At the outset of O’Farrell’s novel, Agnes is the confident one who dwells in certainties, while her husband is adrift. However, as the narrative progresses she becomes more doubtful, and he grows in confidence and status. The death of their son accelerates this trend, as Agnes largely retreats into obscurity and her husband channels his feelings into his master-work, Hamlet.

The daughter of a mystical forest woman, Agnes inherited her mother’s deep insight and healing powers. When the Latin tutor meets her, she lives in harmony with a kestrel, a wild bird of prey, and can read a person’s essence by feeling the muscle between their thumb and forefinger. While her father and stepmother worry that her “odd gift” is unchristian and “she grows up feeling wrong,” Agnes’s strong instincts lead her to a man who will allow her to be herself without trying to crush her individuality, as was common in marriages of the time (49). Although people sometimes gossip about her witch-like powers, Agnes also finds a place in the community as a healer who rivals the physician. She is thus able to reconcile her pagan gifts with the demands of a Christian, patriarchal society.