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.
Chapters 6-12Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 6 Summary
There is only one aspect of her grandmother that Anna does not aspire to: Dalassene is illiterate. Anna knows that illiteracy places Dalassene in a vulnerable position since she relies on others to read sensitive documents for her, and therefore, Anna begins to focus more intently on Simon’s literature and grammar lessons. By contrast, John refuses to learn to read and throws violent tantrums when he is required to attend Simon’s class. Irene Doukaina, the empress, is distraught over John’s inability to read, and Simon thinks that this inability may be permanent (a learning disability is implied but not specifically articulated). John stops going to lessons altogether.
During one of her lessons for Anna, Dalassene begins to speak maliciously about Irene. She looks down upon the Doukas family, particularly Doukas women, and reveals that she discouraged Alexios from naming Irene as empress when he first usurped the Doukas family from the throne. Irene overhears this conversation and storms in, reprimanding Dalassene for glorifying war and for lying to Anna. Irene is resolute in her belief that an empress should rule with morality always in mind, while Dalassene believes that an empress should rule without mercy. Dalassene challenges Anna to pick between the two women, and Anna chooses Dalassene, believing her military knowledge to be most valuable. Irene is visibly hurt.
Chapter 7 Summary
Word arrives that the emperor will soon return victorious. Anna knows that this means she will soon have to grow up, marry Constantine, and run her own household, but for the time being, she is content to play with her cousins and younger sister, Maria. One day, Anna decides to cause trouble by stealing the chalice used for the eucharist in church and using it to administer sacraments to her dolls. Maria is very scared of the consequences this mischief might bring, but Anna promises that she will take all the blame for herself. Irene walks in on them, and Anna hides the chalice behind her back just in time. Irene presents Anna with Sophia, a Turkish girl who was taken captive and enslaved by the Byzantine army and is now her maid. When Irene asks Anna for a kiss, Sophia grabs the chalice from her and hides it, saving Anna from having her theft exposed.
Chapter 8 Summary
Anna stays behind in the church after Sophia and Maria leave, intending to return the chalice to its rightful place on the altar. However, she hears her mother and father entering the building and has no choice but to hide behind a tapestry and eavesdrop on them to avoid being caught. Irene tries to warn Alexious that Dalassene has the intention of turning Anna against them and begs him to demote her from her extreme position of power. Since Dalassene is his mother, however, Alexios finds these accusations laughable and returns with the accusation that Irene simply resents Dalassene for trying to interfere in her coronation. Anna flees the building as soon as they leave but notices movement behind another tapestry as she does.
Chapter 9 Summary
After fleeing the chapel, Anna arrives to her room, and Sophia is in a hurry to dress her and prepare her hair for the imminent reception of the emperor. While her hair is braided, Anna reflects on everything she has learned about the rivalry between her mother and grandmother. Dalassene arrives in the room and insists that Anna wear purple and a veil, even though the color is reserved for the ruling couple and only Byzantine women of marriage age are required to cover their faces.
Chapter 10 Summary
At the reception, Alexios and Irene are unnerved to see Anna in inappropriate garments, but Dalassene is quick to blame the enslaved weavers of the dress for its purple color. Anna and Maria are even more unnerved when John arrives and claims to be making good progress in his lessons. Anna wonders, “Did he not care that we all knew he was lying, or was he counting on our unwillingness to displease our father by exposing the lie to keep us silent?” (82). Alexios bestows all of the family members with presents from his time away: Irene receives a bone relic of her patron saint; Maria receives a chessboard; John receives a pony; and Anna receives a multicolored parrot that once belonged to a Turkish leader. Anna is also reunited with Constantine, and Alexios proudly reports of his bravery and skill on the battlefield. As she heads back to her room, Anna is horrified to find the dead body of her parrot outside the kitchen. John had ordered the bird to be killed after it bit him when Anna was with Constantine.
Chapter 11 Summary
A betrothal feast is held in honor of Constantine and Anna. Still reeling from the death of her parrot, Anna indulges in too much wine at the feast and finds herself drunk. She steps outside for some fresh air and is followed by Constantine. The two share romantic words, but John eavesdrops on them before running back into the banquet hall to report exactly what he heard to the entire court. Alexios encourages this behavior, and Anna is humiliated as the entire banquet laughs at her. Irene is concerned for Anna and tries to soothe her, but Dalassene scolds her for behaving in an undignified way. This triggers yet another confrontation between the two older women, culminating in Irene fainting.
Chapter 12 Summary
The night of the banquet, Anna has a nightmare in which her right to the throne is taken away. She is summoned to a meeting with her father and grandmother the next morning. Alexios asks her to report on her studies with Dalassene, and feeling testy, Anna decides to reveal that her grandmother has claimed credit for Alexios’s reconquest of the empire. This leads Dalassene to begin arguing with Anna, but Alexios is amused by their equally stubborn natures and jokes, saying, “Mother, that you will have a struggle to maintain your influence if I fall in battle and it is Anna, not I, who sits in this throne!” (105). Dalassene agrees, indicating that she realizes Anna is a threat to her authority.
Chapters 6-12 Analysis
The betrothal banquet of Anna and Constantine is an important scene, both in terms of the progression of the narrative and in terms of recentering Anna’s humanity after many chapters of her apathetic behavior. Prior to the banquet, Anna seems largely invulnerable, wielding her authority over others with pride. During the banquet, however, she suffers a humiliation that indicates the initial impression is inaccurate, with Anna thinking, “I tried my best to join in the mirth, but with the tears starting from my eyes, it was impossible to feign a laugh without allowing a sob to escape from my throat” (93). The normal power dynamics have been reversed, with Anna being mocked by everybody else. This scene further emphasizes her Youthful Impressionability in Politics, as she thought herself invulnerable to the betrayals and intricacies of the court and now finds herself demeaned by them.
Anna’s vulnerability to the mockery of powerful men like her father hinges on two key social factors: her gender and her age. The banquet is a male-dominated space, and John’s imitation of Anna takes aim specifically at her feminine voice: “The little imp turned to face the company, his piercing voice, mocking mine and Constantine’s” (93). When Constantine begins to laugh along with the joke and Anna does not, it is made clear that the setting is socially safe for men but not for women, as Irene and Dalassene do not laugh either. Furthermore, Dalassene’s spiteful critique of Anna afterward is also gendered: “‘She has behaved like a Ducas,’ Dalassene accuses, ‘like a silly, weak girl, and she knows she has degraded herself by so doing’” (95). This is an example of internalized misogyny, or sexism adopted by women that is then used to insult or exert dominance over other women. Unlike the banquet hall, however, the bed chamber is a space dominated by women, and Irene can defend Anna there. Nonetheless, Dalassene’s contempt for feminine qualities is a sentiment echoed beyond the confines of Anna’s private quarters and one the princess must therefore continue to contend with.
This duality between Dalassene and Irene is another example of the dichotomy they represent, as their dislike of each other stems from both the Lust for Power in a Religious Society and Competing Definitions of Family. Dalassene’s encouragement of sexist comments and her disregard for the hurt her family members have experienced stem from a desire to maintain power and status at all costs. She won’t compromise her political relationship with her son, Alexios, by defending Anna’s behavior or condemning John; in fact, this is a crucial moment in Dalassene choosing to support John despite him not being the rightful heir to the throne. She understands how the political system works and recognizes that she will need to sacrifice her relationship with her granddaughter and daughter-in-law to advance within the system. Irene, who is more pious and prioritizes her relationship with Anna, is more openly critical of John and supportive of Anna, who she acknowledges is a victim in this scenario. Her reliance on religious values—which are the professed values of the empire, even if they’re not considered by most of the royal family—means she is guided by morals rather than a desire for personal gain, but this mindset proves to be a vulnerability, as her position in the political hierarchy only declines.
Overall, this is the first instance of concrete familial abuse that readers witness Anna experiencing, though Dalassene also abuses her power over Anna and usually does so under the guise of mentorship. This stark shift in the story’s power dynamics confirms that Anna’s tendency toward hubris is an illusion, and that in reality, she is still a young girl subject to the will of powerful elders like her father and grandfather. Irene sees this and tells her, “Anna, my darling, you must learn to relax your dignity a little,” encouraging Anna to recognize her own humanity over her desire for power and status (94). Though this advice does not fully acknowledge the hurtful nature of Alexios and John’s actions, it is offered from the perspective of a woman who has been in Anna’s position and who knows how to survive in the misogynistic court environment. Anna’s ability to recognize the value of such advice will be a key challenge as the novel moves forward.
