Hal seems to struggle with reality in A Fugitive Green chapter 4. Here’s our breakdown of the chapter.
We jump back to Hal in the new chapter of the novel, with him and Harry heading over to see a major of a fallen regiment. There certainly is much more to the story of the regiment, but this chapter is more focused on Hal’s mental state.
This is a great look at who Hal is deep down, as while he has killed many people, the duel with Nathanial Twelvetrees is clearly something that he regrets. And it looks like he starts to break from reality during the chapter.
Breaking down A Fugitive Green chapter 4
We start with Hal and Harry heading to see a Major Grierson, dressed in their regimental uniform because they are going on official business. However, things aren’t quite right with Hal, as he starts to think about Esme as he smells a flower that is said to smell of a woman when she is sexually aroused.
Someone coming to the door that he hadn’t realized they’d knocked at snaps him out of his thoughts, and this gets us into the chapter. However, things aren’t going to be easy, as Reginald Twelvetrees is also at this meeting.
Major Grierson is looking for a new regiment, while he recuperates at home. It turns out that there was a mutiny with his previous regiment, and now the officers who were involved and survived it had been court martialed. We also learn that some of the mutineers were hanged, and Grierson is looking for a place to land, because he doesn’t want ot buy a commission in another regiment.
Hal can see Grierson as a “valuable commodity,” and while Twelvetrees doesn’t really care, he certainly doesn’t want Hal to get this man. So, there is a bit of a battle between them. Twelvetrees points out that he has a strong regiment already, which will be good for Grierson, but Hal points out that by having a young and growing regiment, it means Grierson will make a better name for himself.
We don’t seem to hear how the argument ends in the chapter, as Hal starts to relive the day of the duel. He can see Nathaniel as he looks at Reginald, and it makes it difficult to focus on the task at hand.
It’s interesting that Hal seems to be suffering from a PTSD break — not that he would know what that was at the time — considering he’s the one who chose to take part in the duel. However, it’s a sense of who he is as a person, as while he was angry at the man having an affair with his wife, he didn’t necessarily want him dead.
Could this chapter be used in a TV adaptation?
While I still don’t see an adaptation of A Fugitive Green happening, I do like to speculate, and if the story was told, I could see some of this chapter being used. It’s needed if we want to learn a little more about who Hal Grey is and the events that are happening in his life.
However, I think it will depend on how much of a role Grierson ends up playing in the story. After all, we could see Hal and Twelvetrees meet in a different way if Grierson isn’t needed. And this is where there’s a flaw in my not reading the whole book first.
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