Abu Bakr said: There is no disagreement in the speech of Ahmad that she is not divorced. Al-Shafi'i said: The one who answered alone is divorced, because she was addressed with the divorce, so she is divorced, just as if he had not intended anyone else. The intended one is not divorced, because he did not address her with the divorce, nor did she acknowledge her divorce. This is invalidated by the case where he knew that the one who answered was Amrah; for in that case, the intended one is divorced by his intending her with the divorce; and were it not for that, she would not have been divorced by [her] acknowledgement of it, because an acknowledgement of that which does not necessitate [a result] does not necessitate [anything]. Furthermore, the absent woman is intended by the wording of the divorce, so she is divorced, just as if he had known the situation.

Section: If he gestured toward Amrah and said: "O Hafsah, you are divorced," and he intended the divorce of Amrah, but his tongue slipped to calling Hafsah, Amrah alone is divorced, because he did not intend by his wording anything other than her divorce, and his tongue merely slipped to something other than what he intended, so it is similar to if he had intended to say: "You are pure," but his tongue slipped to: "You are divorced." If he brought forth the wording while knowing that the one gestured toward was Amrah, both are divorced: Amrah by his gesturing toward her [and attributing the divorce to her], and Hafsah by his intention and his utterance of her name. If he thought the one gestured toward was Hafsah, Hafsah is divorced, and regarding Amrah there are two narrations, as in the previous case.

Section: If he met a stranger whom he thought was his wife and said: "So-and-so, you are divorced," and it turned out to be a stranger, his wife is divorced. Ahmad explicitly stated this. Al-Shafi'i said: She is not divorced, because he addressed someone other than her with the divorce, [so it did not occur], just as if he knew she was a stranger and said: "You are divorced." Our position is that he intended his wife with the wording of divorce, so she is divorced, just as if he said: "I knew she was a stranger, but I intended the divorce of my wife." If he said to her: "You are divorced," without mentioning his wife's name, it is possible [that she is divorced]—and that is also because he intended his wife with the wording of divorce—and it is possible that she is not divorced, because he did not address her with the divorce, nor did he mention her name along with it.