George rescues Othello

George’s rescue of Othello begins in smoke and blood, with the exhausted ram barely able to stay on his feet, and becomes the origin of a promise that outlives George himself. Remembered by Othello at George’s funeral, the episode binds physical survival to the prospect of a different future: Europe, which George says they will reach together but never does.

The Rescue Remembered

At George’s funeral, Othello is attending a funeral for the first time. He stands among the gravestones, black and solemn, occasionally eating a pansy and listening to the music. When the brown coffin arrives, he recognizes George inside by scent. The solemn service does not hold the same meaning for everyone: God speaks about himself, Kate cries, and Othello alone seems to attend to the person in the box. The funeral brings the rescue back to him as a memory of the first time he saw George.

That first meeting takes place amid a great deal of cigarette smoke. Blood runs into Othello’s eyes; his legs tremble with exhaustion. The dog lying dead beside him seems unremarkable to him, because there will always be another dog. His immediate struggle is to remain upright and keep his eyes open. He wants to blink the blood away, but fears that if he closes his eyes he will not open them again.

A voice warns him that closed eyes mean death. Othello has no objection to dying, but obeys the warning and forces his eyelids open. He looks directly into George’s green eyes. George watches him with such interest that Othello manages to hold his gaze until his legs are steadier. He then turns toward the door through which the dogs came and lowers his horns. The memory ends on this movement from near-collapse to renewed defiance: Othello is still gravely weakened, but he can face the danger again.

The Promise of Europe

A little later, Othello is bleeding over the back seat of George’s old car. The car is stationary, night presses against its windows, and George turns toward him with triumph in his eyes. He announces that they are going to Europe. The rescue therefore carries an assurance beyond immediate survival: George presents a shared destination as the next part of their future.

The promise remains unfulfilled. Othello recalls this plainly at the funeral: they never went to Europe. His thought of justice links the unkept promise to George’s death, giving the memory both tenderness and grievance. George saved him, but the future George named for them did not arrive during George’s life.

The Promise in George’s Will

The promise returns in a different form when George’s will is read. He leaves the rest of his fortune to his sheep so they can go to Europe as promised. The money is to be administered by the lawyer, and the flock needs an authorized human representative to accompany them as shepherd. The will thus turns George’s words in the car into a concrete provision, while making the journey depend on a new decision about who will act for the sheep.

The representative’s duties include having stories read aloud to the sheep for at least half an hour each day. The will also forbids selling or slaughtering any of them and makes a dense fleece the priority in breeding. The lawyer is to check that these conditions are met. These terms make the promised journey inseparable from the flock’s continued care: Europe is not simply a destination, but a future George’s money is meant to protect.

When the lawyer asks whether anyone wants the position, the people present remain silent despite their interest in the job. Rebecca volunteers. Later, when Gabriel murmurs in Gaelic, Othello steps forward, looks at him, then trots to Rebecca; one sheep after another gathers around her. Their response gives the old promise a further consequence: the flock’s journey will depend not only on George’s bequest, but on the shepherd they choose to trust.