Harold MacDougal

"I write books... I'm from Connecticut!"

- Harold MacDougal

 is Supporting character featured in Red Dead Redemption. He is a 43-year old anthropologist. Harold is on a sabbatical from Yale, writing a book on Native Americans and the last days of the Wild-West, and he is very much an East Coast turn-of-the-century man. It could be said that that he has taken his study of cocaine a little too seriously, and that his 'sabbatical' from Yale might have been forced. He is an optimist who loves the American way of life and speaks in large metaphors at times.

Epilogue
MacDougal succeeded in returning to Yale University. In 1914, MacDougal is caught beating a fellow scholar, Fortisque, on the head with a croquet mallet before climbing a building completely naked and demanding fine food and drink. He is in a drunken state and is then kicked out from the univerisity. The newspaper article detailing this event emphasizes the "savagery" of the attack; an ironic choice of words, since MacDougal accuses natives of being savages.

Mission Appearances

 * Bear One Another's Burdens
 * At Home With Dutch (Boss)
 * For Purely Scientific Purposes (Boss)
 * The Prodigal Son Returns (To Yale) (Boss)

Trivia

 * MacDougal is exceedingly incompetent, demonstrating a terribly inaccurate understanding of the Theory of Evolution after having wantonly provoked a Bear. MacDougal defends his actions stating that it will strengthen the species. Over the next half-century, the Grizzly Bear would be driven to near extinction in much of the United States, to a population of 1-2% original size.
 * Later, MacDougal comments on the nobility of hunting Buffalo. Nastas remarks that they are being over-hunted. MacDougal dismisses the comment, declaring that Nastas is ignorant. In reality, the Buffalo was hunted to near total extinction on the North American continent.
 * Later in the game, a newspaper talks about how he savegly attacked another man at Yale. It mentions a rumor that he apparently tried to get the grounds keeper to cut the top of his scalp off so he could see a living human brain.
 * MacDougal is a fairly realistic depiction of early pseudoscientific "arm chair" anthropology, as practiced by individuals such as Poalo Mantegazza. During the time period, the discipline saw an overhaul of the anthropological method by academics such as Franz Boas, E.B. Tylor and Bronislaw Malinowski.
 * MacDougal is a chronic cocaine addict, shown both by his outlook on it being "a wonderful way to relax the body and strengthen the mind", but mainly by the collection of injection marks on both of his forearms.
 * Often times when Marston encounters MacDougal he is very jittery, a sign that he is under the influence of cocaine.
 * MacDougal is exceedingly bigoted, stereotyping all natives as "Savages" and "Indians" and he reacted negatively when John tells him that his father was Scottish even though MacDougal is of Scottish origin.
 * He got into Yale and was discredited amongst his peers because he didn't understand evolution. He is unwilling to accept the "savages" as normal human beings despite taking blood samples when it turns out they were exactly the same according to his later tests.