43 pages • 1 hour read
Tracy BarrettAnna Of Byzantium
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 1999A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Purple
In the Byzantine Empire, the color purple was reserved for clothing and items that belonged to the ruling imperial couple. “Purple” thus came to be shorthand for any and all things imperial, and more specifically, for the sacred right of the imperial family to rule. For example, Anna’s ceremonial last name, “Porphyrogenita” translates literally to “born into purple.” This backstory is emphasized in Anna’s dramatic proclamation, “I am Anna Comnena, and I was born in the purple chamber, where the heirs to the throne of the most powerful empire in the world first see the light” (4). Purple is therefore an integral part of Anna’s imperial identity—a symbol that helps her reinforce her own sense of superiority above all others.
Later, the political importance of this symbolism is highlighted when Dalassene insists that Anna wear purple to a reunion with the emperor. Realizing that Alexios is displeased with Anna wearing the color, the dowager blames an unnamed enslaved person who supposedly wove the garment: “She is not of our race, my son, and does not know the significance we place on imperial purple. I have already had the woman flogged for her mistake” (79). Here, it becomes clear that even for members of the royal family, a misstep in wearing the color can result in violent punishment, and so Dalassene deflects the blame and claims to enact punishment on a low-ranking laborer. Such extreme punishments indicate that usage of the color is a key tool for delineating and reinforcing political hierarchies in Anna’s world.
The Parrot
In Chapter 10, Anna is gifted an exotic parrot by her father, which he seized from enemy Turks while leading the First Crusade. Later the same evening, she discovers that John has ordered that the be parrot killed for biting him, which constitutes treason. Though its appearance in the book is brief, the parrot carries heavy symbolic meaning, representing both the outer reaches of the empire that Anna has never experienced and her father’s favor. Coming from a far-off land that Anna can only imagine, she is fascinated by the way it speaks Turkish. Furthermore, as a gift from her father, it is an affirmation of his love for her.
In killing the parrot, John foreshadows that he will both win their father’s favor over Anna and restrict her access to the wider world. When Anna has a nightmare about losing her right to the throne, the parrot appears as a bad omen: “Suddenly a huge bird, green and gold, but with the face of a human, appeared in front of us, blocking our way. It spoke words that I could not comprehend, but which I could tell had an evil import” (98-99). Subconsciously, Anna sees in the parrot what is to come, and indeed, she is eventually exiled to a convent after losing her father’s trust. Furthermore, the gruesome violence that befalls the parrot mirrors the threat of execution that looms over both Irene and Anna when John becomes emperor. In this way, the parrot is an allegorical stand-in for Anna’s political fate.
The Throne
Like the color purple, the throne is a symbol of Byzantine imperial power, a power that Anna has a birthright to as the emperor’s oldest child. Unlike purple, however, the throne is a more exclusive signifier of power, since only one person can sit in it at a time (whereas both emperor and empress are permitted to wear purple garments). When she sits on the throne as a child, Anna feels a sense of power sweeping over her body:
I saw myself, looking like my father but for the beard, short and dark, yes, but who saw that when you sat on the imperial throne? I saw the heavy crown glitter on my head, the purple slippers on my feet being kissed by kings and princes. I saw my word starting wars and ending them. I saw great churches rise where I so commanded, and ships depart from port on my order (30).
This surge of self-importance leads Anna down a path toward hubris and ultimately leads to her undoing when she fails to protect herself from Dalassene’s schemes. The throne’s position, which literally elevates her stature (that of a small child), reinforces the self-superiority that she already feels on the inside. Its political symbolism, therefore, is made manifest in its construction and physical qualities, illustrating how Anna’s material surroundings lend themselves to an imperialistic mindset.
