The role of a woman
The novel’s main character is a woman who lived during a time when women had little to no rights and when women were not allowed to learn and be educated. Agnes is an anomaly in the sense that she is an extremely intelligent woman who has a thirst for knowledge. Unfortunately, her inclinations towards education were not perceived as being something positive and many criticize Agnes for refusing to accept her role in society. Through Agnes’s eyes, the reader is able to learn more about a woman’s place in society and how dangerous it was to be a woman. Agnes talks about women she knew who died during childbirth and also about women who were raped and sexually abused by the people who were supposed to protect them. Thus, the image the author portrays in the novel is that of a society that does not like it when women want more than they are told they can get.
Class
The Icelandic society described in the novel is extremely structured, with classes and with people knowing where they belong on the social ladder. Those who are presented with the opportunity of advancing on the social ladder do not hesitate to do anything they can almost immediately just to advance. These efforts highlight the idea that a person’s social status was extremely important in the society described. Of someone was from a lower class, then the person in question suffered a lot for the simple fact of not being born in the right family.
The truth
The narrative style used in the novel is unique because it combines multiple narrative perspectives. On one hand, the reader is presented with various legal documents and letters sent by the people who were involved in the case and on the other hand the reader is able to read Agnes’s most intimate thoughts and about her feelings regarding what happened. Through Agnes’s perspective, the reader is able to look beyond the crime committed and to read about the events that lead to the crime. This combination has the purpose of making the reader aware of the fact that there is always more than meets the eye and that a person should not be so quick to judge another person as there may be details the general public is unaware of.
