Like Game of Thrones, Outlander is another series that relies heavily on a desire to remain "historically accurate," which means not only sexual violence against women, but general violence against women.
About halfway through the first season, Claire "needs" to be punished, and the social mores of the time call for a belting from her husband, Jamie. Naturally, she resists, resulting in a somewhat goofy chase scene, accompanied by upbeat violin music, which seems to be an attempt to make the fact that he's physically abusing her more lighthearted.
They ultimately make up, with him apologizing and realizing that their relationship can't really work if they adhere to the rules of the time, but the fact remains that an act of domestic violence was downplayed to make it seem like it wasn't that big a deal.