The Girl on the Train

by

Paula Hawkins

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Scott Hipwell / “Jason” Character Analysis

Scott Hipwell is Megan’s hyper-masculine and volatile husband. An IT professional who runs his own business, Scott is both possessive of Megan and technologically savvy—which means that he seeks to control her by tracking her communications and whereabouts on her phone and computer. This possessiveness exacerbates the unrooted and traumatized Megan’s desire to flee not just her marriage, but the sleepy London suburb in which she feels stifled and trapped. Scott desperately loves Megan and wants to build a life with her—yet Megan’s fear of motherhood and her inability to remain faithful lead her to treat Scott with disinterest, creating within him a strong desire for control and fealty. This leads authorities to treat Scott as a primary suspect throughout the investigation of Megan’s disappearance and, later, her murder. Scott—desperately sad, confused, and angry throughout the investigation—turns to Rachel for comfort after she reaches out to him, pretending to be one of Megan’s acquaintances from the small art gallery that Megan used to own. Scott and Rachel both drink too much and are both frantic to clear their names—and because of this, they develop a needful, strange bond, and even have regretful sex once. But when Scott realizes that Rachel has been lying to him about knowing Megan, he becomes furious and frightening, imprisoning her in his spare room before letting her go and telling her that he’d break her neck if she were “worth” the effort. Unpredictable, hot-headed, lonely, and reeling from a terrible loss, Scott’s ever-shifting attitude makes him unreliable and impossible to trust. He plays an active role as a character in sustaining the novel’s mystery and suspense.

Scott Hipwell / “Jason” Quotes in The Girl on the Train

The The Girl on the Train quotes below are all either spoken by Scott Hipwell / “Jason” or refer to Scott Hipwell / “Jason”. 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:
Women and Society Theme Icon
).
Rachel: One Quotes

I know that on warm summer evenings, the occupants of this house, Jason and Jess, sometimes climb out of the large sash window to sit on the makeshift terrace on top of the kitchen-extension roof. They are a perfect, golden couple. […] While we're stuck at the red signal, I look for them. Jess is often out there in the mornings, especially in the summer, drinking her coffee. Sometimes, when I see her there, I feel as though she sees me, too, I feel as though she looks right back at me, and I want to wave.

Related Characters: Rachel Watson (speaker), Megan Hipwell / “Jess”, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”
Related Symbols: Trains
Page Number: 4
Explanation and Analysis:
Rachel: Five Quotes

I'm thinking about her now. I have to convince Scott that I knew her—a little, not a lot. That way, he'll believe me when I tell him that I saw her with another man. If I admit to lying right away, he'll never trust me. So I try to imagine what it would have been like to drop by the gallery, chat with her over a coffee. Does she drink coffee? We would talk about art, perhaps, or yoga, or our husbands. I don't know anything about art, I've never done yoga. I don't have a husband. And she betrayed hers.

Related Characters: Rachel Watson (speaker), Megan Hipwell / “Jess”, Anna Watson, Tom Watson, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”
Page Number: 107
Explanation and Analysis:
Anna: Two Quotes

We need to get away from here. We need to get away from her.

Related Characters: Anna Watson (speaker), Rachel Watson, Tom Watson, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”, Evie
Page Number: 140
Explanation and Analysis:
Rachel: Eleven Quotes

Megan isn't what I thought she was anyway. She wasn't that beautiful, carefree girl out on the terrace. She wasn't a loving wife. She wasn't even a good person. She was a liar, a cheat.

She was a killer.

Related Characters: Rachel Watson (speaker), Megan Hipwell / “Jess”, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”
Page Number: 209
Explanation and Analysis:
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Scott Hipwell / “Jason” Quotes in The Girl on the Train

The The Girl on the Train quotes below are all either spoken by Scott Hipwell / “Jason” or refer to Scott Hipwell / “Jason”. 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:
Women and Society Theme Icon
).
Rachel: One Quotes

I know that on warm summer evenings, the occupants of this house, Jason and Jess, sometimes climb out of the large sash window to sit on the makeshift terrace on top of the kitchen-extension roof. They are a perfect, golden couple. […] While we're stuck at the red signal, I look for them. Jess is often out there in the mornings, especially in the summer, drinking her coffee. Sometimes, when I see her there, I feel as though she sees me, too, I feel as though she looks right back at me, and I want to wave.

Related Characters: Rachel Watson (speaker), Megan Hipwell / “Jess”, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”
Related Symbols: Trains
Page Number: 4
Explanation and Analysis:
Rachel: Five Quotes

I'm thinking about her now. I have to convince Scott that I knew her—a little, not a lot. That way, he'll believe me when I tell him that I saw her with another man. If I admit to lying right away, he'll never trust me. So I try to imagine what it would have been like to drop by the gallery, chat with her over a coffee. Does she drink coffee? We would talk about art, perhaps, or yoga, or our husbands. I don't know anything about art, I've never done yoga. I don't have a husband. And she betrayed hers.

Related Characters: Rachel Watson (speaker), Megan Hipwell / “Jess”, Anna Watson, Tom Watson, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”
Page Number: 107
Explanation and Analysis:
Anna: Two Quotes

We need to get away from here. We need to get away from her.

Related Characters: Anna Watson (speaker), Rachel Watson, Tom Watson, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”, Evie
Page Number: 140
Explanation and Analysis:
Rachel: Eleven Quotes

Megan isn't what I thought she was anyway. She wasn't that beautiful, carefree girl out on the terrace. She wasn't a loving wife. She wasn't even a good person. She was a liar, a cheat.

She was a killer.

Related Characters: Rachel Watson (speaker), Megan Hipwell / “Jess”, Scott Hipwell / “Jason”
Page Number: 209
Explanation and Analysis: