Outlander Book Club: Book 2, Chapter 20 breakdown

Foreshadowing within the Outlander chapter

Had we not know that Claire would become a doctor, there’s no doubt that this chapter foreshadowed this. Claire mentions the “do no harm” part of the Hippocratic Oath, which she says she hasn’t taken yet. As a nurse back then, she didn’t take the oath. She will when she becomes a doctor, though.

We also get some foreshadowing of Master Raymond. It’s clear that there’s more about him, but we don’t get the full truth until “The Space Between.” It’s certainly a short story that you’ll want to read if you want to know more about Master Raymond and Comte St. Germain.

However, there is foreshadowing for a future Dragonfly in Amber chapter. Master Raymond is talking about healing the soul, the essence of a person. If that is damaged, a person can’t be healed.

When Claire is suffering after the miscarriage and is dying of childbed fever, Master Raymond is the one who helps her heal. He can remove the placenta, but I do also think there’s a bit of focus on healing Claire’s soul in this moment. The blue light is more than just physical healing.

There’s also a bit of foreshadowing that the “La Dame Blanche” comment will come back. This rumor is spreading quickly, and we know that King Louis views her as a good practitioner. He wants her to look into the souls of Master Raymond and Comte St. Germain to see which one is evil. She’s lucky that King Louis viewed her as a good witch and didn’t view her as evil.

Adapting the Dragonfly in Amber chapter for the show

As I mentioned, I do prefer the way the show handled the reveal that Jamie was involved in the “La Dame Blanche” rumor. Claire would have been worried about being viewed as a witch. At least, she should have been. It could have been a death sentence for her. Claire was a little angrier at Jamie’s actions in the show than in the book because of this.

Overall, the chapter was adapted as the book did it. There wasn’t the big conversation at Master Raymond’s, but I don’t think this was necessary for the show. It would have been fun for foreshadowing everything that happened at the hospital, but I just don’t think it was necessary when we had a few other moments that made Master Raymond seem otherworldly already.

The most important part of the chapter was used for the show. Claire arranged for Mary to write a letter to help get people out of the Bastille. For Mary, it was all about getting Alex out, who was believed to be the rapist. Mary couldn’t let that happen to the man she really loved.

What did you get from reading Outlander Book 2, Chapter 20? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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