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I must free this man who will soon be my dad! For if he’s my dad, with him I’ll be seen!
— Constance Contraire, The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemna<ref>PROSE:The Mysterious Benedict Society (book)

Constance Contraire is a very stubborn, young and highly intelligent member of the Mysterious Benedict Society. At the age of two, she could speak and write in fluent English, so much so that anyone she met thought she was a much older child, just incredibly short.

It is later revealed that Constance wields telepathic powers, the extent of which no one is quite certain.

Appearance[]

Constance has short, wispy blonde hair and blue eyes; if she were taller she would slightly resemble Kate Wetherall. In the first book and several illustrations, she is seen wearing a red raincoat with enough pockets to hold at least thirty-seven pencils. While she is only two years old at the beginning of the series, she does not reveal this to her friends, who, due to her great intellect, repeatedly overestimate her other ability to staying awake or cooperate in normal situations.


In the latest book of the series, The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Riddle of Ages, Constance wears a pink shirt with the word NO on it. She also wears one of Mr. Benedict's plaid green suits that was fitted to her size by Number Two.

The name "Constance Contraire" is certainly a play on the phrase "constantly contrary": "Contraire" is French for "contrary", referring to Constance's stubborn attitude. In fact, it's her stubborn attitude that saves the Society in the first book, when Mr. Curtain attempts to brainsweep them.

Personality[]

Constance Contraire is much like any other two-year-old except for her lack of happiness, innocence, and cheerfulness. She is constantly grumpy and contrary to anything anyone has to say; she insists on having the last word and will do almost anything to get it.

Because her more advanced intellect conflicts with her natural instincts, it's difficult for Constance to relate to children her own age; the members of the Society are the only people with whom she can really relate. Constance seems to favor Reynie, but she considers herself close to Sticky as well. Her behavior towards Kate is very sisterly.

She is rather mischievous: she is known to have peppered Reynie's toothbrush, and her infamous insulting poetry speaks for itself.

Constance does, however, have a toddler's instincts and food is one of her main concerns, especially candies and desserts. If anything's not exactly her way she can get very frustrated. At first, Kate is extremely reluctant to have anything to do with her, however she eventually warms up to her after getting to know her at the L.I.V.E Institution.

Abilities[]

Constance is a genius, who can read, write, and speak intelligently at an extremely early age. She spouts rhyming poetry on the spot, usually insults directed at whoever is closest to her.

In the second book, it's shown that Constance can recognize people by their footsteps. This proves useful to the children on many occasions; such as when they are talking and Constance alerts them that Captain Noland is coming down the hall.

In the third book, this ability has heightened to the point of almost psychic-appearing power. Constance can predict the weather by sensing patterns in the air, and likely predict behavior as well by mood patterns and knowledge of a person's general behavior. She can also communicate information through images telepathically, communicating her location to Reynie in the form of a call number at the library.

She once used her powers to convince Sticky for an instant that he didn't like vanilla ice cream and that he should give it to her. While successful, this use of her abilities gave her an immense headache and stomach flu-like symptoms for days.

She also managed to cure Mr. Benedict's narcolepsy, which was one of her most stressful experiences. After this, he no longer wore plaid green suits as he no longer needed them to help keep calm to avoid falling asleep.

Mr. Benedict tells the children that Constance is highly sensitive to patterns, making her appear psychic. However, she isn't psychic in that she can predict the future without any previous information. She is especially sensitive to, and can hear, the Messengers' voices when they broadcast using the Whisperer.

Her pattern-recognition ability makes her excellent at solving puzzles - she is able to recognize a pattern even in a large jigsaw puzzle where few pieces have readily distinguishable details and put it together far faster than anyone else.

Relationships[]

Constance is close with Reynie, treating him like her own brother and Reynie seems to be the one who understands her the most. Sticky is also one of her best friends although she does become a bit of a know it all when around him. Most of the arguments she picks are with Kate although as the girls in the group they have a nice bond. She has a father-daughter relationship with Mr. Benedict, which intensified when he adopted her. Through her adoption she became sisters with Rhonda and Number Two, who were earlier adopted by Mr. Benedict.

Biography[]

Before the Series[]

Constance was orphaned at a very early age, growing up in the house of a woman named Myrtle. Soon after her second birthday, Ten Men (then called Recruiters) tried to buy her for Mr. Curtain, so that she could be enrolled in the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened. Over-hearing the Ten Men speaking to Myrtle across from the other room, Constance realized the extent of the situation and escaped the house, bringing her adoption papers with her. With the help of an old lady, she escaped to the Brookville branch library, where she lived for several months, sleeping in a neglected storage room and feeding off the librarians' snacks. She had recurring dreams about the Recruiters trying to get her, however, and eventually hypnotized herself into forgetting all about them.

The Mysterious Benedict Society[]

Constance's series debut was in Chapter 4, "The Trouble with Children, or Why They Are Necessary." According to Rhonda Kazembe, she had disregarded the rules about bringing one pencil to Mr. Benedict's tests and had brought thirty-seven instead. She had answered the questions with funny but impertinent answers, including "What is wrong with you?" and "Rules and schools are tools for fools - I don't give two mules for rules!" Mr. Benedict laughed so hard at these he fell asleep, but they only confused her soon-to-be friends. During the Maze Test, she didn't attempt to find the exit, instead "having a picnic" in a remote corner of the maze, knowing Milligan would eventually come and find her.

Milligan did indeed find her and bring her to Mr. Benedict's study to meet the others. Revealing her snarky side immediately, the first thing she said was "I'm not apologizing". Throughout the early chapters that she is featured in, she and Kate begin building a mutual animus, which must be resolved throughout the rest of the series.

The first major event she took place in was her own kidnapping. Two Recruiters attacked her, shock-watched her unconscious, and carried her into the maze in a sack. Milligan rescued her, but not without some physical damage and trauma on her part.

The night before they left for Nomansan Island, Kate became fed up with Constance and asked Reynie to ask Mr. Benedict why the younger girl needed to come. They chose, after a short discussion, to let her stay, because Mr. Benedict said she was a key to their plan. She ended up soon being an integral part of the mission. She also named the crew The Mysterious Benedict Society.

During Chapter 16, (Poison Apples, Poison Worms), the first message broadcast begins. Reynie, Sticky, and Kate all feel angry, but Constance is the only one who can hear the Messengers' voices. This proves that she has a very sensitive mind - a nod to the psychic powers revealed in book 2 and developed in book 3.

Constance's next big moment comes in Chapter 32. (Sacrifices, Narrow Escapes, and Something like a Plan.) When Kate realizes that Jackson's licorice is stuck to her shoe, she squirms up to get it and attempts to pass it down the table to Reynie. He continues passing it until it gets to Constance, where she nearly makes a fatal mistake by lifting it up into Jackson and Martina's view. Once she realizes this, before either Executive sees, she eats the dirty, stepped-on licorice, making a sacrifice.

Toward the end of the book, as Kate attempts to get into the Whispering Gallery carrying Constance, they run into a block named Jackson, Jillson, and Martina Crowe. Kate evades them for a time, but eventually has to resort to a last-ditch plan - using her weight to throw Constance onto the flagpole. Constance panics and yells "Open up! Open up! Open up!" at the top of her lungs, disrupting Mr. Curtain's session with Reynie and Sticky in the Whisperer.

Constance's true hero moment, however, comes at the very end of the book - when she pushes past all fears, restraints, and grudges to save the rest of the Mysterious Benedict Society as Mr. Curtain attempts to brainsweep them. She sits in the Whisperer herself, chooses to sit in it, and resists its messages and control with all her might and mind. She fights it until Milligan tries to break into the Whispering Gallery through its secret entrance, effectively distracting Mr. Curtain and befuddling the Whisperer entirely. She slips out of the Whisperer easily, astonishing the other three members of the society.

Constance’s third birthday is celebrated a month early at the end of the book.

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey[]

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma[]

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Riddle of Ages[]

Quotes[]

The Mysterious Benedict Society[]

"Milligan! Come and tell us why you're so dreadfully glum!"

"Poor Kate," said Constance,"she's lost her marbles."

"What is wrong with you?"

"Rules and schools are tools for fools.
I wouldn't give two mules for rules!"

"Now we have waited for thirty consecutive
Minutes to see some dirty old Executive
Thirty long minutes I could have been sleeping
But she doesn't find her appointments worth keeping!"

"Are you just trying to get me caught, George Washington?"

"Let's see you study with voices spouting gibberish in your head!"

“I didn’t call you ‘that.’ I called you George Washington. Ask the others. They heard me. I definitely did not call you ‘that,’ George Washington.”

The Perilous Journey[]

"Do I remember them?" "Hmm, let me think, Kate. Oh, wait! You mean like the men who tried to kidnap me - the ones who shot wires out of their watches, shocked the wits out of me, and stuffed me into a bag?"

"My poems would sound good if your ears weren’t of wood."


The Prisoner's Dilemma[]

"I'm an orphan!"

"For one thing plaid’s hideous, a pattern cooked up

By dimwit designers who must have been mad

It’s also perfidious( a word I looked up- it means lots of different things, all of them bad)

Why, it’s nothing but lines! Lines and more lines!

Not one single curve! Not one polka dot!

What monstrous minds could have called these designs?

They ought to be caught and tied up on the spot!

But worse, even worse, is the fact that it’s green,

The color you turn when you’ve eaten a bug,

And all of the gross and nasty things I’ve ever seen,

Like pond scum and slime molds or that horrible slug,

All covered with fungus out in the backyard

That I saw Tuesday night right before I got sick.

No matter how hard I have tried( I’ve tried hard )

I’ve never seen green things without thinking, “Ick!”

So what can I do? There isn’t much for it

If I’m to get rid of this hideous sight:

If green plaid I hate(and I do abhor it)

Then action is called for! A battle! A fight!

I must free the man who has been held

Behind prison fences(that crisscrossing plaid!)

Long covered by so much grass green it’s a veld!

I must free this man who will soon be my dad!

(For if he’s my dad, with him I’ll be seen!

So away with this plaid, and good day to this green!)"

"You're sorry? Come on, Kate. We get -

Packed into a van like sardines in a can

And I have to sit next to a stinky Ten Man

Thirsty and terrified hour after hour

Certain that Curtain has us in his power.

And you think sorry covered it?"

The Riddle of Ages[]

"What about me?"

"Why does Tai have to be as cute as a button, when I was a whiner, a snoot and a glutton."

Trivia[]

  • Constance's poems are often used for comic relief.
  • Many of Mr. Curtain's henchmen are very wary of Constance's special abilities.
  • Out of all the Society members, Constance is thought to be the most valuable by Mr. Curtain.
  • Kate often calls Constance "Connie Girl", which annoys her to no end.
  • Constance's name is, like many of the others', significant. Constance Contraire means, essentially, 'constantly contrary'.
  • During the third book, Constance is mentioned to be four years old throughout the entire book. However, since she was four in the beginning of the story, and her birthday is in January, which means she would have been five by the time the real adventure takes place.
  • Throughout the first book and TV series, Constance refers to Sticky as George Washington, his full name, though he said multiple times that Sticky was just fine. In The Riddle of Ages, Sticky begins asking his friends to refer to him as "George" in an attempt to feel more mature. When Constance then slips into her old habit of referring to him as George to insult him, he instead thanks her for remembering to use his real name.
  • Though her age is never confirmed in the TV series, it's clear that she's much older than two in this version of the series. This is almost certain due to the impracticality of casting an actress of that age.
  • Constance is the only one of the children who does not reveal their age to the other members of the Society upon first meeting them, providing a hint that her true age is unusual. A clue is provided to this earlier on when it is stated that Kate announces her age to Reynie and Sticky right away and learns in return that they are 11, it being pointed out that children consider their ages every bit as important as their names.
  • In The Riddle of Ages, as the Society drives to Pebbleton, Tai Li asks where they are.” ‘My dad grew up here,” Constance murmered. She yawned and rubbed her eyes. “Well, he moved here when he was around my age.“ This indicates that she is around 9 years old during the events of this book, as shown by Mr. Benedict’s stated age during the prequel.
  • In the television show, the only known Constance has are the abilities shown in the first book. This is most likely because the show only has 2 seasons, whereas there are 4 books in the book series.

Gallery[]

Sources[]

  1. Excerpt from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Riddle of Ages: “Where is this?” he whispered. “My dad grew up here,” Constance murmured. She yawned and rubbed her eyes. “Well, he moved here when he was around my age.”
  2. ‘The Mysterious Benedict Society’: Hulu Drama Rounds Out Cast With Eight Series Regulars
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