High school cliques will never disappear. No matter how advanced times get, people will naturally herd together based on common interests and background. John Hughes’s 1980’s critically acclaimed movie about five stereotyped students, The Breakfast Club, are forced to spend detention together and end up revelling in discoveries about each other and realization they are more alike than different. Claire Standish embodies a privileged, popular girl that looks down on anyone that is not in her social class but by the end of her detention, her snobby ways break down to sincerity and kindness. There is more than meets the eye with Claire Standish, the high school Princess in disguise, as her character moves closer to her truth and happiness.
Claire Standish is presented to the reader as a rich girl with a conceited attitude. Not only does she look entitled but plays the part to a tee. After ditching school to go shopping, she still thinks she should not be held accountable for her actions and whines to her dad when he drops her off for Saturday detention. This entitlement is clearly portrayed in her opening dialogue to her dad: “I can’t believe you can’t get me out of this…It’s not like I’m a defective or anything” (Hughes). Her statement leads the reader to believe she has been brought up with daddy saving her and getting her out of culpable binds. She labels kids who get detention as defectives and basically claims that her ditching is acceptable and should not warrant a punishment because of who she is and the wealth she has. She continues with an air of superiority with statements like, “I can’t believe this is really happening to me” and “Do you know how popular I am? Everyone loves me so much” (Hughes). This pretentious attitude sets her apart as others see her life as perfect. Even though this may not be her reality, her self-portrayal speaks loud and clear. What the reader will find out is that Claire has self-conflicts that link her closer to the other students than thought.
Claire not only symbolizes popularity and all the stigma that goes along with it, but she also characterizes loyalty. This can first be seen when Mr. Vernon demands to know who took the screw from the door. It is only through Claire’s comment that Mr. Vernon accepts as plausible and stops his inquisition, as illustrated in, “Excuse me, sir, why would anybody want to steal a screw?” (Hughes). Mr. Vernon affirms this logic either because it is coming from a student that does not belong there or because its reasoning is just. Whatever the case, Claire knows if she speaks up, Vernon will more than likely listen. She decides that unity is key in that situation and being loyal out of sincere kindness is the result. Bender also is momentarily shocked and stops in his tracks when Claire comes to his rescue. Not only has Bender never really had anyone stand up for hom, but Claire, too, has never really vocalized her own opinions and stance. Bender’s self destructive attitude brings out Claire’s devotion to the predicament of all the students. As Bender is berated by Vernon after he tells him to eat his shorts, Claire puts a stop to Bender’s defiance by yelling “Quit it” and mouthing him to stop (Hughes). This portrays Claire’s genuine gesture of stopping Bender’s delinquent role that he feels he must live up to constantly. Her loyalty not only comes in the form of allegiance but also through her looking out for people whom she does not want to get hurt.
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The biggest character change Claire goes through is her self realization of her attitude and behavior along with her . Claire is pulled in all directions and told how to think. At home, she is caught between an almost divorced mother and father that use her as a pawn to attack each other, as seen in the scene when Andrew asks if she is grounded: “I don’t know, my mom said I was but my dad told me to just blow her off” (Hughes). Claire seems to be indifferent with their love as she does not feel truly cared for. She goes along with relationships and acts as she is expected to socioeconomically act. In her life, society dictates expected behavior and she tries to shine a reality light when everyone is asked if they will be friends on Monday or walk together in the hall. She is the only one who admits that things will go back to how they were before detention and everyone will ignore each other. It is not until she gets called out by others for her fake behavior that Claire has a moment of emotional clarity and admits to caving in to peer pressure, as illustrated by, “I hate it! I hate having to go along with everything my friends say!” (Hughes). Claire is aware of how social structures dictate how she is allowed to blend in with other social groups. Although she struggles internally with this unjust attitude, she has never before openly admitted that she does not agree with it. It has taken an awakening with peers of different social cliques to open her eyes and be true to herself. She has learned the lesson of humanity from kids with whom she would have never interacted in a situation that she has been sheltered from her entire life.
Claire transforms from the stereotypical conceited and snobby rich girl to one that shyly blossoms out of her shell and breaks the social norms she has been accustomed to her whole life. The ending scene of her publicly kissing a “bad boy” and giving him one of her earrings confirms she embraces her newfound identity as she breaks down social barriers. The group gets to know her for her true insecure self, one that is neither stuck up nor entitled. Just like the rest of them, Claire has been living her life under a false facade. She learns that she does not have to be what people expect her to be and most importantly she learns to accept others on the basis of humanity and not social class. Claire’s character transformation sets her free and it is inferred that she gains personal strength to stand up and be true to herself in the future.
Works Cited
- The Breakfast Club. Directed by John Hughes, Universal Pictures. 1985.
