foils and doppelgängers

a FOIL
shows qualities that are in contrast with the qualities of another

a FOIL
does this by highlighting the traits of the other

often a secondary character who contrasts with the protagonist
to enhance
protagonist's importance

important in the development of characterization

these contrasts and the comparisons

• help readers to understand characters' personalities
• help us to comprehend the importance of characters' roles

Harry + Draco

Iron Man + Thor

Chuck + Dan

Bert + Ernie

wait...there we go

Foils

• Mildred + Clarisse
• Mildred + Guy Montag
• Montag + Beatty
• Faber + Beatty

doppelgängers

Doppelgänger: German for “look-alike” or “double walker”

refers to a person that is a look-alike of another person

In literature, doppelganger is usually shaped as a twin,
shadow or a mirror image of a protagonist

character who physically resembles the protagonist and may have the same name as well

a doppelgänger can be

• an "evil twin"
• a look-a-like
• one person in two different places
• a past or future self (F451)

Pres. Fillmore + Alec Baldwin

Trotsky + Ben Schwartz

Galifianakis + Louis Vuitton

Philip IV of Spain and Mark Zuckerberg

Bizarro + Superman

Dr. Jekyll + Mr. Hyde

doppelgängers
serve a variety of purposes in literature

show "the other self" that a character has yet to discover

this "other self"
could be darker (which troubles the protagonist) or brighter (which motivates):
think Clarisse + Montag
"Burning Bright"

GIVE RISE TO CONFLICT: Doppelgänger serves as an antagonist

Protagonist must undo the doppelgänger's actions

INTERNAL CONFLICT: a character tries to understand himself by understanding his doppelgänger

Doppelgängers

• Mildred + Clarisse
• Beatty + Faber
• Montag (Part I) + Clarisse

Use Part I to:

• Characterize one character's relationship with another character
• Paraphrase the relationship as that of foils or doppelgangers
• Find at least two direct quotations with citations
• Evaluate the relationship: is it what one might expect?
• How do your passages prove your claim of foils/doppelgangers?

Montag and the Rest

• B+G: Mildred and Clarisse
• O+O: Clarisse and Montag
• P+R+S: Beatty and Montag/Faber