Barbara devises an escape plan
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Barbara shifts the focus to escape, pointing out their proximity to the river and noticing a damp patch in the wall, suggesting a possible sewer connection, and finds something (a cross-strut from the bedframe) that might help them.
Barbara recruits Susan to watch out for the jailer while she attempts to lever up stones in the wall, hoping for an escape route.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Determined and hopeful, masking her own fear with action to inspire Susan and counter the suffocating atmosphere of the prison cell.
Barbara Wright shifts from despair to proactive leadership after the jailer departs. She notices Susan’s emotional collapse and counters it with practical optimism, identifying a damp patch in the cell wall as a potential escape route. She repurposes a bedframe cross-strut as a makeshift crowbar, demonstrating her resourcefulness and determination. Barbara directs Susan to keep watch for the jailer, ensuring their plan remains undetected. Her actions embody defiance against the oppressive system, symbolizing hope in the face of inevitable execution.
- • To find a way out of the prison cell before execution.
- • To lift Susan’s spirits and restore her optimism.
- • They can create their own opportunities for escape, not just rely on luck.
- • The damp patch in the wall is a viable route to the river and freedom.
Overwhelmed by fear and exhaustion, Susan’s emotional state is one of resignation, though she shows a hint of compliance when Barbara takes charge.
Susan Foreman is emotionally shattered, voicing fatalistic resignation as she expresses fear for the Doctor’s safety and exhaustion from their ordeal. She initially dismisses Barbara’s escape plan as impractical, citing the solid stone wall. However, she reluctantly agrees to keep watch for the jailer, showing a flicker of compliance despite her despair. Susan’s emotional state contrasts sharply with Barbara’s proactive approach, highlighting the fragility of her optimism under pressure.
- • To know the Doctor’s safety and whereabouts.
- • To survive the immediate threat of execution, though she lacks the energy to act.
- • Their luck has run out, and they cannot escape their fate.
- • The prison wall is impenetrable, making escape impossible.
Fearful and resigned, likely overwhelmed by the prison environment and the threat of execution.
The New Prisoner is mentioned as being escorted by guards, including the jailer, past the women’s cell. Their presence prompts Susan to shush Barbara, ensuring their escape plan remains undetected. The New Prisoner serves as a reminder of the constant influx of captives into the prison and the relentless nature of the Revolutionary Justice System.
- • To avoid drawing attention to themselves.
- • To survive the immediate threat of the prison system.
- • Resistance is futile within the prison system.
- • Compliance is the only way to avoid immediate punishment.
Indifferent and dutiful, fulfilling his role in the prison system without empathy for the prisoners.
The Jailer is briefly present at the beginning of the event, looking in on the cell to check on the prisoners. His presence prompts Barbara and Susan to pretend to be asleep. Later, the jailer passes by the cell with a new prisoner, requiring Susan to shush Barbara. The jailer’s role is primarily as a symbol of the oppressive system, enforcing the prisoners’ confinement and reinforcing their fear of detection.
- • To maintain order and control within the prison cell.
- • To ensure the prisoners do not attempt escape.
- • The prisoners are helpless and will not attempt escape.
- • His authority is absolute within the prison walls.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The bedframe cross-strut is repurposed by Barbara as an improvised crowbar to pry loose the stonework in the cell wall. Initially part of the prison’s basic furniture, it becomes a tool of defiance and ingenuity, symbolizing Barbara’s resourcefulness in the face of oppression. The strut’s use marks a turning point in the scene, shifting the dynamic from despair to action and offering a tangible means of escape.
The damp patch in the cell wall is the catalyst for Barbara’s escape plan. Noticed during her inspection of the cell, it suggests the presence of a sewer passage leading to the river. Barbara’s observation of the damp patch shifts the scene from despair to action, as she theorizes it as a potential route to freedom. The patch becomes a symbol of hope and ingenuity, contrasting with the oppressive atmosphere of the prison.
The women’s cell stonework serves as both a physical barrier and a symbol of the prisoners’ confinement. Barbara targets a specific section of the wall, using the bedframe strut to pry at the loose stone. The stonework’s solid appearance contrasts with the damp patch, which hints at a hidden passage. The wall’s resistance to Barbara’s efforts underscores the difficulty of escape, while the potential sewer passage offers a glimmer of hope.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The women’s cell in the Conciergerie Prison is a claustrophobic and oppressive space, embodying the terror of the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror. The cell’s damp, torch-lit confines amplify the prisoners’ despair, while the echoes of distant cries underscore the inevitability of execution. Barbara’s identification of the damp patch in the wall transforms the cell from a place of confinement into a potential site of escape, shifting the atmosphere from hopelessness to cautious optimism. The cell’s stonework and bedframe become tools in Barbara’s hands, symbolizing defiance against the system.
The river, though not physically present in the cell, is invoked by Barbara as a potential escape route. She recalls passing it en route to the prison, linking the damp patch in the wall to a sewer tunnel that empties into its flow. The river symbolizes open air and freedom, contrasting with the suffocating confines of the prison cell. Its mention shifts the prisoners’ focus from despair to the possibility of reunion with the Doctor and Ian, offering a tangible goal for their escape attempt.
The sewer behind the women’s cell wall is hypothesized by Barbara as a potential escape route. She targets the damp patch in the wall, aiming to pry loose a stone and reveal the narrow passage leading to the river. The sewer represents a hidden path to freedom, contrasting with the oppressive visibility of the prison cell. Its existence is inferred rather than confirmed, adding tension to the scene as Barbara and Susan weigh the risks of their plan.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
The Revolutionary Justice System is the overarching force of oppression in this scene, embodied by the jailer and the prison’s institutional protocols. Its presence is felt in the suffocating atmosphere of the cell, the constant threat of execution, and the prisoners’ desperation to escape. The system’s arbitrary and brutal nature is highlighted by Susan’s fear for the Doctor’s safety and Barbara’s determination to defy it. The damp patch and loose stone in the wall become symbols of resistance against the system’s control, as Barbara’s plan offers a glimmer of hope in the face of inevitable execution.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Despite Susan's despair, Barbara remains proactive, shifting the focus towards escape and identifying the damp patch in the wall. This highlights Barbara's continuing resilience and resourcefulness."
Susan’s Despair and Barbara’s Defiance"Barbara's discovery of the damp patch leads directly to their digging efforts, which cause exhaustion and injury."
Despair and the Jailer’s Warning"Barbara's discovery of the damp patch leads directly to their digging efforts, which cause exhaustion and injury."
LeMaitre’s Command Silences the Jailer"Despite Susan's despair, Barbara remains proactive, shifting the focus towards escape and identifying the damp patch in the wall. This highlights Barbara's continuing resilience and resourcefulness."
Susan’s Despair and Barbara’s DefianceThemes This Exemplifies
Thematic resonance and meaning
Key Dialogue
"SUSAN: Oh, what's the use? We'll never get out of this dreadful place."
"BARBARA: Well, why not?"
"BARBARA: Look. You go over there and keep your eye open for the jailer."