[He doesn't avert his eyes as he waits for an answer from Jasper. With everything that has happened, telling the man to speak plainly seems like a minor request.]

We will be manipulated wherever we go. The only way not to be manipulated in a world we do not belong is to hide away, cover our ears, and shut our eyes.

[It's a very hardened approach from a man who previously had no concerns or even thoughts about possibly being manipulated in his hunt of the Darkspawn. A far cry from even the young man who had knelt to receive promotion to the highest rank of the kingdom army.]