
Stage Directions: