Truth Flashcards
Quote 2:
“To know what a person has done, and to know who a person is, are very different things…she made mistakes and others made up their minds about her. People around here don’t let you forget your misdeeds. They think them the only things worth writing down.”
Argument:
Truth is inherently complex and often obscured by societal biases, reducing individuals to their actions while overlooking the complexities of their true selves.
Analysis:
- The distinction between “what a person has done” and “who a person is” underscores the concept that actions alone do not encapsulate the entirety of an individual’s identity. It suggests that the truth about a person is far more nuanced and complex than actions can reveal.
- However, the word “only”, connoting exclusivity and dismissal, suggests that society is entirely focused on a person’s mistakes, obscuring the broader, more intricate reality of who they are. It reinforces the rigidity of society’s judgments and how societal biases narrow the perception of truth to fit a more simplified, often negative narrative.
- Society not letting one “forget” their past mistakes, evokes a sense of judgment and unforgiveness, accentuating a societal tendency to emphasize and remember only a person’s errors. This lack of forgiveness starkly contrasts Christian philosophy, which is based on the forgiveness of sin, positioning readers to criticize society’s close-minded view surrounding the truth of people’s characters and their inability to forgive despite being a heavily religious society.
Quote 1:
“At Hvammur during the trial, they plucked at my words like birds. Dreadful birds, dressed in red with breasts of silver buttons, … looking for guilt like berries on a bush. … Everything I said was taken from me and altered until the story wasn’t my own.”
Argument:
How truth can be manipulated and distorted to serve the political motivations of authoritative bodies, in order to uphold social structures.
Analysis:
o Metaphor comparing the authorities to birds presents the officials as scavengers, pecking at Agnes’ words without care for their authenticity, reflecting their predatory and demeaning approach to Agnes’s testimony.
o Simile likening their search for guilt to looking for berries on a bush – emphasises the superficial and mechanical nature of their quest, driven more by a desire to condemn rather than a genuine pursuit of truth.
o “Pluck” – selective and deliberate - authorities carefully choose which parts of Agnes’ story to focus on and which to distort, thereby controlling the truth to fit their agenda and validate their preconceived notions of Agnes’ guilt.
o “wasn’t my own” - underscores how her voice and agency are systemically stripped away, allowing those in power to create their version of the truth. This manipulation reflects the broader societal structure where the lower classes, like Agnes, are rendered voiceless, their narratives rewritten to maintain existing social hierarchies.
o The birds’ “red” clothing and “silver buttons” symbolise their wealth and power, a stark contrast to Agnes’ lower social standing, emphasising how the justice system distorts the truth to ensure those like Agnes remain marginalised and powerless.
Quote 3: “They will see the whore, the madwoman, the murderess, the female dripping blood into the grass and choking with her mouth filled with dirt. They will say ‘Agnes’ and see the spider, the witch caught in the webbing of her own fateful weaving…. But they will not see me. I will not be there.”
Argument: When an individual is unable to tell their own truth, they lose their sense of self, becoming invisible beneath the weight of society’s imposed labels and distorted perceptions
Analysis:
- Negative labels “madwoman”, “murderess”, “witch” - suggestive of someone who is inherently evil and insane- Society views Agnes through a lens of fear, prejudice, and condemnation, stripping away the complexity and humanity of her true identity.
- Metaphors comparing Agnes to a “spider”, an animal that evokes a sense of terror, further exemplifies how society perceives Agnes as an inhumane creature that should be feared rather than allowing her true self to be seen.
- Agnes being caught in her own “webbing” illustrates how she is confined within the weave of societal prejudices and labels, unable to express her truth and escape the roles that have been forced upon her. At the same time, society simultaneously blames her for bringing this fate upon herself.
- “I will not be there” – Society’s prejudices have entirely eclipsed her genuine identity, leaving her feeling as though she no longer exists in the eyes of others. This erasure stems from being silenced, positioning readers to recognise the destructive consequences of denying someone the ability to express their own truth.
- Imagery of Agnes “dripping blood” and “choking on dirt” evoke notions of death, implying that these derogatory labels are suffocating her true self, reinforcing the detrimental impact of being denied the freedom to express one’s truth and how it can lead to the ultimate obliteration of one’s identity.
Quote 2:
“No such thing as truth,” Agnes said, standing up. Tóti stood up also…“There is truth in God,” he said, earnestly, recognizing an opportunity to do his spiritual duty. … “Not in my case, Reverend Thorvardur,” she called to him. “I’ve told the truth and you can see for yourself how it has served me.”
Argument:
Kent critiques a society that intertwines religion with the justice system, exposing how this can manipulate the truth, leading to the dehumanisation of individuals and perpetuate injustice.
Analysis:
- The word “served”, evoking a sense of injustice and betrayal, underscores how both the church and state have failed to uphold Agnes’ humanity, wielding truth as a tool for condemnation and maintaining societal structures.
- Furthermore, by contrasting Agnes’ reality with Tóti’s belief that “there is truth in God,” Kent highlights Toti’s naivety and inability to see how religion has been manipulated by the justice system. Toti’s views religion as a means of salvation, unaware that this same religious framework has been weaponised to suppress Agnes’ truth and justify her death.
- Agnes’ rejection of the notion that God can validate her suffering challenges the role of the church in the pursuit of justice. It emphasises the dangers of incorporating spiritual truth, which is personal and rooted in faith, into legal frameworks, revealing how this intertwining distorts the truth, transforming it into a mechanism for punishment rather than a pathway to salvation and equity.
