Outlander Season Two, Episode Four: Let's Talk About THAT Scene

 

Well this week was certainly quite an interesting one, and much like last week, it was quite snappy and quick, blazing through everything in what seemed to be a very short hour long episode. It was a good episode but it's also drummed up some controversy in the Outlander fandom which has led to quite a bit of polarizing. The great thing about television and books is the ability to share your opinion on them, and hopefully my opinion does not cause outrage because the last thing I want to do is piss people off. So let's just dive right in.

The most controversial part of this entire episode was actually a scene taken from the book. That scene, was of course, the rape of young Mary Hawkins. Now I did read a few different review takes on that particular scene and in the comment section, it got nasty. Now I'm all about being able to have your opinion and if I disagree with an opinion, I don't berate and belittle the person who spoke though I might scratch my head and wonder how the heck they came to that conclusion. Much like I scratched my head at the woman who wrote to Diana Gabaldon that after the "hiding under a blade of grass" bit of dialogue, she took it to mean he was gay.

I've seen plenty of drama on the particular review calling out the rape that happened though I don't quite agree with the reviewer's reasoning especially when she called Outlander a "fun" and "light hearted show." That being said I too have issue with the amount of rape in those books. Look I get it alright. Back then rape was one of the most common weapons used against a woman in order to subdue her, to hold power over her and to punish her. It happened and it happened a lot. So within historical context, Diana I suppose isn't wrong to include it within the story line BUT I do feel sometimes that rape is a convenient plot device to move a story along.

I wrote a blog post a while back comparing Outlander to Game of Thrones and how the two shows differed in their handling of rape and I do stand by comments made back then. Game of Thrones definitely has more gratuitous rape scenes that aren't even plot devices and I've always considered rape to be one of the laziest ways to get a plot going. So yeah, Mary Hawkins rape was a cheap lazy way of making her unable to marry her fiance and set up her eventually marrying Black Jack Randall.

All that said, the show is not to blame for the lazy plot devices and for everyone railing against the inclusion of this rape scene there are equally as many saying that it was necessary and that without it the plot couldn't have gone on the way it did.

I see both sides of the situation, and I do love the Outlander books. You really couldn't find someone more passionate about these books and this show, but that's not to say the books aren't flawed. A guy friend of mine that watches the show said that Diana uses rape in the same way that George RR Martin uses death. It's to shock the reader until the shock just wears off and you're just left numb every time someone else suffers assault. Is Diana being historically accurate? More than likely yes, and I know that she has received plenty of letters and emails thanking her for showing rape for the horrible horrible crime it is against men and women.

Contrary to that single reviewer, the show and books are not light hearted in fun. Sure there are moments of humor in order to keep the show balanced but ultimately the story of Outlander is one of deep romance, drama and history that turns into a story of family love and survival throughout it's course. I expect for a period drama, there to be plenty of horrible things and while we could have arrived at the same conclusion concerning Mary without her being raped, it doesn't change the fact that it does happen in the books as well. Whether you agree with that plot device or not, is based on your personal opinion and I won't fault you for drawing your own conclusions but I do hope that other assaults in the book are left out though I know of at least two, should the show last that long, that will definitely be included.

Perhaps Diana writes out these scenes in order to show how different people handle the trauma. We've seen it with Jamie, and Claire has certainly been nearly raped in the show on more than one occasion and we have seen how Jamie's dealt with the PTSD thanks to that horrible disgusting thing that Black Jack did to him. Could it have been handled differently? Yes. Definitely, but my two cents would be that if you did not like it, do not blame the show for what it derives from the source material. Disagreements are certainly going to happen. Millions of people have read the books and watched the show and have formed their opinions about certain things. Not everyone is going to agree about certain aspects of the show and their opinions should not be invalidated, but you should be able to give a differing opinion without resulting to name calling and mud slinging. The author of the aforementioned review was certainly allowed to voice her opinion and while I do disagree with some of her points and scratched my head a bit, she's entitled to that opinion without having to be attacked for it even if that opinion is unpopular. You can respectfully disagree with someone without being nasty and tawdry. One review is just that. A review. It's meant to be agreed with or disagreed with and I know plenty who were on either side of the argument.

So what did YOU think of that scene? Please comment below, and don't be afraid to voice an opinion that might be unpopular. I'd hope there would be no attacks beneath. If you disagree with me, feel free to tell me why. I love hearing differing opinions because if everyone agreed completely with everyone, the world would be a very boring place.

Until next time, Sassenachs!

- G