Setting, Character, and Turmoil in Burial Rites Anonymous 12th Grade

Hannah Kent’s novel Burial Rites explores how the turbulent setting of 19th century Iceland in turn reflects the turmoil experienced by key characters in the narrative to a large extent. Kent’s juxtaposition of brutal, frosty winters with bountiful, brilliant summers and springs alongside foreboding, dubious autumns represents the dynamic and ever-changing agitation and tumult that characters such as Reverend Toti and Margret undergo through their interaction with Agnes Magnusdottir, a criminal convicted of murder. Agnes’ inner turmoil too is reflected in setting. The rustic yet callous Icelandic environment deeply mirrors Reverend Toti’s confusion and uncertainty as he matures from a young, naïve boy into a true man of honour.

Initially, when Toti sets out to meet Agnes at Kornsa, he feels confident and is determined to save Agnes. The setting around him is pleasant, as “the clouds began to clear” and the “soft red light of the late Jun sun flooded the pass.” Kent’s lyrical description of the weather emulates Toti’s buoyant emotional state, which is one of courage and certainty. In contrast, when he leaves Kornsa, discourages from and disappointed with his meeting with Agnes, “rain began to fall and the gale grew stronger”,...