3. Why did novelist Henry James call Alan Breck a "masterpiece"?

[Jen]

2. The famous American novelist Henry James (who was one of Robert Louis Stevenson's great friends) commented that the character of Alan Breck was a "masterpiece." What might James mean by this? Do you perceive Alan as a greater or lesser character than the protagonist, Davie Balfour?

[Kristel]

The way I looked at it, Alan was an adult who had his convictions and the strength of character to stick to his convictions. Davie was a young lad still developing his character and Alan was a great person to help the young man to do so.

[[deleted user]]

I saw Alan as a flamboyant Johnny Depp type character he did add colour to the story and made the adventure fun even when there was danger.