When Isobel is in trouble, Jamie does the right thing in The Scottish Prisoner Chapter 41. Did we ever suspect that he wouldn’t?
This chapter clearly sets up Isobel and Lord John Grey marrying. There is a scandal around Isobel that the family will want to keep quiet. Jamie helps somewhat, but just how quiet will Jamie hitting Mr. Wilberforce be kept?
I love that we finally get the pieces of Helwater together to understand why John marries Isobel. We also get a potential hint for John that Willie is Jamie’s son.
Breaking down The Scottish Prisoner Chapter 41
The chapter starts with Jamie learning that Fanny, one of the horses, has gone missing. He heads out to find that Betty is trying to force the horse down the road. She tells Jamie that she is going to stop Isobel and Mr. Wilberforce from marrying. After all, Wilberforce is already married and the family will not want Isobel marrying him anyway.
Jamie heads out to protect Isobel. He figures that they will likely take the carriage road from London to Edinburgh, and then he gets to the hamlet of Biddle. Jamie notices a Helwater gig there, and he knows he has the right tavern. As he hears Isobel giggle, he can also tell which room she is in.
Jamie gets to Isobel just in time. She screams, and Jamie gets through the window to see Mr. Wilberforce attempting to force himself on Isobel. Jamie pulls the man off and punches him, before checking on Isobel to make sure she hasn’t been raped. When he sees no sign of blood or other signs of Wilberforce succeeding, he takes Isobel back out of the window and back to Helwater.
Jamie decides to take Isobel to Lord John Grey, explaining the situation in German. This part adds some humor as John questions whether Jamie has killed Wilberforce. It’s not the killing that would really be a problem for John. John just doesn’t want to deal with the body in the rain, which tells us exactly what John thinks of the entire situation.
John agrees to look after Isobel but makes it clear that she will feel in debt to Jamie. Jamie notes that in return for this, she can make it so Willie isn’t wearing corsets any longer. This has to hint to John that Willie is Jamie’s son.
Could this chapter be used in a TV series adaptation?
I would love to see this chapter of The Scottish Prisoner used. While it isn’t important for the overall story of the book, it is important to understand the John and Isobel situation a little more. It was always confusing to me why John and Isobel would end up marrying, but this makes a lot of sense. John will want to protect Isobel, and it’s only a matter of time before the Dunsanys learn of the entire situation.
Plus, we get to see Jamie step in and fight Mr. Wilberforce. This adds a little bit of action before the story comes to a close, and we get to see that Ardsmuir hasn’t changed Jamie all that much. He will still do what he can to protect the virtue of women.
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