Claire and Jamie will have a big decision to make on Outlander Season 5, Episode 4. What will they do with Fanny’s baby once they get to Brownsville?
There’s a big decision for Claire and Jamie to make on Outlander Season 5, Episode 4. At the end of the previous episode, they were left with Fanny’s baby. Now what will they do?
Even though the child isn’t theirs, we know that Jamie and Claire will feel protective of the newborn. We don’t even need to be fans of the books to know how they can be. Just look at how Claire reacted with the baby in Scotland during the first season; the one that the parents believed was a changeling.
While the promo for “The Company We Keep” shows that Claire will have an offer from someone in Brownsville, is she really going to hand over a child to someone she doesn’t know? That’s especially the case when she’s in a town of people who have shot at Roger and the militia. There are clear tensions in the town and Claire may not feel it safe for a newborn.
Then there’s the fact that this baby is black. It’s the 18th century, which opens up for some serious discrimination and fear. What if the people of Brownsville decide to exploit the child? She will inherit the Beardsley homestead but has the skin color of a slave. Everyone will know that this child isn’t of Mr. and Mrs. Beardsley—well, unless Claire lies and says that Fanny was black.
In the novels, the baby had pale skin with Claire pointing out that many African American children would be born with paler skin but it would darken over time. It is certainly a topic that comes up and Jamie is able to settle Claire’s mind. The color of the baby’s skin doesn’t matter due to her parents being legally married. Hopefully, the show keeps all this in because otherwise it would go against history.
The problem is Claire is going to have to find a way to help the baby. It’s not like this child can stay with Claire and Jamie if they remain with the militia. If Claire chose to raise the baby, she’d have to get the child back to Fraser’s Ridge to be with Marsali and Brianna for now. But would the baby survive that long? That baby will need a mother’s milk, so maybe Brownsville is the best place. That is if there’s a nursing mother there.
What do you think Claire and Jamie will do with the baby? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
