Agnes Magnusdottir

As the protagonist of Burial Rites, Kent expertly crafts the ambiguous woman to evoke both pity and mystery. The truth of whether Agnes committed the crime is left partially contentious; although Agnes retells the murders in detail to Toti and, later, Margret she admits that that ‘there’s no such thing as truth’ (p110) and suggests that memories ‘shift like loose snow’ (p111) and that those recollections take over one another for a position of dominance in one’s mind. She is a complex, multifaceted woman who is described as having ‘an excellent intellect, and strong knowledge and understanding of Christianity’ (p33). As a child, reading provided an escape for her and her love of the sagas influences her decision to choose Natan as a worthy option when she admires him as ‘an extraordinary man, a saga man’ (p221). The romance is complete when Natan makes love to her for the first time and the overwhelming flood of emotions make her ‘want[ed] to weep afterwards’ (p220) that she has finally been noticed and loved, least of all by someone as tantalising as Natan. Her loneliness, however, makes her vulnerable and in many ways Agnes may have condemned herself by choosing to live unmarried with Natan and flouting social expectations. Coupled with her preference of a ‘story to a prayer’ (p70), authorities find it easy to sense that she has been corrupted and the accusation of murderess and madwoman settle upon her.

Agnes’ loneliness is a poignant aspect of her life. Having been abandoned by her birth mother when she was a child, and then later to experience the gruesome death of her foster-mother, Agnes is used to loss and comes to expect it from those around her. Her resignation to this way of life, coupled with her intellect, make her an easy target for the townspeople who no doubt feel threatened by her apathy and misinterpret her learned methods of self-preservation as selfishness. It seems her fate throughout the whole novel is to be misunderstood for even in the final few chapters, when she divulges the mercy behind her murder of Natan was a final act of love, her kindness toward a man who has so viciously mistreated her is lost and she is condemned by the courts as a cold blooded killer.

As she serves the remainder of her sentence at the farm of Kornsa, she is unexpectedly filled with warmth and contentment. Although at first the family is reticent to ‘share my [their] home with the Devil’s children’ (p39), they come to respect the quiet way Agnes conducts herself and the tireless manner in which she works their farm through the seasons. Their fear of the wild prisoner who arrives at their home is well-founded, they believe she may murder them while they sleep and, in addition, will also wreak havoc with their reputation as an upstanding family. Agnes is acutely aware that she is unwelcome and responds by playing the timid housemaid, answering ‘yes mistress’ (p61) and slipping into the role of ‘servant’ (p62) which Margret insists she become. Before too long, she returns to the practices of the itinerant worker and becomes lulled by the monotony of work life, finding reward in reaping a harvest that she won’t live long enough to enjoy.

Agnes Magnusdottir Quotes

There is a pleasure to be had in squatting with my skirt bunched about me, and the smell of the smoke from the dung fire in my hair. (Agnes realising that she is getting comfortable at Kornsa) p 76

‘All my life people have thought I was too clever. Too clever by half, they’d say. And you know what, Reverend? That’s exactly why they don’t pity me. Because they think I’m too smart, too knowing to get caught up in this by accident.’ (Agnes to Toti) p 131

‘And that is because she is reticent, secretive and guilty.’ (Blondal to Toti about why Agnes is so easily condemned) p 172

‘Very well spoken. Educated, I should think. Surprising, considering her illegitimacy. Well brought up. But when I spoke to the District Officer, he said her behaviour was… unpredictable. He mentioned hysterics.’ (Reverend Petur recites what is written about Agnes in his ministerial book) p 230

Natan Ketilsson

Natan’s manipulative nature is exposed when it is revealed that he had initially ‘promised Agnes my [Karitas’ position]… only, before she arrived, he decided that Sigga should have it’ (p175) and whilst his malicious actions do not warrant being murdered, the information given to Toti by Karitas provides insight into Natan’s cruel and calculating nature. By changing her role, Natan hoped it would ‘embarrass Agnes to be under his authority’ (p175) and confirms his desire to feel superior and ordain to control women, particularly itinerant workmaids with no prospect like Agnes. His resounding slap across the cheek, reminding Agnes to ‘remember your [her] place’ (p263), serves as a turning point in their relationship where they cease being lovers and begin the poisonous affiliation of captor and captured.

Karitas’ observation that he ‘toyed with people’ (p175) and did it to ‘amuse himself’ (p175) is confirmed when Agnes confronts him about ‘climbing on top of Sigga in the next bed’ (p287) and he teases her that he may have done this deliberately whilst he knew Agnes was awake, to hurt her. His mysterious nature was no doubt something that initially attracted Agnes to him, ‘[Natan] was famous for all sorts of reasons, depending on who you spoke to’ (p191), but she soon learns the nature of his notoriety was that he had illegitimate children littered all over the countryside. As a young man, his interests in medicine extended no further than the rudimentary ‘blood letting’ practice (p191) but upon attending Copenhagen for further training, rumours develop that he has become a ‘sorcerer’ (p191) and he spends most of his time in a round house that sits close to the raging ocean, making potions and poultices to sell at exorbitant prices to the townsfolk who are desperate for healing. The more affluent citizens, such as Blondal, who commissions Natan to save his wife when she falls ill, will not struggle with paying the ‘king’s ransom’ (p91) that Natan tends to charge for his herbs and salves. As such, this affords him a certain sense of protection for his dubious practices or suspected thievery and deceit. Natan appreciates the adroit power of language and of ‘having a certain way of talking to people’ (p193) in order to bend them to his will, and it is using this skill that allows him to secure Agnes as a live-in maid at his homestead. After telling Agnes that ‘he liked those who had a tongue in their heads’ (p192), he directly contrasts those that have admonished her keen wit and independent mind and her attraction towards him is immediate. Although at first Agnes is ‘grateful for the diversion Natan brought’ (p218), he soon tires of her and his mood ‘darken[s]’ (p239) and she begins to feel his wrath – ‘One day he [Natan] might call you friend, and the next threaten to throw you into the night if you so much as dropped a pail of water on the ground'(p239). Some considered him to be ‘a clever man, a doctor… [who] knew arithmetic, and [was] generous with his money’ (p 217) whereas those that were aware of Natan’s volatile nature dismissed it as a fearsome personality and because of his gender, his behaviour was dismissed by ‘folks’ (p239) as playful.

Natan Ketilsson Quotes

The famous Natan Ketilsson, a man who could bleed the sap of sickness from the limbs of the ill, who had been with the famous Poet-Rosa, who had heard the bells of Copenhagen, and taught himself Latin – an extraordinary man, a saga man… (Agnes about Natan) p 221

‘… I saw with my own eyes how something as simple as a tea made from leaves, or a poultice from lard and sulphur, or a gum squeezed out of roots, or even a cabbage, could heal a person’. (Agnes explaining to Toti about how skilled Natan was in the medicinal arts) p 235

‘Reverend, Natan began to leave Illugastadir at the close of summer, and each time he returned, it was a though he became more of a stranger to me… it was those moods that took him away…’ (Agnes explaining to Toti) p 255

Fridrick Sigurdsson

Despite his ardent affection for young Sigga, Fridrick turns out to be the most violent of all the men. Initial depictions of the barbaric Petur would have readers believe he is the tempestuous rival, but the Sagas hint that out of infatuation come acts of desperation. Fridrik of Katadalur is a young, love-struck boy and the third co-accused in the case of the Illugastadir murders. In the initial stages, he is described as ‘off-balance’ (p 236) by Agnes and his effect on Natan is palpable. Desperate to prove himself a man, Fridrick breaks into fits of rage and boasts about how he’d ‘fought three men in Vesturhop and given them all black eyes’ (p 238), keen to seek approval from Natan and then later, Sigga. Despite his ambivalence, when Fridrick engages in a relationship with Sigga it arouses Natan’s jealousy and their ‘strange rivalry with one another, borne out of boredom’ (p 238), deepens into a dangerous game of cat and mouse revolving around the money that Fridrick is desperate to rob from Natan and the affection of the young housemaid Sigga.

The fault for the murders lies almost exclusively at Fridrick’s feet; choosing to exact his jealous revenge and ‘come for what’s mine [Sigga]’ (p 298), culminates in him battering Petur’s skull in whilst Agnes is asleep in the cowshed and piercing Natan’s gullet with a knife. Although his actions render him momentarily in a state of shock, he is unmoved when Agnes pleads that he ‘finish what you’ve [he’s] begun’ (p 302) and instead reclaims ‘my [his] knife’ (p 303) from Natan’s stomach in a strange moment of clarity, he warns Agnes that he’ll not go down for these crimes alone.

Fridrick Sigurdsson Quotes

‘That young man was furious, exhibiting behavior and language of the most foul and degenerate variety.’ (Blondal recalling the day Fridrick was arrested) p 171

‘I did not like that in him, the way he looked for a reason to anger. He liked to fight. Liked to keep his knuckles bruised.’ (Agnes recalling Fridrick) p 237

‘He’s a keen rider, and used to flog his pony to death in an effort to impress Sigga. Even when that good horse threw him for the way he switched its hide all bloody, Sigga fetched him a supper and sat by his side as he wolfed it, sponging his swollen temple and stooping to kiss it better when she thought I could not see.’ (Agnes remembering Fridrick to Toti) p 241

Poet Rosa Gudmundsdottir

Rosa Gudmundsdottir is based on a true Icelandic poet, famous for her works during the period of the early 19th century. In Kent’s text she is Natan’s former love and mother to his illegitimate daughter, Thoranna. Natan shares her home for a time and their affair continues under her husband’s nose, but the ever-restless Natan leaves and the jilted Rosa became intensely jealous.

Although Agnes sees it as ‘an accusation’ (p 135), Rosa’s gift to Agnes comes in the form of an ambiguous poem that warns her of the heartache she will feel if she continues with Natan.

Poet Rosa Gudmundsdottir Quotes

‘They say she speaks in lines of verse.’ (Toti to Agnes) p 134

‘Natan never stopped loving her. How could he? Her poetry made lamps out of people.’ (Agnes to Toti) p 248

‘We never reached an understanding, although that was her fault as much as mine. As soon as Rosa met me, she made it clear we were on a battleground.’ (Agnes about Rosa) p 249

Jon Jonsson

As District Officer of the region, Jon takes his position seriously and although he is reluctant to house the murderess Agnes until the date of her execution, he does so without falter. He shares the rest of his family’s distrust in the woman, motivated by his concern for the safety of his wife and daughters.

Like the rest of his family, by the time the execution date arrives, Jon shares an altered perception of Agnes; calming her nerves with the proffer of a ‘flask’ (p326) and desperately wanting to help lift Agnes to her feet again when Toti ushers her to the platform for her beheading, an indication that he may be acutely aware that his aid is too little, and much too late.

He is a good man, working to provide for his family despite the hardships of Icelandic farming and livestock keeping. He lets little stand in the way of a hard days’ work and remains measuredly optimistic given the circumstances.

Jon Jonsson Quotes

‘We have done nothing wrong. I am a District Officer. She can’t be placed with any family. She is a responsibility of the authorities, of which I am one.’ (Jon explaining to his family that he must agree to house Agnes) p 27

Sigridur Gudmundsdottir (Sigga)

Sigga is the co-accused murderess of Natan Ketilsson. Younger than Agnes, she is introduced in the text by passing comments from those such as Blondal and Karitas, before Agnes’ retrospective narrative actually calls her into being. Although Blondal’s summation of Sigga as incapable of stabbing Natan is correct, the ease with which he is so swayed by her ‘simple-minded…young…’ (p169) ways is dismissive and reckless for a man of the law. In addition to being ‘not bright’ (p169) and ‘too young and sweet to die’ (p41), Sigga undoubtedly understands that manipulation will see her right and uses her docile manner to charm both Natan and Fridrick.

Sigga represents the role that Agnes has chosen to abnegate, that of the sweet work maid who has been swept up in a nasty situation through no fault of her own. Public sympathy arranges a petition to downgrade Sigga’s sentence of execution to life imprisonment at a work camp in the Danish capital of Copenhagen. The petition swings on the claim that she was manipulated by the wily Agnes of whom ‘Blondal wants to set an example’ (p41).

Initially, the girls wrestle with their hierarchy at Natan’s farm. Agnes feels she should be the headmistress and being older, is chosen by Natan. Sigga inherits the position recently vacated by Karitas. There is the sense that although Natan uses both women carnally, his connection with Agnes is also intellectual whereas Natan observes Sigga to be ‘…only a child, with a child’s way of thinking’ (p236). Aside from existing momentarily as rivals for Natan’s fleeting affections, Agnes and Sigga reconcile their differences, and are united in their fear against the tempers of Natan and the unpredictable Petur. Sigga even begs Natan that ‘she’s [Agnes] got no place to stay…’ (p296) in an effort to convince him to keep her on until the weather clears.

Sigridur Gudmundsdottir (Sigga) Quotes

I have told Sigridur about the conditions of her pardon, and she is praying to God and thanking the King for her kind treatment. (Blondal in a letter) p 311

‘She thanked me then for coming to be her servant, and she took me by the arm and said that we must get along well, for Natan was often away, and she grew lonely.’ (Agnes, telling Toti about the first time she met Sigga) p 228

‘… at Illugastadir she had a saucy little manner when it suited her. She was forever speculating about folks and Natan would ask her who she thought should marry whom, and what their children would look like and so forth. It was harmless sport for him; he found her simplicity amusing.’ (Agnes recollecting to Toti) p 236

Sigurlaug Jónsdóttir (Lauga)

As Jon and Margret’s youngest daughter, Lauga is twenty-years-old and keen to stand out from the rest of her family. Her initial reaction to the thought of hosting a murderess in their house is overshadowed by her shame at her sister Steina’s uncouth behaviour. Lauga in intensely proper and keen; when Blondal delivers the order for their father she is keen to treat him (Blondal) with respect and to be impressed, berating her sister for ‘leaving a man like Blondal twiddling his thumbs in our badstofa’ (p12) and not offering him any refreshments. Her ignorance in matters such as the ‘outward hint of [the] evil that drives a person to murder’ (p52), such as a birthmark or a harelip, echo those of the isolated farming communities who embraced old superstitions close.

Despite being privy to as much of Agnes’ obedience on the farm as her sister and mother, Lauga continues to fret about the family being ‘marked’ (p209) now that they’ve harboured a criminal and she ‘can’t wait until she’s [Agnes] gone’ (p209). She is the only character that remains loyal to the impressionable weight that this commission means for the household and becomes even further frustrated when she realises that even her ‘Mamma is talking to her [Agnes] in a familiar way’ (p209) and that nobody seems to mind as much as she that ‘everyone in the valley gives us [them] strange looks now’ (p209).

Despite the rest of the family’s softening to Agnes as her sentence is carried out, there may be some truth in Lauga’s concerns as, earlier on, Roslin, represents the gossip in the valley that Agnes’ incarceration at Kornsa is bound to have devastating effects on ‘your [Margret’s] own good self and your husband and poor daughters’ (p66). But perhaps her uncharacteristic reaction when Agnes is finally whisked away to her place of beheading is Kent’s way of showing the young girl becoming penitent about the way she has treated Agnes. The wordless resignation of gifting Agnes the brooch to wear stands in direct contrast to her fervent accusation that Agnes was trying to steal the ‘silver brooch’ (p73); similarly, her quick wit and caustic comments about the unfortunate situation are chilling compared to her collapsing to her knees as though ‘stabbed [her] in the stomach’ (p324) when Agnes asks her how she will be killed.

Sigurlaug Jónsdóttir (Lauga) Quotes

Why on earth would Lauga be envious of a woman who would be dead before the weather turned again? Yet, there was an intensity to her revulsion that seemed fired by something more than resentment. (Margret considering the behaviour of her daughter) p 201

‘When Blondal came, I thought we might not have to suffer her too much because there’d be officers. I thought we would keep her locked up! I didn’t think she’d always be with us…’ (Lauga on Agnes) p 209

Steinvor Jónsdóttir (Steina)

A mere year older than her sister, Steina befriends Agnes when she comes to stay at Kornsa. Her attraction to Agnes is not only borne of curiosity but also that she remembers an incident when she was younger and Agnes showed kindness to them when they met on the road to Gudrunarstadir. Her interest is piqued when the murderess comes to stay at their homestead and Steina shows Agnes kindness when she scratches her ankle accidentally with the harvesting scythe. She acts as an antithesis to those that have shunned Agnes throughout her life and instead shows unrelenting kindness, gravitating toward Agnes in a sub-conscious rebellion to the prickly criticism she incurs from her own family. She is motivated by a desire to find out more about the mysterious prisoner and even offers to initiate a petition or ‘appeal’ (p125) to help reduce Agnes’ sentence.

In contrast to her sister, Steina shows evidence of being more observant of the unfair society in which she finds herself, not bothered with trying to impress Blondal when he visits their farm but instead choosing to challenge his authority in suggesting that Agnes’ housing at their homestead was to avoid the monetary costs of transporting her to the nation’s capital, Reykjavik. Her appearance seems only noteworthy by comparison to Lauga, who ‘is quite a beauty… conscientious and smart’ (p93) and who ‘runs circles around her sister [Steina]’ (p93). Indeed, Blondal is taken aback by Steina’s dishevelled appearance as he ‘looked down at Steina and her filthy skirts with an air of bemusement’ (p17) but his revulsion at her is compounded when she stands up against him, a far more displeasing characteristic for a woman in his eyes. Her frustration at the system, which is oppressive to her both as a female and as a young unmarried girl, is symbolically represented by her sudden urge to break the uneaten bowl of skyr which Blondal had so pompously disregarded.

Steina embraces Agnes on the morning of her execution, exhibiting a tenderness that Agnes ‘cannot remember’ (p324) having ever experienced, which serves as a testament to the young girl’s forgiving nature.

Steinvor Jónsdóttir (Steina) Quotes

Her eyes were brown and widely set, and there was a large gap between her front teeth. There was something rather ungainly about her, Blondal decided. He noticed the thick crescents of dirt under her fingernails. (Blondal’s observations of Steina) p 11

‘Is Steina making up stories again?’ (Ingibjorg to Margret) p 117

‘I’ve caught Steina asking questions of Agnes, and I’ve noticed she rushes to fetch her for errands and the like. Look – she’s following her now, even while she’s raking… I don’t know, I just think of that poor girl Sigga, and I worry the same thing will happen to her…what if Agnes has the same effect on Steina? Makes her go to the bad. Fills her head with wickedness.’ (Margret relays her concerns to Ingibjorg) p 117

Steina caught up to Agnes and gently took her arm. ‘Lauga’s scared of you, you know. She’s been listening to Roslin and her lies. But I don’t believe a word that gossip says. I remember you from before. I remember how kind you were, giving us your food like that,’ Steina leaned in closer. ‘I don’t think you killed them,’ she whispered. (Steina to Agnes) p 124

Assistant Reverend Thorvardur Jonsson (Toti)

As a young priest tasked with Agnes’ spiritual care during the time leading to her execution, Toti adds a sympathetic dimension to the otherwise relatively callous audience to Agnes’ tale. Having only just graduated from college, and working under his father’s tutelage in guiding the children of the parish, he seems an unlikely choice but the murderess nominates him with very little explanation. Characterised as boyish and inexperienced, Blondal’s doubt over the young clergymen’s capacity on the task precedes any other introduction as he employs him with ‘some uncertainty’ (p7) and assures Toti that he would not refuse a notice of ‘disinclination’ (p7).

The young man is shaken by his first meeting with the wild murderess, ‘bows[ing] awkwardly and… tripping in his haste’ (p43) upon meeting her and this confirms that he too feels unqualified for the commission, echoing Blondal’s observation that he is ‘too pale in experience’ (p7) to counsel her effectively to a repentant place. The reality that becomes evident as the narrative unfolds is that Agnes did not choose him to lead her to a spiritual plateau but rather entreats him to simply hear her story. Toti accepts the commission, led by a willing heart, a belief that his faith can cleanse Agnes and the rather thrilling discovery that she specifically requested him.

When we see him through Agnes’ eyes, his inexperience is magnified and we share her panic that she has ‘made a mistake’ (p83) and that this infantile boy who ‘toddles to his horse with the seat of his pants wet’ (p83) cannot possibly help her. However, whether by Blondal’s initial reservations or Agnes’ observations, the reader is misled and Toti soon reveals himself to be more suitable for the task than anyone may have hoped, intuitively allowing Agnes to speak freely by coaxing her with ‘the gentle and enquiring tones of a friend’ (p166). As their connection deepens and Toti’s notion of his place in Agnes’ life is realised, he matures and becomes confident in the task; a notable moment in the text to exemplify this shift is when Agnes dreams of the man ‘in the priest’s collar’ (p184) who ‘has [had] his hand in mine [hers], and it was a comfort’ (p184), the first instance of Agnes dreaming of anything that wasn’t haunting memories or terrifying loneliness. When Toti asks if that man was him, Agnes nods and he comforts her. Although his carnal fascination with her continues for most of the novel, it evolves from an infantile ‘blush’ (p49) at the intimate ‘stench peculiar to women’ (p49) into a deepened realisation that as she spoke she was ‘quite beautiful’ (p189); not just as a woman, but as a strong and resilient being.

His role of spiritual advisor is challenged as he wrestles with his initial attraction to the ‘quite beautiful’ (p189) servant girl that he’d helped over the river and someone that he believes ‘God has chosen [me] to shepherd [you] to redemption’ (p98), to a being that he places himself in great peril to be with when the execution date is looming. Despite his seeming inexperience, Toti is perceptive, canny, and sees past the daunting flourish that Blondal exhibits when they meet together to discuss Agnes’ progress, and in addition he is sage enough to ignore the gossip of the county if it means he may learn something of use about Agnes and her past.

In the end, his efforts to uncover more about her may be in vain; by Agnes’ own admission she tells her story but confesses on two occasions that ‘this is what I [she] tells the Reverend’ (p149) and a shadow of doubt is cast over the whole story. His pious belief that the fear of the dark night after Agnes admits to having a nightmare can be cured by the ‘light of Jesus’ (p156) soon dissipates and he refutes the suggestion that they ‘should spend more time engaging you [Agnes] in your [her] prayers and sermons, and less time letting you [her] speak’ (p184). His final offering to her is his presence on the eve of her execution and as she mounts the platform and he assures her that ‘I [he] will never let go’ (p328).

Assistant Reverend Thorvardur Jonsson (Toti) Quotes

‘We must all do our duty.’ (Toti to Margret upon Agnes’ arrival at Kornsa) p 39

His hair is as red as before, as red as the midnight sun. It looks as though his locks have soaked up the light as a skein of wool suffers the dye. But his face is older. It has thinned. (Agnes, upon seeing Toti) p 42

But the priest is hardly a man at all. He is as fragile as a child without the bluster and idiocy of youth. (Agnes ruminating on Toti) p 101

‘It’s become apparent to me that the condemned requires means other than religious rebuke to acquaint herself with death and prepare for her meeting with the Lord.’ (Toti justifying himself to Blondal) p 165

‘After we parted I found out your name. I heard that you were to be a priest like your father, and that you were going south to the school there, and I knew then that my dream was read and that we would meet for a third time.’ (Agnes to Toti) p 184

‘She’s my charge,’ he said. ‘It is my responsibility to know how she behaves. How well she reads. I am invested in her welfare.’ (Toti demanding to see the ministerial register information on Agnes) p 231

‘I am here for you, Agnes.’ It was the only thing he could say. (Toti on the eve of Agnes’ execution) p 318

Margret Jonsson

As the wife of the regional District Officer, naturally Margret is reluctant to welcome Agnes into her home for the duration of her sentence. Her motivation for not wanting Agnes held at their humble homestead is purely out of concern for the safety of her two daughters, Steina and Lauga, and most pointedly not because of the possibility of a ruined reputation. Although at times she is an acerbic woman with little tolerance for the gossip and frivolity of others, she is also kind and warmhearted and not without a sense of irony, refusing to let Roslin fool her in their conversation about Agnes when Roslin pretends to have forgotten the name of the accused woman.

Her maternal nature is stirred when she first sees Agnes and observes the horrendous condition in which Agnes arrives from Stora-Borg; she finds herself demanding that the woman be released from her irons in order that her body, a ‘terrain of abuse’ (p54), be properly bathed. Her resilience is tested through the winter months as the farm must ready itself for the coldest time of year, and she illustrates her steady leadership skills over the other women and servants that help with the chores. Despite the hardships that promise to visit them in the coming months, Margret’s pragmatism that ‘we’ll carry on, for as long as we’re able’ (p270), is the glue that unites her small family and inspires Agnes to bear her fate.

But Margret’s mental strength is tested by her physical fragility; as her health deteriorates and her death appears imminent, she feels a growing empathy for Agnes and they share their woes without being checked – ‘worry pressed on Margret’s mind to the point where she found herself talking to Agnes just for the relief of expressing concern. Together they listed the people they had known who had died on the mountains. A bleak conversation to have, thought Margret, but there was some comfort in talking about death aloud…’ (p199). As the execution draws near and Toti falls ill and is unable to attend Agnes, Margret’s transition to confidante is organic and in many ways she proves to be a more suitable option to hear the testimony of a murderess than a naïve young Reverend. Margret becomes a late advocate for Agnes and, exclaiming that ‘it’s not right… it wasn’t her fault’ (p318) and referring to the convicted criminal as ‘my girl’ (p324), believes the story that Agnes ended Natan’s life out of pity to shorten the man’s pain. In the end, her determination to support the condemned woman is matched only by Toti’s.

Margret Jonsson Quotes

‘I do not like to share my home with the Devil’s children,’ she said, her voice lowering to a whisper. ‘Reverend Toti, we must make it known that we do not want her company.’ (Margret to Toti upon Agnes’ arrival to Kornsa) p 39

… now she realized that their silence had shifted into something more natural and untroubled. Margret was worried at this. She was too used to Agnes’ presence on the farm. Perhaps it was the usefulness of an extra pair of hands about the place. (Margret realizing that she didn’t mind Agnes) p 202

‘Two dying women,’ Agnes murmured. At any other time Margret knew she might have been insulted, but sitting across from Agnes she saw the truth of this. (Agnes and Margret speak) p 269

‘My mother would never let the hearth die in her home… she believed that as long as light burned in the house, the Devil couldn’t get in.’
‘What do you believe?’
Margret extended her hands towards the flames. ‘I think a fire is a useful thing to keep a body warm.’ (Margret and Agnes speak) p 271

Agnes’ face was still puffy from sleep, and the older woman suddenly felt an impulse to put an arm around her. It is because she looks like a child, Margret thought. p 272

‘You are not a monster… we’ll remember you, Agnes…’ (Margret as she says good-bye to Agnes) pp 323-4

District Commissioner Bjorn Blondal

Blondal embodies the dry, impersonal voice of officialdom and the harsh hand of justice. He is obdurate and unashamedly pompous and makes little secret of his disdain toward those he considers inferior.

Albeit begrudgingly, he acknowledges Agnes’ right to request a spiritual advisor but he remains sceptical about Toti’s ability to bring the condemned woman to a state of penitence. The extent of his ruthlessness is exposed when Toti visits his affluent abode at Hvammur and Blondal bullies Toti into ‘apply[ing] the Lord’s word to her as a whip to a hard-mouthed horse’ (p170), insisting that it is the only way Toti will ‘get anywhere’ (p170), equating submission with success. The first instance that gives readers a sense of his misplaced pride is when he studies the dried sheep’s bladder used for a window in the Kornsa homestead and ‘shudders’ (p16) remembering his own lavish accommodation with glass (a rare commodity among the poorer citizens of Iceland). His acknowledgement of such luxuries do not go unnoticed as he considers himself ‘fortunate’ (p162), but time spent in such a comfortable position of authority has warped his understanding of the common folk and his sympathy of them is virtually non-existent. His disdain for Steina and Lauga is exemplified when he refuses to touch the food that the girls offer him, a bowl of skyr and milk, which would sustain them for days, and as the girls challenge his authority to imprison Agnes at their home he asserts his dominance by ‘rose [rising] to his full height’ (p17) and placing a heavy hand on Steina’s shoulder to cajole her. This tendency to deliver a more firm approach to those that stray from societal expectations is again reflected when Blondal suggests that Toti recite the more dire passages of Revelation and the Passion Hymns (a collection of Icelandic recollections that tell the tale from when Christ enters the garden of Gethsemane to his eventual crucifixion) to curtail the criminal to repentance. He politely admonishes Toti for being ‘young and inexperienced’ (p166) and he resigns himself that Agnes is a product of her upbringing, but his message to Toti is clear: bring the woman to a swift place of penitence and do not be fooled by her manipulative ways. His wariness of women is, at first, seemingly docile for a man of his breeding and position but it becomes clear that he prefers those women who are subservient and likely to ‘burst into tears’ (p169) when summoned by him, as Sigga does. He, like so many men of the era, mistakes intellect and intuitiveness in a woman for conniving and callous.

Never is his prostrating more obvious then when Toti visits his dwellings at Hvammur and Blondal’s affluence is unmistakable. Although he disguises his want for all inhabitants of Iceland to possess ‘glass windows, wooden panelling and iron stoves’ (p162) as a desire for ‘better health’ (p162), the excesses of his own inclinations are wasteful and, at times, sadistic. He credits swan’s feet as making ‘excellent purses’ (p164) and absentmindedly dismisses the eggs as ‘barely tolerable’ (p164) amidst a community who are desperate to try and store up supplies to survive the coming frost. The District Commissioner’s haughty ways have become so deeply ingrained in his behaviour that most of his affectations are subconscious and unconsidered. He truly believes that Agnes and Fridrick’s heinous actions were a result of how they were brought up and that Agnes was ‘reticient, secretive and guilty’ (p172) merely because a man had loosely incriminated her in the crime.

Most notably, Blondal’s motivation for wanting to exact revenge is his belief that the District has been overrun with criminals and thugs and he seeks to cleanse it and those that have existed so long in the shadows are brought to ‘justice in the eyes of their peers’ (p172). Speculation reaches Toti that Natan had healed Blondal’s young wife with one of his concoctions and, therefore, Blondal felt some allegiance to him and therefore some intense need to avenge his brutal murder but this is neither confirmed nor denied by Blondal who stipulates that he does not have to explain himself to ‘parish priests’ (p173) and is instead closely monitoring Toti’s progress with Agnes.

Interestingly, Blondal disappears from the narrative quite soon after it becomes clear that Toti has disregarded the stern recommendation that he extract a confession from Agnes, and the latter continues along the path of providing her with a ‘final audience’ (p166) as she counts down the days to her execution. This strategic exclusion by Kent foreshadows the waning presence of the strict doctrines in favour of a modernist attitude, exemplified by Toti, halting at first but far more effective.

District Commissioner Bjorn Blondal Quotes

‘This is why I decided that they should be placed on farms, homes of upright Christians, who would inspire repentance by good example, and who would benefit from the work these prisoners do as they await their judgement.’ (Blondal explains to Steina and Lauga why Agnes must come to stay at Kornsa) p 17

Toti, who had only met the District Commissioner on a few occasions, mostly when he was a boy travelling with his father, paused in awe at the spectacle of his uniform, and his rather imposing figure. (Toti upon meeting Blondal) p 161

‘A true man is distinguishable from all others by his writing implements.’ (Blondal to Toti) p 164

‘She is a woman loose with her emotions, and even looser with her morals. Like many older servant women, she is practised in deception, and I do not doubt that she has manufactured a life story in such a way so as to prick your sympathy. I would not believe a word she says.’ (Blondal to Toti about Agnes) p 170

‘Fridrick Sigurdsson was a boy raised in a household careless with morality and Christian teaching… slothfulness, greed, and rude, callow inclinations bred in him a weak spirit, and a longing for worldly gain…’ (Blondal to Toti regarding the accused Fridrick) p 171

‘He thinks I should spend more time engaging you in prayers and sermons, and less time letting you speak.’
‘Blondal likes only one thing better than religious chastisement, and that is the sound of his own voice.’
(Agnes and Toti speak) p 182

Joas and Helga Magnusdottir

Helga was Inga’s daughter, which made her a half sister to Agnes. She died as a small girl.

Joas is Agnes’ half-brother, son to Inga and Illugi the Black, an abusive farm owner who died of the ‘shaking sickness’ (p121). Joas was a boy of five when their mother Inga left with him and abandoned Agnes because she was no longer able to feed her. Agnes’ recollections of her brother are blurry and unreliable. When she later meets him, he has fallen into ill repute and has ‘the nervous look of vagrants you see about these parts’ (p186), and her suspicions are confirmed when she wakes the morning after meeting him and he has stolen her money and absconded.

Joas and Helga Magnusdottir Quotes

… the blood tie is not strong: they have different fathers apiece, and Helga is dead and buried. Joas? Well, he’s not a man who can be put to anything, even a visit to a doomed sister. (Agnes recollecting her siblings) p 121

So that was the two of us, paupers both, only he looked the worse for it. (Agnes remembering when she met her brother when they were older) p 187