Why did Roger get such a hard time considering Drums of Autumn Chapter 47?

The Outlander fandom was divided over Roger’s actions. After reading Drums of Autumn, Chapter 47 stands out and shows why Roger was right to make sure he could stay with Brianna.

Roger’s actions and thoughts of going back through the stones after hearing about Brianna caused some waves in the Outlander fandom. Book-first and show-first fans alike were divided, many giving Roger a hard time for his actions. Yet, after reading “Drums of Autumn,” I have to question why Roger got such a hard time.

Skip to Chapter 47. It’s towards the end when Claire and Jamie are talking about whether Roger would stay with Brianna. Claire thinks about the relationships she’s seen. This isn’t just about her own with Jamie or even her own with Frank. She thinks about how marriages have fallen apart over something less than a woman being raped and giving birth to her rapist.

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Claire even asks Jamie if he could stay with Claire had she been pregnant with a child that wasn’t his. He hesitates and admits that at first he wanted to say a definite yes, but he had to think about it. In Jamie’s case, he didn’t need that much encouragement to say yes, but then Claire brought up that he’s need to stay and try not to see the other man’s face in the baby.

Suddenly, Jamie realized everything that Roger would need to do. And he thought about Frank (and I have to question why Claire keeps getting a bad time in the show for having the audacity to think about the man who raised her and Jamie’s daughter for 19 years) and realized the type of man Frank was to raise Brianna.

I didn’t see any book-first fans bringing this chapter up. Maybe it’s a small one and it’s only because I’m onto it that I’m thinking about it. However, it does seem that Roger is expected to make some big choices after such an ordeal and isn’t allowed to think about himself or even whether he would be right for Brianna and the child.

Yet, reading the books, Claire seems to accept that Roger wouldn’t necessarily be able to stay. Claire and Jamie share that they hope Roger is a good man and will make that choice — and Jamie jokes about beating him — but it’s clear that there wouldn’t be too much of a surprise if he couldn’t.

So, why does Roger get such a hard time in the fandom? Why is he held to such high expectations? It was never an easy choice and I, for one, am glad to see that we saw that mixture of emotions he went through.

It’s a shame the conversation between Claire and Jamie didn’t make it to the show. Maybe if it did, Roger wouldn’t have got such a hard time for his decision. If you’ve got a copy of “Drums of Autumn,” I urge you to turn towards the end of Chapter 47 for the conversation.

If you gave Roger a hard time for his choice, why did you? What do you think after considering the conversation between Claire and Jamie? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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