Between The Acts

Pointz Hall is a symbol that represents the transitory period that England is in as modernization continues and World War II is about to begin. It is also a motif that supports The Inevitability of Change. Bart talks to Mrs. Haines about using the cesspool to bring indoor plumbing to the village, and Pointz Hall plays an important role in this as the pond some are thinking of using as a cesspool is near Pointz Hall. Pointz Hall as a symbol of change also appears in its changing catalog of books. While its library is still full of classic novels and plays, Isa notes that the bookshelves are being filled with an increasing number of “shilling shockers,” reflecting changing tastes in literature. Pointz Hall also supports the theme of The Inevitability of Change by showing the deterioration of Isa and Giles’s marriage.

The snake and the toad that Giles encounters on his way to the barn remind him of an inverted birth. They symbolize a nightmarish image of femaleness and femininity that disgusts and disturbs Giles, highlighting the theme of Gender Roles and Expectations. The narrator describes the scene: “The snake was unable to swallow; the toad was unable to die.