Stan

Stan is a secondary character in “Clara’s Day” by Penelope Lively. His outer characterisation reveals that he is an actor (p. 53, l. 28) who is seeing Clara’s mother. Stan's physical appearance is described: “He was a stocky muscular man with a lot black hair on his chest. The smell of him, across the landing, was powerful-a huge inescapable wave of man smell sweat and aftershave…” (p. 54, ll. 16-19)

Inner characterisation

The man’s inner characterisation is conveyed through his speech and attitude. The fact that he casually walks around the house barely dressed although Clara is there suggests that he is unaware that his behaviour might be inappropriate around a teenager: “He wore underpants and had a towel slung round his neck like a football scarf, and was humming to himself.” (p. 54, ll. 10-11)

The way he talks suggests that he thinks he...