#outlander 3x4

[ecampbellsoup]

[ecampbellsoup]

[ecampbellsoup]

Outlander Moments of Impact: Beholding His Son

(Disclaimer: as many of you lovely viewers, I was saddened by the lack of dialogue and scenes that involved Jamie’s relationship with Bree in season 3. However, I still find this moment between a papa and child to be beautiful. I hope we see more moments like this between Jamie and all of his children in season 4)

I am not going to focus on dialogue or even an exchange between characters today. I want to boil it down to the most basic thing: A facial expression. That’s it. Simply the look on someone’s face and in their eyes.

Potent storytelling is what’s being said without saying anything at all. It moves the viewer more than most dialogue ever could. People say a picture is worth a thousand words, but I say a facial expression is worth a thousand more.

Such a moment of subtle brilliance is when Jamie holds Willie for the first time in 3x4 “Of Lost Things”

Let’s break down the scene for some context, shall we?

During a curt confrontation, Jamie and Isobel are alerted to a commotion and swiftly run to see what is happening. 

Upon arrival on the scene, Jamie realizes immediately that his child’s life is in jeopardy as Lord Ellesmere threatens to stab the tiny baby he holds helpless in his arms.

Due to the child’s illegitimacy, Ellesmere is unmoved by the child’s innocent or the death of his mother, and thus holds a dagger with the desire to kill. 

Looking over, Jamie quickly establishes what is going on. Yet he keeps his desperate concern right below the surface

Calmly and carefully, Jamie intervenes. Turning to Lord Dunsany, Jamie sees he holds a pistol. He must deescalate the scene quickly. 

Asking for him to initiate peace, Jamie requests that the Lord hand over his arms. 

Reluctantly, yet trusting Jamie and desiring the child’s safety, Lord Dunsany relinquishes the weapon. 

However, Ellesmere is having none of it. He refuses to yield. 

In a rage, he raises his hand to strike and kill. 

Without hesitation and a perfect shot, Jamie fires the pistol killing Ellesmere and rescuing his innocent child from brutal death. (JAMMF to the rescue!)

Quickly, Jamie runs over to see if the baby is ok. How could he possibly bear the loss of another child? 

Then…he gently picks up his child and cradles him in his arms. And Willie, almost as if a response to his papa’s touch, opens his eyes.

And Jamie merely looks at him:

For the very first time James Alexander Malcolm Mackenzie Fraser can finally behold one of his children.

Written all over his beloved face and blazing through his eyes is:

Adoration.

Sacrifice.

Awe.

Protection.

Relief.

Pride.

Amazement.

Delight.

Tenderness.

Devotion.

Love.

All of this with the faintest curve of his mouth and the shy sparkle in his eye.

What adds a specific poignancy to this moment is that although this father is holding his baby for the first time, he literally cannot react openly to this unexplainable happiness. Jamie cannot react how a father reacts. Jamie has to conceal everything he feels (as he has tragically grown so accustomed to doing).

And yet. There is still a spark. Still a powerful glance of unconditional love between a father and son. 

At the same time, there is undoubtedly sadness etched deep in the lines of his face. For although this child is his flesh and blood, he did not come from Claire. This child is not the product of love. This child is not his and Claire’s. Oh the pain. 

Yet even so, he finally gets to see one of his children.

You see, Claire got to see Faith. She got to hold her. She got to rock her baby while singing sweet melodies over her. Claire got to raise Brianna. She got to watch her grow and change. She got to bounce her up and down to make her smile.

Jamie has never had this. He’s never had any of it…with either of his daughters. He has been robbed of seeing, much less fathering, both of his children.

He never held Faith. Never felt the softness of her skin or the fragility of her tiny body. He never even got to look upon her. He never admired her wisps of copper hair or her slanted eyes she got from him. He never held Brianna. Never got to fall asleep with her on his chest. He never got to make her giggle. He never beamed with pride watching her walk for the first time.

And…He’s never heard either of his children call him father.

But here, in this precious moment, the man who has always dreamt of being a father finally gets to hold a prized possession: one of his children.

Oh Faith, Brianna, and William James, if you only knew how much your papa loves you.

[ecampbellsoup]

Outlander & The Act of Sex: Mary MacNab & Geneva Dunsany

Feeling bold, I have decided I am going to analyze Mary MacNab and Geneva Dunsany with regard to their sexual roles in Jamie’s story (Disclaimer: the following blog is taken exclusively from the show’s perspective, not the novel. This is merely my interpretation of what’s presented to me on screen).

One night the thought came to my mind about how striking the differences are between Jamie’s encounters with Mary and Geneva. Honestly, I heavily debated tackling this subject at all, but as I have contemplated this topic over and over, I have found the contrast to be worth sharing.

Intentions and Ramifications:

When I watched through season 3 again and came to “Surrender”, I was not as devastated by Mary’s scene quite as much as I was initially. In fact the second time I watched it, I had a completely different reaction. Cannot say the same for Geneva…but I will approach that disaster momentarily (spoiler: I could not rewatch that scene even in preparation for this analysis).

The juxtaposition between the intentions of these two women and these two sexual acts are about as polar opposite as it can get.

I want to discuss the intentions behind the act and the ramifications. I am not going to dive into the debate of consent, or lack thereof, during this particular post. That conversation is well worth having and important, but it is just not the purpose of what I’m exploring today.

So without further ado, here we go:

Mary: 3x2 “Surrender”

Mary Mcnab is a good woman. 

She is a woman of courage. She is a woman of empathy. She is a woman of protection. She is a woman of nurture.

Mary’s intentions behind her initiation are pure. She’s not seeking Jamie out to use him like a slab of meat. She’s not desiring sex to manipulate or wield power over him. 

Her heart is coming from a place of compassion as a widow who initmately knows the loss Jamie is experiencing. She desires to bring about a way for Jamie to see through the thick shroud of sadness he has wrapped himself in. She wants to help him survive through the valley of darkness.

Mary views Jamie as a person.

I was struck by her gentle tenderness. I was struck by her humility. I was struck by her kindness. I was struck by her patience. I was struck by her desire to bring comfort to a hurting man. She does not force him to do anything he does not wish, but simply offers her arms for a moment of mututal reprieve.

Mary knows and sees that Jamie is suffocating in the agony of his loss; he is drowning in sorrow. She even noticeably has a heart of understanding when he cannot look at her because of the pain. Not only that but she did not want to put Jamie in a position where he feels like he is betraying Claire. Mary knows she is not Claire and she does not vainly try to be.

“I ken what ye must be thinking for I saw your lady and the way it was between the two of you. It’s not my mind to make you feel you’ve betrayed that.”

The fact that this encounter takes place in a cave is both literal and metaphorical for the emotional one Jamie has hidden himself in.

This scene gave me the sense that for the first time since losing Claire, someone is coming down to the caverns of Jamie’s heart and saying, “I understand. I know how badly you hurt because I hurt the same way too. Let me help ease your pain. Let me comfort you.”

Mary’s motives were restorative.

And the bottom line is: Jamie has a choice and he says yes. 

Geneva: 3x4 “Of Lost Things”

Lady Geneva is a selfish woman. She is manipulative. She is cruel. She is callous. She is pernicious. 

Geneva’s intentions are atrocious. Everything about Geneva’s desires are ego-centric. Everything about Geneva’s motives are harmful.

I literally cringe when I think about what this woman did to Jamie. I do not care that she wanted to avoid losing her virginity to an old man nor do I care about her trite declaration of love afterwards. 

I do not judge her for wanting to have sexual autonomy. I don’t think she’s a genuinely evil, but I do not have any tolerance for her sexually exploiting another person because that is exactly what she does. 

She uses Jamie as sexual toy for her own advantage. She not only took him by means of the darkest threats, but then extended this peril to his family if he did not yield to her demands. She knows precisely what she is doing, the position she is putting him in, and she does it anyway. 

Geneva views Jamie as a thing.

I was struck by her vileness. I was struck by her deviousness. I was struck by her only concern being for herself at whatever cost. I was struck by her inability to understand the horrendous thing she was asking of another human being: she made him choose between betraying himself or his family.

I frankly do not have words for how livid this makes me. It is the epitome of cruel. Sexual force, no matter how pretty the package it presents itself, is the most despicable, barbaric thing imaginable. 

The fact that she even puts Jamie in that place is horrifically unacceptable. Obviously, she is ignorant to the fact that he is already a survivor of rape, but that does not remove the sting of pain in this moment. It does not dampen the damage she is wilfully doing.

Geneva’s motives were abusive.

And the bottom line is: Jamie does not have a choice and is forced to say yes. 

So here we have two women: one who uses her body and heart as a means of healing to a broken man; and one who uses her body and power as a means of using a broken man. Mary’s compassion contrasted with Geneva’s cruelty.

They both play a thread in Jamie’s story. One perhaps was a brief beacon of light to help him continue on even if it flickered for mere moment. One despite the evil brought forth a son.

We learn a valuable lesson about the ramifications of sex from these two women. Sex can be used by man or woman as a potent tool: either to build up or destroy the human heart.

Sex should never be a weapon, but a life-line.

(Also artistic side-note: notice how Mary is always shrouded by warm tones and Geneva is surrounded by cool colors…not an accident if ye ask me)

[ecampbellsoup]

I cannot look at your latest post without thinking "poor Briana" Her bio dad never called her braw. The only thing I remember was the time he called her a "common hoor"

Hello darling!!

That is very fair—I have certainly struggled myself with how the show has depicted Jamie’s relationship with his precious daughter, Brianna thus far.

Opinions on this vary among the fandom, but I do not think the scripts this season allowed for Jamie to express his love for Brianna as reflective of his true feelings. He did have brief scenes of affection, but certainly not enough.

I am convinced that James Fraser adores all three of his children equally.

However, in my opinion, we did not see the depth of this love necessarily play out on screen in season 3. I actually wrote a blog about this a while back hehe, but I think that Jamie’s characterization was inconsistent this season and Brianna was a case in point.

I appreciate your thoughts—they are very valid.