What If Absalom Received Mercy

If Absalom actually received mercy I think this would change the last third of the book drastically.This is because I do not think James Jarvis would help rebuild the town and valley. James would not help not because he wanted Absalom to be dead but I think one of the main reasons he helped Kumalo was he could empathize with Kumalo losing a son. James then used this bond as an inspiration to help Kumalo rebuild the tribe in Ndotsheni. Also James Jarvis is already going out of his comfort zone to the help the father of his sons murderer and if Absalom was still around I do not think Jarvis help Kumalo. This is  because I do not think anyone can show that much forgiveness in so little time. Another thing that would change would be the overall message of the book because I think one of the major themes in this novel is forgiveness and without James Jarvis forgiving Kumalo this whole theme would disappear.