However, on page 57, these mistaken beliefs of the reader begin to change. After Clara meets Carwin she almost becomes obsessed with him and she even draws a picture of him and is unable to remove her eyes from it. It has been said that "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" and this seems to be the case with Clara. At first she is disgusted by Carwin's appearance then something, perhaps love, changes her mind and she is left with admiration. Whether or not this admiration is one of love was doubted by the reader when, on page 80, she is so distraught that Pleyel would think she was in love Carwin and the tables begin to turn again. On page 90, the reader is able to confirm that Clara is indeed in love with Pleyel. She talks of the romantic evening that she hoped to have with Pleyel and how she cannot wait for her "Pleyel to whisper love."
This mistaken fondness that was seen for Carwin leaves the reader with many questions to ponder. Is Clara really in love with Carwin seeing the admiration she had toward him but just does not want to admit it? Why was the reader never told of her lover for Pleyel earlier in the novel? Is Clara going to be as inconsistent with her "love life" as she is with her thoughts? Will she change her mind?
I agree that Clara is one of the most fascinating characters in the novel, mainly because of how she portrays her feelings and goes about showing (or concealing) those emotions. Yet, based on my understanding of the events and the discussions we have had in class, I'm pretty sure she has no romantic feelings for Carwin, and never had them in the first place. I don't think she was left with "admiration" after meeting him. The word "admiration" gives too much of a positive connotation. She felt "somewhat inquisitive" (60) and as she thought about him more and more, she began to have "gloomy thoughts" that became "insupportably painful" (63). This therefore proves that she did not admire him, but rather questioned his identity and I'd even say dread his presence.
ReplyDeleteI think the reader was never told of Clara's love for Pleyel earlier in the novel because Clara was trying to pace the contents of her letter (I often forget that it is actually a letter while I'm reading it). Her love for Pleyel does not really become obvious until Carwin comes into the picture, I feel because Carwin stirred up her emotions and compelled her to act on them more immediately.
After reading about her encounter with Carwin the night he came out from hiding in her closet, I highly doubt she will change her mind and somehow "fall in love" with Carwin, unless she's secretly a sucker for bad boys, murderers, and thieves. The anxiety she feels about him will keep away any kind of romantic inklings.