#outlander 01x16

Jamie, at Saratoga, drawing strength from Claire's touch

Welcome to the Outlander 31 Day Challenge!

Today is Day 3: Favorite Murtagh scene

Hands down, the beautiful scene in 01x16 "To Ransom A Man's Soul" where Murtagh and Jamie speak in Gaelic.

You don't need to understand the language to understand what they are saying to each other. How Murtagh is at his wit's end with Jamie.

Murtagh here accuses Jamie of thinking only for himself - and not for Claire. Jamie’s response tells us not only his frame of mind at that moment - but for always: I haven’t a single thought of anything but her.

Here’s the full translation of this amazing exchange, courtesy of the Great Scot Blog:

[Jamie to Murtagh] Ciamar as urrainn ​mo leigeil ris a’ chràdh seo​?​ – How ​can I be left to ​this pain?

[Murtagh to Jamie] Nì sinn ar dìcheall do leigheas.​ – We shall do our utmost to heal you.

[Jamie to Murtagh] Cha ghabh cuid de ​nithean​ leigheas. Mar as miann leam, cuir crìoch air seo a-nis. – Some things ​don​’t ​take healing​. As is my desire, put an end to this now.

[Murtagh to Jamie] Chan ​fhu​ilinn mi ​’n c​òrr. – I’ll suffer no more of this.

[Jamie to Murtagh] Chan fhaigh mi seachad air seo. An toir ​u orm aslachdainn? – I won’t get ​past​ this. Will you force me to beg?​

[Murtagh to Jamie] Thug mi geall do d​’ mhàthair. ​Sìth air a h-anam​. Nach tig​eadh cron ort​. – I gave a promise to your mother. Peace on her soul. That no harm would come to you.​

[Jamie to Murtagh] Is anmoch an uair, a ghoistidh - Late is the hour, oh godfather​.

[Murtagh to Jamie] Agas Claire? Am bitheadh i na banntrach, air a treigsinn? Tha do cheann sa bhrochan.Tha do cheann sa bhrochan. – And Claire?  Would she just be a widow, forsaken? Your head’s in the porridge (you’re not thinking straight). You haven’t a single thought for her.

-- Jamie to Young Ian, 04x01 “America the Beautiful”

-------

You did what was necessary to survive. That’s all.

-- Claire to Jamie, 01x16 “To Ransom A Man’s Soul”

sorrow

joy

“It will be all right, won’t it? We will be all right?”

“I’ll see to it.”

-- Claire and Jamie, 01x16 “To Ransom A Man’s Soul”

--

“Jamie - no God worth His salt would take your nephew away from you, just because you wanted to be happy.”

“Will we be? Happy?”

-- Claire and Jamie, 03x09 “The Doldrums”

Remember that when Jamie wakes up in Wentworth Prison - in the first haunting, heart-crushing scene of 01x16 “To Ransom A Man’s Soul” - he croaks, “You owe me a debt.”

That’s because Randall had promised to kill Jamie when the night was over. Knowing that he wouldn’t have to live with the pain - and the shame - of what he had allowed Randall to do to him (even though he did it out of love for Claire) undoubtedly keeps Jamie going during that hellish experience.

So - because Randall does not kill him (though I’m certain he intended to - after all, we see him unsheath his sword right before the Great Highland Coo Charge), and because Randall is a man of honor (despite everything, he *did* let Claire go), Randall owes something to Jamie.

Jamie calls in that debt when he meets Randall in Paris. He can ask Randall to do something, and Randall (perversely) must acquiesce. So Jamie challenges him to a duel.

Now - there is a similar type of understanding between Jamie and Claire. Claire owes her life several times over to Jamie - and Jamie owes his life several times over to Claire. Because she saved Jamie’s life after Wentworth, he owes her a service. A favor, so to speak. So she calls in this favor by asking Jamie to spare Randall. And because Jamie is a man of honor (he even says so to Claire) who honors his debts, Jamie has no choice but to do what Claire asks.

It’s an odd turn of circumstances that Jamie is both the creditor and debtor of two very different - and yet hauntingly similar - oaths of honor. And in my opinion, he is a tad hypocritical - easily claiming a debt with Randall despite knowing that Claire will be angry with him, while becoming extremely angry and emotional when taking a debt with Claire.

They are both being selfish in how they claim their debts - and wound each other so deeply in doing so.