Why did Fitzgerald cut off the captain's scalp?

Why did Fitzgerald cut off the captain's scalp? - Person Holding Sliced Orange Fruit in White Ceramic Bowl

When Captain Henry and Glass head out to find Fitzgerald, they separate and the captain encounters Fitzgerald alone.

Captain Henry and Fitzgerald's encounter

They both start shooting each other simultaneously, but we don't notice that the captain was shot until Glass finds him dead, with his scalp cut off.

There was a scene where Bridger asked Fitzgerald about his scalp, and he answered: "Rees took it off."

Fitzgerald and Bridger talking

Now I'm not sure why he did the same thing to the captain. Was he lying about Rees taking it off? Was it out of anger? Or is there any other reasons I didn't notice?



Best Answer

Fitzgerald likely scalped the Captain so as to make it look like the Ree had killed the Captain. Furthermore, much like how a victim of abuse can then become an abuser, Fitzgerald seems to be emotionally scarred by the half-scalping he received from the Ree and has adopted that method to exact pain and punishment on his victim.




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Why did Fitzgerald cut off the captain's scalp? - From below of positive female florist in apron and hairband using scissors for cutting low parts of rose branches placed on table in workspace against shelves with flower pots and decorations for presents
Why did Fitzgerald cut off the captain's scalp? - Brown Squirrel on Brown Tree Branch
Why did Fitzgerald cut off the captain's scalp? - Sliced Orange Fruit on Brown Wooden Table



Why was Fitzgerald killed in the revenant?

He had planned to kill Fitzgerald, but upon finding his prey had enlisted into the U.S. Army, he realized that murdering Fitzgerald would be a crime punishable by death. Ergo, he let Fitzgerald live and only demanded that the man return his Hawken rifle to him.



Through the eyes of Capt. Cooper: The night the Edmund Fitzgerald went down




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