Outlander Book Club: Book 1, Chapter 16 breakdown

Foreshadowing within the Outlander chapter

There are a few discussions or mentions that do play a part later in the books. The first is the mention of Horrocks. This isn’t the first time the British Army deserter is mentioned, and it’s clear that he’s going to play an important part later in the story. It won’t take long for him to play a part.

Horrocks knows who really killed the man Jamie was accused of killing. It could be Jamie’s chance of getting the bounty off his head. We get that continued foreshadowing that it’s not going to be possible as long as Black Jack Randall lives; there’s just a sense of Jamie’s hopes not quite coming to pass.

Then there’s the mention of The Watch. Claire and Jamie see them riding to the inn, and Claire naturally worries that they’re there for Jamie. I get a sense of foreshadowing that eventually, The Watch will become a problem for Jamie; this is setting things up because The Watch may be desperate enough for the £10 bounty.

I also get the sense of foreshadowing when Claire thinks about leaving Jamie to go through the stones. This is still on her mind. At this point, she’s going through the motions of marriage to protect her life, but her heart is still with Frank at this point.

However, she starts to think about how Jamie will feel when she disappears through the stones. There’s a sense of foreshadowing that she’s going to grow to love him more, especially when there are all those thoughts of how Jamie and Frank are so different to each other.