Uncle Ragnar is Aunt Rosá’s husband and the brother of Agnes’s foster father, Björn. Uncle Ragnar helps Björn after Inga’s death, comforting him and helping him take care of his children. Uncle Ragnar does not like Agnes very much, however, and after Björn decides to go work in Reykjavik, Uncle Ragnar takes in Kjartan, but gives Agnes up to the parish.
Uncle Ragnar Quotes in Burial Rites
The Burial Rites quotes below are all either spoken by Uncle Ragnar or refer to Uncle Ragnar. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 6
Quotes
I explained that I had begun to dig a grave for Mamma. Uncle Ragnar frowned and told me I shouldn’t call her Mamma, and wasn’t I ashamed of myself, thinking to bury her near the doorstep where everyone would tread on her, and not in the holy ground of a churchyard.
Related Characters:
Agnes Magnúsdottir (speaker), Inga, Uncle Ragnar
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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Uncle Ragnar Character Timeline in Burial Rites
The timeline below shows where the character Uncle Ragnar appears in Burial Rites. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 6
...Agnes to put the baby’s body in the storeroom, which she did. Then Björn’s brother Ragnar and the farmhand carried Inga’s body downstairs, where Aunt Rósa cleaned Inga’s body. Rósa’s servant,...
(full context)
...she went outside, picked up a shovel, and tried to dig Inga a grave. Uncle Ragnar asked what she was doing. Agnes explained, referring to Inga as “Mamma,” and Ragnar told...
(full context)
