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contemplatingenjoyingoutlander · 11 months

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OUTLANDER: ON CHANGING THE PAST, PART 1: Adso steals a wig and "the Devil is in the details"

I confess, time travel dilemmas have always confused me. And in he case of Outlander, such dilemmas became even more confusing when the show differed slightly from the book series. Especially regarding the details of Jamie and Claire's obituary/ death notice, and the time line for the Big House fire, Mandy's birth, and the return of Roger, Bree and the kids to the 20th century.

In the show at least, the question about whether Roger and Bree changed Jamie and Claire's fate in the past was quickly settled in the affirmative. In episode 703, Roger explains to Bree that the match sticks she created in the past, "caused a fire" in December that her parents survived. So there was nothing left of the Big House to burn down and kill them the following January.

However, things were not so simple in the book series.

WARNING: Outlander book series spoilers ahead.

1776 VERSUS 1775: Divergence in the book series' and show's time lines

I realized part of my confusion with this plot was that the show and the book series had two slightly different time lines.

THE BOOK SERIES TIME LINE. In the official Outlander book series time line, Mandy was born in April 1776, and Roger, Bree & the kids returned to the 20th century on November 1, 1776. Furthermore, in An Echo in the Bone (ECHO), Jamie's letter to Bree announcing that he and Claire survived the fire was dated December 31, 1776. Consequently, there was no doubt in the book series (at least initially) that all these events happened in 1776.

THE SHOW'S TIME LINE. In episode 703, Jamie's same letter to Bree is dated April 1776. So in the show--unlike in the book series-- the Big House fire must have happened the previous December 1775.

Consequently, in the show, Mandy must have been born in 1775 and Bree, Roger & the kids must have returned to the 20th century in 1775.

The Show's "Obituary" vs. the Book Serie's "Death Notice"

THE "OBITUARY." In the show, a full obituary was written for the Frasers. But in the copy of it that Roger and Bree found in the future, the last digit of the year in which the obituary was published was blurred. The date of the obituary was therefore 21 January, 177X, and the obituary said that they died "On Sabbath evening last." Without the exact year, Roger & Bree couldn't extrapolate the exact date on which "Sabbath evening last" fell. As we shall see, in some ways, this made the plot simpler.

THE "DEATH NOTICE." In the book series, a simple death notice was written for the Frasers, rather than a full obituary. In Drums of Autumn (DOA), Diana Gabaldon tells us that the death notice was published in the Feb. 13, 1776 issue of a NC colonial newspaper, and the date of the fire was "January 21 last":

As we shall see under the cut of this post, it turns out that knowing the year when the Frasers' deaths reportedly occurred makes a lot of difference--at least in the book series.

ABOSAA: Adso and the January 21st Fire

Given the exact date of their deaths in the death notice in DOA, by the time of A Breath of Snow and Ashes (ABOSAA), the family assumed that Jamie and Claire would die in a fire in the Big House on January 21,1776.

Consequently on Jan. 21st they all gathered in Brianna and Roger's cabin (with Bree & Roger, who were still living on Fraser's Ridge, according to the book series' time line), to avoid being in the Big House that evening.

Then a mishap with Rollo caused the visiting Major MacDonald to fall in the snow. Claire put his wet wig in the pantry behind the phosphorous to keep Adso from getting it, to no avail, as she discovered when she later went to get the Major's wig for him:

“Oh, your wig! Just a moment, Major—I’ll fetch it.” I rushed out and round to the pantry—just in time to hear a crash as something fell inside. I jerked open the door, left ajar from my last visit, and Adso streaked past me, the Major’s wig in his mouth. Inside, the lean-to was in brilliant blue flames. --Diana Gabaldon (2005, p. 907)

Further damage of the pantry and the cabin by fire was prevented by Major MacDonald sacrificing his wet coat.

That's how Jamie and Claire "survived" January 21st in ABOSAA. Although DG never explicitly states it (at least that I recall), I always assumed that at least initially everyone thought the newspaper got it wrong about which house caught fire. And perhaps, they also assumed that because they had been forewarned about the fire, Adso's little escapade didn't end with the cabin burning down.

Regardless, Jamie and Claire must have thought they were finally safe from a fiery death--until Dec. 21, 1776, when the Big House caught fire.

[See more below the cut about why the death notice in the book series reported that the fire happened in January and not December, and why knowing the year the death notice was printed in the book series helped Bree and Roger realize they did in fact change the past after all.]

The Devil is in the Details

In ABOSAA Epilogue II: The Devil is in the Details, we learn that the original death notice that had been submitted to the newspaper reported that the fire had happened in December, but Sampson, the "new printer's devil" (i.e., apprentice) didn't have slugs in the right font for December and so he changed the date to January.

“What’s this, then?” Amos Crupp squinted at the page laid out in the bed of the press, reading it backward with the ease of long experience. “It is with grief that the news is received of the deaths by fire … Where’d that come from?” “Note from a subscriber,” said Sampson, his new printer’s devil, shrugging as he inked the plate. “Good for a bit of filler, there, I thought. [...] “Hmph. I s’pose. Very old news, though,” Crupp said, glancing at the date. “January?” “Well, no,” the devil admitted....“ ’Twas December, by the notice. But I’d set the page in Baskerville twelve-point, and the slugs for November and December are missing in that font. Not room to do it in separate letters, and not worth the labor to reset the whole page.” --Diana Gabaldon (2005, p. 980)

At first glance, it appears that DG had implied in ABOSAA that Roger and Bree didn't change history--that the newspaper had just printed the wrong month because of missing slugs in the proper font.

So the mystery about the wrong month in the death notice was solved--or was it?

Maybe More Was Afoot Than the "Printer's Devil's" Mistake

One might think that the books and show diverge here. In the show, the explanation for the erroneous month in the obituary is rather straight forward. It's because Roger and Bree had changed history. But in ABOSAA, we have a logical explanation for the incorrect month in the death notice--or do we?

Because in ECHO, Roger and Bree discover upon their return to the 20th century that one thing has changed in the death notice--the date. Although, they don't say which part of the date (the month or the year or both), at the very least, the YEAR had to have changed.

in ABOSAA, the Big House burned on Dec. 21, 1776. Therefore, news of the fire couldn't have appeared in the Feb. 13, 1776 newspaper like it originally did--because that would have meant the death notice was published slightly more than 10 months BEFORE the fire. Consequently, in ECHO, after they returned to the 20th century, Roger and Bree must have noticed that the YEAR that the newspaper printed the death notice had changed to 1777.

Confused? All I have to say is: Where is "Back to the Future's" Doc Brown when you need him? 🤷🏻‍♀️

In ECHO, Claire realizes that something is amiss with time when she talks to Tom Christie in Wilmington in April 1977. Tom told Claire that he had heard about the fire in "late January" from "a man named McCreary" who "had just come down from the mountain." Tom then asked Claire:

"Was there a fire?" “Well, yes, there was,” I said slowly, wondering whether—and how much—to tell him of the truth of that. Very little, in a public place, I decided. “Maybe it was Mr. McCreary, then, who placed the notice of the fire in the newspaper—but he can’t have.” The original notice had appeared in 1776, Roger had said—nearly a year before the fire. [emphasis added] “I placed it,” Christie said. Now it was my turn to blink. “You what? When?” I took a good-sized mouthful of whisky, feeling that I needed it more than ever. “Directly I heard of it. Or—well, no,” he corrected. “A few days thereafter. I … was very much distressed at the news,” he added, lowering his eyes and looking away from me for the first time since we’d sat down. --Diana Gabaldon (2009, p. 189)

So Claire knows something is wrong with the time line. The Big House burned down on Dec. 21, 1776 but the original notice about the house burning was printed on Feb. 13, 1776--months BEFORE it happened.

Bree and Roger must somehow have changed Claire's and Jamie's fates after all--in BOTH the book series and in the show.

This is likely why the show runners chose to simplify the plot by obscuring the the last digit of the year of the obituary's publication. By making the year vague, the audience does not have to work through all these steps that book readers have had to do over the years to reconcile the date of the death notice being about 10 months before the Big House burned down.

Still, that isn't the end of the questions about changing the past in the Outlander universe. Roger raises more religious questions in both the book series and the show. Part 2 of this two-part essay series will explore those questions.

________________ IMAGE SOURCES: 1) All Outlander gifs are mine--they were made from Starz Outlander episode 703, as was the screencap of Jamie's April 1776 letter. 2) Winona Ryder confused gif source (before edits). 3)* Jamie's December 31, 1776 letter was a direct quote from ECHO, reformatted to replicate a handwritten letter. 4) the obituary screenshot source (before edits); "Sabbath evening last" inset source (before edits); "21 January, 177X" inset composite sources: 01 + 02 (before edits). 5)* The Feb. 13, 1776 death notice was a direct quote from DOA reformatted to replicate a colonial newspaper death notice. 6) The Adso manipulated image was made from these sources (before edits): 01 + 02 + 03. 7) The illustration of an 18th century printing shop source. 8) The Back to the Future Doc Brown video source for gif (before edits). 9) The Claire and Tom Christie screenshot source (before edits).

#outlander #books vs show #adso #episode 703 #jamie and claire fraser #roger and bree mackenzie #time travel #changing the past #major macdonald's wig #tom christie #book series spoilers #07x03 #my gifs #my edits #my manips

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counting-stars-gayly · 4 months

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It’s time we accept that Percy Jackson is an unreliable narrator. He’s not dumb. He’s just insecure. He’s not clueless about his and Annabeth’s feelings. He’s just in denial. He’s not clueless about Rachel’s feelings. He just doesn’t want to do anything about them. His mother isn’t perfect. He just loves and respects her more than anyone in the world. That boy contradicts his own inner monologue all the time. Do not trust him!!

EDIT: Please don’t interact just to disagree. You can make your own post.

#if anything proves this it’s the og text. but heroes of Olympus and the tv show made it even more obvious.#queued #percy jackson #percy jackson and the olympians #pjo #pjo books #pjo tv show #pjo tv series #pjo spoilers #pjo adaptation #percabeth #percy jackon and the olympians #riordanverse #heroes of olympus #percy jackson analysis #i guess

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c-herondale · 5 months

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Obsessed with how Annabeth isn't spacial, she isn't a chosen one, she has no demigod magic powers, she is for all intents and purposes, a fairly normal girl.

But she poured her blood, sweat and tears into becoming the best warrior she could be. She trained hard for years because she knew she had disadvantages and she didn't want to be seen as weak.

She's literally known in Camp and by monsters like Alecto as the most powerful demigod alive and she doesn't have powers. It's almost as of girls don't need to be magical to be a hero!

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helpallthenamesaretakenblog · 2 months

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percy, aged 15: ....annabeth.....is sitting.....right next to me 😧 illegal😳😳 but.... i like it🤭??

percy, aged 16: OHMYGOD 😱😱 ANNABETH WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM 🤯 ????😨 MOM PICK ME UP I SMELL SCANDALOUS😳😳 IM NOT EVEN LOOKING GOOD EITHER😭😭😭 lord forgive ME😭........yeah im having fun 😁

percy, aged 17: *sound of lock breaking at 3am*.......hey girlfriend✌️ yeah no worries come in 🥱 next time, knock maybe? ill open the window for you myself, just dont wake me up....yep ly👍.......k this is slightly annoying by now but i still love it 🥰

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thelesbianluthor · 5 months

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It's funny seeing people say that "we would have all joined Luke" with every new episodes that comes out that shows how awful the Gods are as parents when the point of the books and Percy is that Luke WAS right but he chose the wrong way to do things. Luke joined another evil to punish the Gods, betrayed his friends and basically only family and caused them pain and even the death of some of them.

Percy said fuck the Gods but he was against sacrificing others senselessly. He still hated how tings were but he fought so he could make changes in a positive direction instead of burning everything and everyone in his way.

So of course Luke was justified in his hate for the Gods and the way they carelessly abandoned and ignored their children, we have always known that. Percy always agreed to that. But in the end Luke himself realized he was wrong in how he tried to change that.

#pjo rambles #so many ppl missing the points of what they see when they have clearly read the books is funny and sad #like do u remember what the books are abt or...#pjo series #pjo tv show #percy jackson #percy jackon and the olympians #luke castellan #pjo spoilers

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stormboundstars · 6 months

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idk man.......something about Percy feeling more proud of his similarities with his mother than his similarities with his father, who is a literal Olympian god....... young Percy boldly declaring that Sally Jackson is better, more important than the will of the gods, and that she should be seen and remembered....... Percy praying to his human mother because she is the only one he truly believes in even after realizing great forces exist in the world....... something about Sally Jackson representing humanity, and Percy, despite being offered greatness and divinity and having all the cool powers and glory to his name, choosing to stay mortal– not only that, he takes pride in his humanness, in the fact that he is his mother's son....... yeah.

#percy jackson #sally jackson #percy jackson and the olympians #rick riordan #pjo #pjo spoilers #pjo tv series #chalice of the gods #details from the books and the show!!#these are probably thoughts already posted somewhere in a more articulate manner...oh well #newt's notes #additional thoughts but percy recognizing the human as more divine and more dynamic than the gods #through watching sally jackson work and being raised by her

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givemewallywestorgivemedeath · 5 months

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The funny thing about the PJO cabin system is that everyone's always all 'oh the twelve' this and 'the twelve' that but that's absolutely not even remotely accurate. To start, right off the bat it's thirteen, not twelve, because they don't count Hades. But not really because before Percy, there were no big three kids, so we're down to ten active cabins already but it's actually eight because Artemis and Hera don't make demigods.

And of those eight, Mr. D is stuck at camp (thus not really making new demigods all that often) and his only two kids don't even sleep in a cabin, they sleep in the Big House with him.

So, pre-Percy, there are seven active cabins at Camp Half-Blood:

Glee club, the Jocks, the Nerds, the Geeks, the Farmers, the 'Sketchy Kids' and the Popular Kids.

Or, in other words, the Apollo, Ares, Athena, Hephaestus, Demeter, Hermes (and the unclaimed kids) and Aphrodite cabins.

What's cool is that you can already see the cabin dynamics in the show. For example, the Athena cabin allies with the Hermes cabin for the numbers. The Hermes kids plus all the unclaimed kids? It's the biggest cabin in the camp by far. It's a battle strategy. Luke and Annabeth's close relationship is just the cherry on top for Annabeth. It'll be really cool to see how the show develops the differences in the cabins during the series.

#pjo tv show #pjo series #if i remember correctly it's the Hermes cabin then Ares and Apollo in terms of numbers. Aphrodite would probably be next.#but the Athena Hephaestus and Demeter cabins were always under twelve kids.#they state exact numbers in one book... and if you don't want spoilers turn back now #but after the war theres only three Hephaestus kids left so like.... the numbers go real fucking low #the entire camp population plummeta #iactually really fucking depressing watching this camp filled with small tiny children knowing that only a very small fraction of themlive

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nerdyydragon · 5 months

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When we finally make it to confirmed romantic Percabeth and Athena pulls the “I don’t approve of your relationship with my daughter” bs card, we’re going to watch Percy’s war flashbacks in real time a split second before he says the equivalent of “DISRESPECTFULLY, choke” as he proceeds to turn down godhood and launch himself into hell.

It didn’t hit as hard in the books but the tv adaption of the Echidna sequence? Athena punishing Medusa because of Poseidon and then punishing Annabeth because she can’t punish Percy? Percy “Annabeth would push me down a flight of stairs” Jackson uno-reversing and pushing her into the arch stairwell because he knows what sort of bullshit is it is to be punished for something you didn’t do by a [step]parent who’s made you desperate for their approval? We haven’t even made it out of book one and Percy has already shown Olympus just how much he does not care about them, but especially when it comes to the safety of his friends.

#pjo series #pjo tv show #pjo #pjo spoilers #which I’m tagging even though the books been out for almost 20 years but alas #percy jackson #percy jackon and the olympians #percabeth

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counting-stars-gayly · 4 months

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Book: "I don't know what my mom will do. I just know I'll fight next to you." "Why?" "Because you're my friend, Seaweed Brain."

Show: "You've done more for me in the past few days than my dad's done for me in my entire life. If I have to stick with someone, I—" "Careful. I think you were about to call me your friend."

#AAAAAAAAAAH #I don't have the words for an essay rn because life is life-ing but I hope you guys Get It #percy jackson and the olympians #percy jackon and the olympians #percy jackson #annabeth chase #percabeth #rick riordan #pjo books #pjo tv show #pjo tv series #pjo tv spoilers #pjo disney+#pjo adaptation #pjo ep 4 #pjo 1x04 #we take a zebra to vegas #I plunge to my death

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book-connoisseur · 2 months

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12 year old Percy having to hike all the way to LA from Long Island in 10 days while having to fight monsters with barely any food or drink supply because his deadbeat dad is scared of his little brother, just to find out 4 years later that he could have just hired some emo kid from a casino and a goat with reed pipes and anxiety to help him open up a bunch of rocks in Central Park.

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