Ravens
Ravens appear throughout Burial Rites: they caw unexpectedly, land on fences, or fly overhead. According to Agnes, ravens are symbols of death, and they often foreshadow it. Agnes recalls how she once watched…
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Agnes’s Mother’s Stone
Ingveldur gave Agnes a stone when she left Agnes, telling her that, if she put the stone under her tongue, she could speak with birds. According to Agnes, it never worked, but she still keeps…
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Dreams
Throughout Burial Rites, Hannah Kent describes characters’ dreams, which often reflect their desires or anxieties. The characters themselves also place a lot of importance on dreaming. Natan’s mother was rumored to have prophetic…
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