As a child in London, Dan plays with Thornhill and is a famous chestnut thief. As an adult he's sent to New South Wales several years after Thornhill, and Thornhill ends up taking him on as a convict servant. At that point, Thornhill insists that Dan call him Mr. Thornhill instead of William to assert his dominance. On the Hawkesbury, Dan shows that he's cruel and fearful of the natives. He pushes Thornhill to participate in the massacre and encourages Thornhill to torture the natives like Sagitty and Smasher do.
Dan Oldfield Quotes in The Secret River
The The Secret River quotes below are all either spoken by Dan Oldfield or refer to Dan Oldfield. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:).
Part 3: A Clearing in the Forest Quotes
Part 5: Drawing a Line Quotes
He knew, as perhaps they did not, how pointless a thing it was. He could go through the rigmarole of loading it up and squinting along its barrel and firing. But after that, what?
Dan Oldfield Character Timeline in The Secret River
The timeline below shows where the character Dan Oldfield appears in The Secret River. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part 1: London
Part 3: A Clearing in the Forest
...of Rob, and after he has chosen another man, the man excitedly introduces himself as Dan Oldfield, Thornhill's childhood friend. Dan happily cries that London sends its regards, but Thornhill mildly... (full context)
Part 4: A Hundred Acres
...time strolling around and finding food, while the Thornhills spend all day working. Ned and Dan scorn the natives and think of them as animals, and Sal halfheartedly suggests they put... (full context)
Part 5: Drawing a Line
...voice. She and Thornhill sit by the fire and listen to the children, Ned, and Dan sleep, when they begin hearing clapping and chanting coming from the natives' camp. Thornhill tries... (full context)
Part 6: The Secret River
...knows there's no escaping this life. He begins to try to talk to Sal, but Dan, breathless, interrupts them and says that the natives are burning Sagitty's place. Sal ignores Thornhill... (full context)