Outlander DIA Reread Project: Trauma in Black Jack?

Many works of fiction do not reveal much about villains. For instance, readers of A Song of Ice and Fire, do not know much about Jaime and Cersei Lannister until the third and fourth books of the series. I did not like Jaime at all for the first two books. However, I enjoyed reading his point of view in A Storm of Swords. He is hilarious and offers explanations for many of his past actions. In fact, he regrets doing them to some extent. Overall, Cersei is despicable as opposed to Jaime, who is admirable. When it comes to Black Jack in the Outlander series, readers do not know much about him. He is despised because of what he does to both Jamie and Claire in book 1. However, it is possible to find some good characteristics about him. Sincerely, the author has created throughout the series characters that can be hateful but pitiful at the same time.

In chapter 38, Dragonfly in Amber, Black Jack requests Claire to heal his brother, Alexander. In exchange, he will provide her with information about the English’s military operations and plans. Is this honorable? Captain Randall prioritizes, and his family comes first. Of course, it is not entirely right what he is doing, but he wants to make his brother comfortable, even after knowing that he cannot be saved.

Readers also learn more about Black Jack’s family. His older brother, William, inherited the estate. The captain relates:

. . . “William is a very earnest sort, I’m afraid. But he wasn’t prepared to have Alex come home to Sussex. William’s wife is a bit . . .  extreme, shall we say? in her religious opinions.” . . . (ch. 38)

It seems that William’s wife is not fond of her brothers-in-law. There are several ways to interpret or try to explain her feelings. First, Alex is a member of the clergy, and his sister-in-law probably belongs to another religion. Of course, it is a conventional explanation since Alexander is friendly and pleasant compared to Black Jack. It could also be that William and his wife heard the rumors about Alex raping Mary Hawkins in Paris. Her religious beliefs might interfere in accepting her brother-in-law. Another interpretation could be that she is familiar with the dark nature of Black Jack. It is a possibility that I will be discussing at the end of this post. However, the one returning home was not Black Jack but Alex. Therefore, the first two explanations cannot be refuted.

The reader also learns that Captain Randall is superstitious. He believes Claire is “La Dame Blanche.” In fact, Black Jack is scared of Claire. To understand his feelings about her, one cannot forget about Raymond’s definition of a white lady: “La Dame Blanche sees the essence of a man, and turns it to healing – or to death. . .” (ch. 20). The truth is that Claire told Black Jack when and how he will be dying in Outlander. One wonders whether Captain Randall thinks Claire put a curse on him. He also makes it clear that he heard rumors about her in Paris. He probably knows about what happened to Le Comte St. Germain because of the Duke. In the books, there are subtle hints that Sandringham and St. Germain are associated. The TV show made this association more evident. Of note is the name of chapter 38, “A Bargain with the Devil.” Who is the devil? Of course, Black Jack Randall has an evil nature, and Claire decides to deal with him. However, one cannot deny how Black Jack perceives Claire.

. . . “If one seeks to sell one’s soul, is it not proper to go to the powers of darkness?” (Black Jack to Claire, ch. 38)

. . .”You should never have left that place alive, dangerous creature . . .” (Black Jack to Claire in reference to freeing her at Wentworth, ch. 38)

Overall, Claire is the devil to Black Jack. Furthermore, Jonathan Randall is conscious of his despicable sins. He believes that Claire can see the essence, his soul, and that is why she condemns him to death by predicting his fall at Culloden (that is how he sees it). More revealing are Black Jack’s feelings towards Jamie. Claire relates:

. . . I recognized, with a fresh burst of rage, the impulse that led him to this -not the intention, as I had thought, to upset me, but an overwhelming urge to talk of a beloved; to rehearse aloud and live again vanished details. . . (ch. 38)

Black Jack has an unusual attraction for Jamie, and it is not love. Nobody hurts the one he or she loves. Does Black Jack’s sickly attraction for Jamie can be explained? Last year, I wrote a post about how Malva perceives love in A Breath of Snow and Ashes. In fact, book 6 portrays several examples in which characters look for physical contact to get comforted. Jamie recalls that some prisoners at Ardsmuir had physical contact. Sadie Ferguson, Claire’s inmate at the jail in New Bern is another case. Claire even remembers how she longed for Jamie while being with Frank in the twentieth century. In fact, Malva’s promiscuity is explainable since she never received any love from her family. One cannot forget that she longs for her mother. If you are interested in reading more about Malva, here is the link: Malva’s Notion of Love and Promiscuity. Is Black Jack’s sexually abusive behavior associated with a yearning for love?

Of note is how he describes certain details of what underwent between him and Jamie, and how he feels about it. Black Jack tells Claire:

“. . . I have held the soul of his manhood, have taken from him what he has taken from me. I know him, as he now knows me. We are bound, he and I, by blood” (ch. 38).

This comment reminds Claire of the wedding vows. In fact, what Black Jack does not realize is that the way he feels about Jamie applies only to Claire and her husband. He does not fit into their relationship. The one that holds Jamie’s soul is Claire. However, Randall continues to insist that he and Claire are linked through Jamie, something that does not make any sense at all. According to him, he and Claire own Jamie’s soul. This ownership can also be associated with possessing Jamie’s body.

“We are linked, you and I, through the body of one man – through him. I would have no such link formed through the body of my brother; I seek your help to heal his body, but I take no risk that his soul shall fall prey to you. . .” (ch. 38)

In regards to Claire possessing Alex’s soul, one has to remember the definition of La Dame Blanche according to Raymond. A healer has to reach the patient’s soul for him or her to be cured:

. . . “Yes, of course. All healing is done essentially by reaching the . . .what shall we call it? the soul? the essence? say, the center. By reaching the patient’s center, from which they can heal themselves. Surely you have seen it, madonna. The cases so ill or so wounded that plainly they will die – but they don’t. Or those who suffer from something so slight that surely they must recover, with the proper care. But they slip away, despite all you can do for them (ch. 20).

First, Randall’s “prohibition” of Claire reaching his brother’s soul foreshadows Alex’s death. Furthermore, the comment regarding the link between Randall, Claire and Jamie is juxtaposed with the “prohibition.” One wonders what sort of link exists between Alex and Black Jack. Does it go beyond being brothers? So far, the answer is not easy. In Outlander, Jamie tells Claire that Black Jack called him Alex while being raped (ch. 40).

“He used me again – hard. And he kept on saying it: ‘Tell me that you love me, Alex. Say that you love me.'”

“He called you Alex?” I interrupted, not able to hold back.

“Aye. I remember I wondered how he knew my second name. Did not occur to me to wonder why he’d use it, even if he knew.” He shrugged.

It looks like Black Jack was denied or deprived of love, probably at a younger age. I think there is nothing physical going between the two siblings. However, for some reason, Jonathan Randall is craving for some love from his younger brother. One wonders whether he accidentally did something wrong, not necessarily sexually, that eventually alienated him from the rest of the family. It could explain his sister-in-law’s attitude towards them. As a curate, Alex is probably the type of person who forgives others. It seems that he is the only one that was able to forgive Black Jack. The lack of love from most members of his family was probably traumatizing to who is considered by many the worst villain of the series. The feeling of being accepted at least by his brother is what leads him to betray the English.

Sources

Featured image is from Outlander-Online (Season 1, Episode 1)

Gabaldon, Diana. Dragonfly in Amber. New York: Bantam Dell, 1993. Print.

– – – . Outlander. New York: Bantam Dell, 1991. Print.