Warning: The following contains spoilers for Outlander, Season 6, streaming now on Starz.
The current season of popular period drama Outlander has brought some new elements to the show. Though the series has explored disability before, the events of Season 6 bring to light a new type of disability in the form of a baby born on the ridge — with dwarfism.
Outlander does not shy away from difficult topics. Sexual assault, torture and abuse are all issues that have been explored against the backdrop of the 18th Century, and dealing with the trauma from these events are a central plot device for the characters and their loved ones.
Fergus Fraser and his wife Marsali have been main players on Outlander since Season 3, and settled on Fraser’s Ridge with their children. Though Jamie and Claire are the main focus in this season, Marsali and Fergus have been in the spotlight as well. In the second episode of Season 6, Marsali gives birth to their fourth child, Henri-Christian, and though joyous, a discovery is made that quells this elation over their second son. Henri-Christian has dwarfism.
Now, living in the 21st Century makes it easy to know that dwarfism is not a death sentence, or even something to be discriminated against, and yet people in all positions on Fraser’s Ridge are horrified by the baby’s condition. Given the time period, the general thought when babies were born with disabilities leaned towards the supernatural. The mother either had relations with a demon — yes, a literal demon — or the baby’s condition was a result of hidden sins of the mother and father.
Poor Henri-Christian has been through quite a lot in his short little life so far due to his genetic mutation. A bunch of kids, including Henri-Christian’s own brother try to drown him by putting him adrift down a river, to be rescued by Roger, solely on the basis that the kids wanted to see if he was a demon or not. Reminiscent of witch trials, something touched on in the earlier seasons of Outlander, the boys claimed that if he floated, he was touched by a demon. Of course he floated, as they put him in the river in a basket, but the boys took it as a sign of his demonic influence.
Henri Christian’s parents have had their fair share of difficulty due to his birth as well. Marsali was more easily comforted, but Fergus is taking his new son’s disability roughly. He blames himself, believing that the disability is due to Marsali experiencing trauma at the end of Season 5, regretting that he was not there to protect her and his unborn child. He despaired, noting that he saw those with dwarfism in the brothel he spent his childhood in; he knew the life Henri-Christian would have. Though he himself is disabled, having his hand cut off in his pre-teen years, he takes his child’s genetic disability much harder, probably because it is just that — genetic.
Thankfully Claire and Roger are in the perfect position to talk Fergus down. Being from a more modern time period, Claire has knowledge of dwarfism and the ability to explain the scientific reasons behind the baby’s condition. Roger baptized the child in order to destigmatize the religious aspect of the condition, and Jamie stopped Fergus from committing suicide in the forest.
This season of Outlander is exploring the many ramifications a child born with a disability may have on those around them. Henri-Christian’s dwarfism indirectly causes a rift in Fergus and Marsali’s marriage, a difficult effect that Outlander, sticking to the book, decided to tackle onscreen, and it made for a moving plotline for the couple. Though being from the 20th Century has had its many downfalls for Claire, Brianna and Roger as they try to assimilate to 18th Century life, it also shows the beauty their knowledge and experience can bring. Illuminating their own little corner of the 1700s world with modern light is one of many reasons to love Outlander, and this season is doing just that.
To see how Fergus and Marsali adapt, watch Season 6 of Outlander, currently available on Starz.