Appearance
Excerpt
Excerpt from Catriona, by Robert Louis Stevenson
The odd thing was that I fancy he believed some part of it himself, or
did at times; I think he was so false all through that he scarce knew
when he was lying; and for one thing, his moments of dejection must
have been wholly genuine. There were times when he would be the most
silent, affectionate, clinging creature possible, holding Catriona’s
hand like a big baby, and begging of me not to leave if I had any love
to him; of which, indeed, I had none, but all the more to his daughter.
He would press and indeed beseech us to entertain him with our talk, a
thing very difficult in the state of our relations; and again break
forth in pitiable regrets for his own land and friends, or into Gaelic
singing.
“This is one of the melancholy airs of my native land,” he would say.
“You may think it strange to see a soldier weep, and indeed it is to
make a near friend of you,” says he. “But the notes of this singing are
in my blood, and the words come out of my heart. And when I mind upon
my red mountains and the wild birds calling there, and the brave
streams of water running down, I would scarce think shame to weep
before my enemies.” Then he would sing again, and translate to me
pieces of the song, with a great deal of boggling and much expressed
contempt against the English language. “It says here,” he would say,
“that the sun is gone down, and the battle is at an end, and the brave
chiefs are defeated. And it tells here how the stars see them fleeing
into strange countries or lying dead on the red mountain; and they will
never more shout the call of battle or wash their feet in the streams
of the valley. But if you had only some of this language, you would
weep also because the words of it are beyond all expression, and it is
mere mockery to tell you it in English.”
Well, I thought there was a good deal of mockery in the business, one
way and another; and yet, there was some feeling too, for which I hated
him, I think, the worst of all. And it used to cut me to the quick to
see Catriona so much concerned for the old rogue, and weeping herself
to see him weep, when I was sure one half of his distress flowed from
his last night’s drinking in some tavern. There were times when I was
tempted to lend him a round sum, and see the last of him for good; but
this would have been to see the last of Catriona as well, for which I
was scarcely so prepared; and besides, it went against my conscience to
squander my good money on one who was so little of a husband.
Explanation
Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from Catriona by Robert Louis Stevenson
Context of the Source
Catriona (1893), also known as David Balfour in some editions, is the sequel to Stevenson’s Kidnapped (1886). The novel follows the further adventures of David Balfour, a young Scottish Lowlander, as he becomes entangled in the political intrigues of the Jacobite cause and the complicated relationship between Catriona Drummond (daughter of the notorious James Stewart) and her father. The excerpt focuses on James Stewart, a charismatic but morally ambiguous figure—likely based on the historical James Stewart of the Appin murder case (1752), which involved political betrayal and clan loyalty.
Stevenson’s novel explores themes of identity, deception, loyalty, and the tension between personal emotion and moral judgment. The passage in question delves into the psychological complexity of James Stewart, a man who is both a manipulative liar and, at times, a genuinely emotional figure.
Themes in the Excerpt
Deception and Self-Deception
- The narrator (David Balfour) observes that James Stewart is so habitually dishonest that he may not even recognize when he is lying: "he was so false all through that he scarce knew when he was lying."
- His emotional outbursts—weeping over Gaelic songs, lamenting his homeland—may be partially sincere, but they are also performative, designed to elicit sympathy (particularly from Catriona and David).
- The blurring of truth and fiction in his character reflects the broader political deceptions of the Jacobite era, where loyalty and betrayal were often indistinguishable.
Manipulation and Emotional Blackmail
- Stewart uses affectionate gestures ("holding Catriona’s hand like a big baby") and pleas for companionship ("begging of me not to leave") to control those around him.
- His Gaelic singing and translations are not just expressions of nostalgia but tools of persuasion—he insists the English language is inadequate to convey the depth of his sorrow, making his emotions seem more profound than they may be.
- David resents this manipulation, especially because it works on Catriona, who is emotionally vulnerable to her father’s displays.
Cultural and Linguistic Pride (and Contempt)
- Stewart’s disdain for English ("mere mockery to tell you it in English") is both a cultural assertion and a rhetorical strategy.
- By claiming that Gaelic is untranslatable, he positions himself as a tragic figure whose true feelings can never be fully understood by outsiders (like David, a Lowlander).
- This reflects the Jacobite romanticization of Highland culture, which Stevenson both sympathizes with and critiques—Stewart’s nostalgia is genuine in moments, but it is also exploited for effect.
Father-Daughter Dynamics and David’s Jealousy
- Catriona’s empathy for her father ("weeping herself to see him weep") frustrates David, who sees through Stewart’s act.
- David’s resentment is twofold:
- He dislikes being manipulated ("I think, the worst of all").
- He is jealous of Catriona’s affection for her father, which complicates his own feelings for her.
- His moral dilemma—whether to pay Stewart off to remove him from their lives—highlights his conflict between pragmatism and principle.
The Duality of Human Nature
- Stewart is neither wholly villain nor wholly victim—he is a flawed, contradictory figure whose emotions may be real even if his motives are selfish.
- David’s ambivalence ("there was some feeling too, for which I hated him") suggests that even manipulative people can evoke genuine pity, making moral judgment difficult.
Literary Devices
Dramatic Irony
- The reader (and David) sees through Stewart’s act, but Catriona does not, creating tension.
- Stewart’s self-pitying speeches ("I would scarce think shame to weep before my enemies") are ironic because his "enemies" (like David) recognize his insincerity.
Imagery and Sensory Language
- The Gaelic songs and descriptions of the Highlands ("red mountains," "wild birds calling," "brave streams of water") create a romantic, melancholic atmosphere.
- The contrast between beauty and deceit—Stewart’s poetic words vs. his drunken reality—heightens the tragicomic effect.
Characterization Through Dialogue
- Stewart’s speech patterns—dramatic, self-aggrandizing, and emotionally charged—reveal his theatrical nature.
- His insults to the English language ("mere mockery") serve to elevate himself while undermining David’s perspective.
First-Person Narration (Unreliable Perspective?)
- David’s subjective viewpoint colors the reader’s perception of Stewart.
- While David is skeptical, he is not entirely objective—his jealousy and moral disgust shape his account.
- This raises the question: How much of Stewart’s emotion is real? Stevenson leaves it ambiguous.
Symbolism
- Gaelic vs. English: Represents the clash between Highland and Lowland cultures, as well as the untranslatable nature of emotion.
- Weeping: Symbolizes both genuine sorrow and manipulation—Stewart’s tears could be real grief, drunken sentimentality, or a calculated performance.
Significance of the Passage
Psychological Realism
- Stevenson avoids caricature—Stewart is not a simple villain but a complex, contradictory man whose charisma and flaws make him compelling.
- This nuanced portrayal reflects Stevenson’s interest in human duality (seen also in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde).
Political and Cultural Commentary
- The Jacobite cause relied on romanticized notions of Highland honor, which Stewart embodies and exploits.
- His nostalgia for a lost world mirrors the decline of clan culture after the 1745 Jacobite rebellion, making him a tragic relic of a fading era.
Moral Ambiguity
- David’s struggle to judge Stewart reflects the novel’s broader themes of loyalty and betrayal.
- The reader is left questioning: Is Stewart a victim of circumstance, a master manipulator, or both?
Narrative Tension
- The love triangle (David, Catriona, Stewart) is complicated by politics and deception.
- Stewart’s emotional hold over Catriona creates obstacles for David, driving the plot forward.
Conclusion: Why This Passage Matters
This excerpt is a masterclass in character study, blending psychological depth, cultural conflict, and moral ambiguity. Stevenson does not allow the reader to easily dismiss Stewart as a villain—his charm, his sorrow, and his deceit make him both pitiable and infuriating. The passage also deepens the emotional stakes of the novel, as David’s resentment, jealousy, and reluctant sympathy for Stewart mirror the reader’s own conflicting reactions.
Ultimately, the scene challenges the reader to consider:
- How much of our emotions are genuine, and how much is performance?
- Can we separate a person’s flaws from their humanity?
- Is loyalty to family more important than moral integrity?
Stevenson leaves these questions unanswered, making the excerpt rich for interpretation and deeply human in its portrayal of love, deceit, and the stories we tell ourselves.
Questions
Question 1
The narrator’s observation that Stewart “scarce knew when he was lying” primarily serves to:
A. Expose the narrator’s own moral hypocrisy in judging Stewart while withholding financial aid.
B. Illustrate the psychological dissolution of a man for whom deception has become an instinctive, self-obscuring habit.
C. Provide a literal explanation for Stewart’s inconsistent behavior, rooted in his bilingual confusion between Gaelic and English.
D. Undermine the authenticity of Gaelic cultural expressions by associating them with Stewart’s general untrustworthiness.
E. Foreshadow Stewart’s eventual redemption through a moment of unguarded emotional honesty.
Question 2
The Gaelic songs function in the passage most analogously to:
A. A theatrical prop in a performance where the actor’s tears are real but the script is contrived.
B. A legal testimony in which the witness’s emotional breakdown confirms the objective truth of their account.
C. A religious ritual that transcends the intentions of its participants, imparting grace regardless of their sincerity.
D. A child’s tantrum, where the display of distress is proportional to the audience’s perceived capacity to yield.
E. A poet’s metaphor, which derives its power from the reader’s willingness to suspend disbelief in its literal falsehood.
Question 3
The narrator’s resentment toward Catriona’s empathy for Stewart is least explicable as:
A. A reaction to the cognitive dissonance between his rational assessment of Stewart and Catriona’s emotional response.
B. Disappointment that Catriona’s moral discernment fails to match his own, undermining his esteem for her.
C. Jealousy of the emotional intimacy between father and daughter, which excludes him as an outsider.
D. Frustration that Stewart’s manipulative success forces him to confront his own capacity for moral compromise.
E. Anger at the waste of compassion on a man whose suffering is, in his view, largely self-inflicted and performative.
Question 4
Which of the following best captures the narrative function of Stewart’s contempt for the English language in this passage?
A. To establish his linguistic purism as a foil to the narrator’s pragmatic bilingualism.
B. To provide comic relief by exaggerating the incomprehensibility of Gaelic to an English-speaking audience.
C. To reinforce the theme of untranslatability—not just of words, but of the emotional and cultural contexts that give them meaning.
D. To expose Stewart’s hypocrisy, as his own Gaelic performances are themselves translations of conventional Jacobite tropes.
E. To signal the narrator’s unreliable perspective by implying that Stewart’s Gaelic expressions are, in fact, perfectly translatable.
Question 5
The passage’s treatment of Stewart’s weeping is most thematically resonant with which of the following literary techniques?
A. Bathos, in which a lofty emotional appeal collapses into the absurdity of Stewart’s drunken self-pity.
B. Chiaroscuro, where the interplay of sincerity and artifice in his tears creates a morally ambiguous character study.
C. Allegory, wherein Stewart’s tears symbolize the broader sorrow of a defeated Highland culture.
D. Stream of consciousness, as the narrator’s fragmented observations mirror Stewart’s unstable self-perception.
E. Pathetic fallacy, with Stewart’s emotional storms reflecting the turbulent political climate of Jacobite Scotland.
Solutions and Explanations
1) Correct answer: B
Why B is most correct: The phrase “scarce knew when he was lying” suggests a profound psychological fragmentation—Stewart’s deception is not merely tactical but so ingrained that it obscures his own self-awareness. This aligns with the idea of instinctive self-obscuration, where habitual dishonesty erodes the boundary between performance and identity. The passage supports this with his genuine-seeming melancholy juxtaposed with the narrator’s skepticism, implying Stewart’s inability to distinguish his own truths from fictions.
Why the distractors are less supported:
- A: The narrator’s withholding of money is framed as a moral stance, not hypocrisy; the focus is on Stewart’s psychology, not the narrator’s inconsistency.
- C: There’s no evidence of bilingual confusion—Stewart’s Gaelic/English dynamic is rhetorical, not cognitive.
- D: The passage critiques Stewart’s individual deceit, not Gaelic culture itself; his songs are separate from the broader authenticity of Highland traditions.
- E: The text offers no hint of redemption; Stewart’s emotional moments are ambiguous, not transformative.
2) Correct answer: A
Why A is most correct: The Gaelic songs are performative—Stewart’s tears may be real in the moment, but the context is contrived to elicit sympathy (e.g., his timing, audience, and dramatic translations). Like a theatrical prop, the songs serve his self-presentation, blending genuine emotion with calculated effect. The analogy captures the duality of Stewart’s character: authentic feeling within a manipulated scenario.
Why the distractors are less supported:
- B: A legal testimony implies objective truth, but Stewart’s performances are subjective and unreliable.
- C: A ritual’s grace is independent of participants’ intentions; here, the effect depends entirely on Stewart’s (and the audience’s) complicity.
- D: A child’s tantrum is purely instrumental; Stewart’s displays have layers of genuine nostalgia.
- E: A metaphor’s power relies on shared suspension of disbelief, but Stewart’s songs exploit rather than invite collaborative imagination.
3) Correct answer: D
Why D is least explicable: The narrator’s resentment stems from external behaviors (Stewart’s manipulation, Catriona’s empathy) and personal stakes (jealousy, moral judgment). There’s no indication he’s grappling with his own capacity for compromise—his anger is directed outward, not introspective. The other options all align with textual evidence of his frustration.
Why the other options are more supported:
- A: The cognitive dissonance between his rational distrust and Catriona’s emotional response is explicit (“I thought there was mockery… and yet, there was some feeling”).
- B: He expects Catriona to share his moral clarity; her empathy disappoints him (“for which I hated him, I think, the worst of all”).
- C: His jealousy is clear (“it cut me to the quick to see Catriona so much concerned”).
- E: His anger at wasted compassion is direct (“one half of his distress flowed from his last night’s drinking”).
4) Correct answer: C
Why C is most correct: Stewart’s insistence that Gaelic is untranslatable extends beyond language to cultural and emotional contexts. The passage emphasizes that meaning is lost in translation not just linguistically but existentially—his sorrow is tied to a Highland worldview that English (and by extension, the narrator) cannot fully access. This reinforces the theme of untranslatability as a metaphor for irreducible difference.
Why the distractors are less supported:
- A: The narrator isn’t portrayed as pragmatically bilingual; the focus is on Stewart’s performative contempt.
- B: The tone is not comedic; the untranslatability is tragic, not absurd.
- D: While Stewart’s performances may be conventional, the passage doesn’t expose them as hollow—it leaves their sincerity ambiguous.
- E: There’s no suggestion the narrator is unreliable; Stewart’s Gaelic is framed as partially untranslatable.
5) Correct answer: B
Why B is most correct:Chiaroscuro—the contrast of light and shadow—best captures the moral ambiguity of Stewart’s tears. The passage interweaves sincerity and artifice: his weeping is both real (he is moved by the songs) and performative (he uses it to manipulate). This duality creates a complex character study, where the reader (like the narrator) is uncertain whether to pity or condemn him.
Why the distractors are less supported:
- A: Bathos implies a sudden drop from sublime to ridiculous, but Stewart’s tears are consistently ambiguous, not comedically undercut.
- C: While the tears could symbolize Highland sorrow, the passage focuses on Stewart’s personal ambiguity, not broader allegory.
- D: Stream of consciousness would require fragmented, internal narration, but the passage is observational and structured.
- E: Pathetic fallacy attributes human emotions to nature; here, the emotional storms are Stewart’s own, not projected onto the landscape.