Poisonwood Bible

[mhamley]

So having begun our examination of biblical allusions, what is your overall impression of the biblical allusions in the novel The Poisonwood Bible? Why does Kingsolver include so many allusions?

[kratsayra]

man I need to read that book again . . . :blush:

[Neo93]

:) I think that Kingsolver includes biblical allusions in her book for many different reasons. First of all, she uses refrences to the many translations and versions of the bible to support her message about how the intended meaning of a message can be warped or changed in translation. Sometimes mistranslation is an accident, but frequently, these translations are made for a specific political agenda. Kingsolver criticizes relying too heavily on a source that has been interpreted through the character of Brother Fowles.

Barbara Kingsolver also represents this theme with the subtle difficulties of the language spoken in Kilanga. For instance, Adah describes how simply placing emphasis on certain parts of the word can change the meaning entirely. The most obvious example of this is Nathan's insistance that Jesus is poisonwood. His mispronounciation changes his intended message from Jesus is great to Jesus is poisonwood.

By using the biblical allusions and the allusions to the language of the Kilanga natives, Kingsolver shows that miscommunication in its various forms can cause huge problems.

This shows that although language is a powerful tool of communication, it still has limits.:idea:

[hp 4ever!]

*****So having begun our examination of biblical allusions, what is your overall impression of the biblical allusions in the novel The Poisonwood Bible? Why does Kingsolver include so many allusions?

Well, I think the biblical allusions that Kingsolver makes are both interesting and wonderful. However, I must admit, the first time I read The Poisonwood Bible I completely overlooked them and read right past them. I find these allusions interesting because I’m really into series such as Artemis Fowl and Harry Potter. The usage of allusions to scripture is quite limited in such texts, and therefore it is a relatively new concept for me to analyze such allusions. The stories that I read mainly focus getting the story and the message affiliated with the story out to the world. Yet, Kingsolver seems to desire to do something much more. It's almost as if she wants people to analyze her "complex" book through these allusions in an attempt to deeply understand the characters and to deeply experience the changes that they go through.

As we read in How to Read Literature Like a Professor, the biblical allusions are meant to provide an in-depth analysis of a story, character, etc. For instance, towards the beginning of the novel, Leah states that her "father [was] as tall as Goliath and pure of heart as David" (Kingsolver 49). I had done some research to refresh my memory for I had read I “kid” version of the Bible years ago. I found out that David was from Bethlehem, and he was the eighth and youngest son of Jesse. Now this is definitely not a coincidence that Nathan is from Bethlehem, Georgia. Nathan has red hair just like David, and he was strong and healthy just like David was. David was a Shepherd while he was young. This relates to Nathan because Leah believes he is a “shepherd” as well specifically while he’s in the Congo. Leah mentions that Nathan “planned to make a demonstration garden, from which [they’d]…supply food and seeds to the villagers” (35-36). A Shepherd provides food one’s flock and Nathan is doing the in his attempts to feed the Africans (the wild savages that need to be tamed). The fact that Nathan feeds the “flock” is also seen with the bombardment and distribution of fish. Also, Leah feels that “the grace of [their] good intentions made [her] fell wise, blessed, and safe from the snakes” (36). This shows that Leah feels that her father is guardian for when he is around, they (including the Africans) are safe from the snakes. In comparison, David the Shepherd was too a guardian of his flock from the untamed animals.

In The Poisonwood Bible, the untamed animals in Nathan’s eyes represent those who adhere to their traditional religious beliefs such as Tata Kuvudundu. Also, I find it interesting that “Dundu is a kind of antelope” (173). This could be symbolic of his untamed status in Nathan’s eyes for antelopes are generally untamed animals. In addition, Tata Ndu could symbolize Goliath for he is Nathan’s (David’s) arch nemesis in the battle to gain people to their side of religion. The battlefield in which Nathan “kills” Tata Ndu is with Adah and lion incident: “[Tata Ndu’s] eldest son has seen the marks of the little girl who drags her foot, and the lion tracks,…and a smear of fresh blood trailing into the bush. And that is how they knew the little crooked white child,…had been eaten….Tata Ndu…raised [his head] proudly. Then I understood that he had won, and my father had lost” (140). However, Tata Ndu was proven wrong for Adah was still alive. This led to Nathan’s victory in getting people on his side of religious beliefs because “he’d preached the parable of Daniel and the lions’ den just a few days before, so naturally now they [the Congolese] are knocking each other over to get to church on Sunday” (150-151).

However, towards the end of the novel, Leah’s perspective changes and she conversely believes that her father was Goliath, the terrible man. In fact, she states that her “father came only once, with blue flames curling from his eyebrows and tongue” (395). The reference of the blue flames makes me think of Hell and Nathan as the Devil who’s vice is spread with his misleading words. It also makes me think of the Left Behind Series because Nathan is so similar to Nicolae Carpathia. Nicolae is the Antichrist in the series. He is supposedly handsome and he swoons many women, as does Nathan upon the first sight. Also, he makes false promises, as does Nathan when he tries to get people to believe that they will be protected when they “step into the light.” However, this is not true and it is demonstrated with the death of Ruth May. All in all, Nathan is personally for me the Antichrist in this novel.

[zukazamme]

The Things We Carried starts on page 13 (11 if you want to get technical). As far as I can tell there isn't any biblical connection, is there?:confused: What does happen is the family arrives in the Congo with all the things they thought they would need to bring. Hence the title The Things We Carried;). Well needless to say they broght things that they might have needed in Georgia, but this is the Congo...:brickwall Nathan had tried to tell them although his reason was that God:angel: would provide for them, not that it was just unreasonable and they could probably find what they need there. Revelation is book 66 of the bible Revelation is defined as an opening of the eyes. Or a revealing of a certain something to someone. The realizing of something... etc. So in this "book" of the book it is expected that the family will become more aware of what happens. That's basically what happens in the bible version. I don't have a bible in my house:eek: so I can't directly quote anything, but basically the light shines apon a lost people kinda thing. Which is the Price family except the light isn't religion instead it is just normal average everyday life of the people in the village which Nathan is trying to convert, but to no avail and he's frustrated:rage: that Tata Ndu informed him how all the people in the church were the rejects anyway.

[hp 4ever!]

When in class on Friday, I accidentally read from Rachel's part...I meant to read off of page 243. I had the page marked and opened to in my book as well! Gosh, silly me!! The quote is: "I was shocked and frightened to see her flout Father's authority, but truthfully, I could feel something similar moving around in my own heart. For the [first] time in my life I doubted his judgment. He'd made us stay here, when everybody from Nelson to the King of Belgium was saying white missionaries ought to go home. For us to be here now, each day, was Father's decision and his alone. Yet he wasn't providing for us, but only lashing out at us more and more. He wasn't able to [protect] Mother and Ruth May from getting sick. [If] it's all up to him to decide our fate, shouldn't [protection] be part of the bargain?" said Leah (Kingsolver 243). In my first post, I related Nathan to David, the Shepherd. One can see from this passage that Nathan (the Shepherd) has not been able to provide for his "flock" (The Price women), nor has Nathan been able to protect his" flock." Theoretically, when a sheep is unsatisfied with his/her condition, then that sheep is not able to change his circumstances for he/she is alone and powerless against the majority. However, if many sheep are unsatisfied, then they will have the ability to rebel towards the lone shepherd. This foreshadows that the unsatisfied "flock" (Rachel, Orleanna, and Adah) will gain one new member and strength: Leah. It is significant that Leah is the last one to join this group because she was her father's strongest follower, and Nathan's most dedicated follower (Leah) left her father alone. Now the "flock" has all the necessary attributes to revolt.

Also, Leah's question is quite significant: "[if] it's all up to [Nathan] to decide our fate, shouldn't [protection] be part of the bargain?" (243). Towards, the beginning, Leah would have never said "if", for she believed everything her father did was correct. Also, Leah too (like the villagers) vehemently followed Nathan's ways while the guarantee of protection lasted. Yet, when that guarantee of protection faltered, Leah like the villagers stepped out of the "light" for she did not know (this passage in the section; The Things We Didn't Know) that her father was incapable of being a dutiful shepherd. Also, after this crucial conclusion, Leah's perspective completely takes a different path. In fact, she begins to wonder "what else might he be wrong about" (244).

[Eilonwy18]

Genesis and The Things We Carried
Kingsolver has a strong message of irony in regard to religion that she uses from the beginning. She even uses it in the title, The Poisonwood Bible. She is comparing religion to the poisonwood tree. It can appear harmless or even good, but it is actually poison. Nathan is her example of this. :flare: When the Price family has to start over again in Kilanga it is symbolic of the creation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. It is ironic because Nathan has come to tame what God has already created. He is playing God. It is also ironic because in Genesis, the first sin was when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge, discovered that they were naked, and were ashamed. :blush: However, Nathan is shocked to see that the villagers are naked, and tells them to be ashamed. Isn't that a sin?? The things that they carried is also ironic because of the way it relates to Genesis. When they put on clothes, Adam and Eve were burdened with sin. Likewise, Nathan accuses them of being too materialistic when Orleanna and his daughters carry over as much as they can. It is ironic because they are the ones that are burdened, but Nathan is actually the sinner of the bunch. This is also an example of his hypocrasy because, as Rachel mentions, he brings over Bibles and a hatchet head, but still criticizes them.
Revelation
The quote at the beginning of book two is "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up... If any man have an ear, let him hear" (Revelation 13;1,9). This is ironic because Orleanna realizes that the beast is actually Nathan, the man who believes that he is holier than the rest of them. She sees this when he throws Methuselah out of his cage to try and survive in the wild. She has had a revelation! There are two ways to view religion. Nathan's way= wrathful and vengeful god
Orleanna's way= appreciate nature and god, respect both
She says, "Yet we sang in church 'Tata Nzolo'! Which means Father in Heaven or Father of Fish Bait depending on just how you sing it, and that pretty well summed up my quandary. I could never work out whether we were to view religion as a life-insurance policy or a life sentence."
Orleanna is a very depressing character, because she must do whatever she can to get by, even if that means living with a monster and abandoning what she believes in. She has to stay to do what she can for her children. I feel sorry for her, but at the same time I am angry with her because I wanted her to get herself out of that situation. If she had acted sooner, even before they went to the Congo, Ruth May would not have died. But then there wouldn't have been a book!
Anyway, Orleanna's character is also ironic because she can appreciate nature (Okapi and Pygmies) and God's creation more than Nathan can, but he calls her the sinner. He fights nature, she loves it.
Is this kind of response okay, Mrs. Hamley? Do you want more textual examples?

[hp 4ever!]

Adding to my last post....

Also, the concept that Nathan in fact is Goliath instead of Jacob (in the sense that he harms those that surround him rather than protecting them) is also displayed by Orleanna's perspective. Orleanna states that "a wife may revile such a man [Nathan Price] with every silent curse she knows. But she can't throw stones. A stone would fly straight through him and strike the child made in his image, clipping out an eye or a tongue or an outstretched hand. It's no use. There are no weapons for this fight" (Kingsolver 192).


Once again, there is a reference to the story of David and Goliath (David used a stone to kill Goliath, the giant). However, no matter how hard Orleanna tries, her stones will not penetrate Nathan. This to me symbolizes that no matter how hard Orleanna explains the risks that Nathan is inflicting on the Price family, Nathan's goal and narrow-minded view cannot be killed. The most intriguing part of this passage is that part that discusses how the stone will fly through Nathan and harm the child within Nathan's mind. The stone will clip out an eye (the younger Nathan could symbolize the "child" aspect.....and Nathan is blind in one eye...hmm...coincidence...I highly doubt it), or a tongue (Adah does not speak....she essentially has no tongue unless she's in a rare situation where her tongue is absolutely necessary), or an outstretched hand (Ruth May broke her arm).


To expand on Nathan's blindness, the bullet fragment that harmed him is like part of stone that grazed his face. The stone did not result in Nathan's death, however, Nathan does become permanently damaged and burdened with his feelings of guilt. This happened first chronologically in the story and Orleanna's explanation. Secondly, as described above, Adah speaks to a limited extent. This could be due to the fact that from birth she was different from the Prices. It is as if Nathan cut her tongue off by never providing her any attention (he never sought to make her feel a part of the family even though he was a man and had the authority to do so). When Adah moves back to the U.S., she completely transforms: “Adah really doesn’t limp a bit anymore, like Mother said. Plus she talks…She’s exactly as tall as Leah now, too, which is simply unexplanatory,” said Rachel (481). Nathan is not there!!! This just shows that amidst Nathan's presence, the stone harms Adah, resulting in her silence. Also, this occurs second in both the passage and chronologically in terms of history. Ruth May breaks her arm while she's in the Congo. It's Nathan's fault that she is there, that just once again shows the damage he causes to those around. Lastly, this event occurs third both in the passage and chronologically in history.

One may wonder why this occurs....Well, I think it's because a form of Nathan dominating everyone for he (a male) has the power to do this!

[Neo93]

I was noticing as we were reading that Nathan seems to use contradictory bible stories to describe himself and his family. For instance, he refers to himself as Job at several points, making reference to the trials that Job faces to test his powerful faith. However, Nathan also preaches that the lord rewards those that do good. Nathan seems to use biblical references that contradict each other and this may be an attempt by Kingsolver to emphasize Nathan's misunderstanding of his own faith.

Random realization Time!!!!!!

I was flipping through my old copy of The Crucible (yes, that Arthur Miller play from last year), and I found a similarity between the two. Although Nathan Price calls himself a Southern Baptist, he really takes a more puritan perspective on Christianity. I think that this might explain a possible motive for Nathan's attempt to dominate the forest of the Congo. For the newly created Puritan society in the present day United States, the forest symbolized the land controlled by the devil, and the Puritans believed that the best way to beat the devil back was to convert the forest into pure farmland, which symbolized the land of God. Nathan might have been doing the same thing in the Congo when he tried to dominate the garden that he built. He believed that building hills would have been a compromise with the devil, something Nathan was definitely not willing to do.

PS: I started a thread on Arthur Miller's The Crucible. Search for it and try to respond. Thanks!!!!


Random realization complete

[BigPapi34]

Notice starting on page 348 that Leah has a chapter then Rachel has one, then Leah, and then another Rachel. This emphasizes Adah's reflection on the events that have happened: the hunt, and then Ruth May's death. This reflection allows her to come to her conclusions about the circle of life and realize that Ruth May's death was inevitable.

By the way; notice the connection between my avatar and what I wear about 3 times a week

[Pipidar1991]

The Song of the Three Children

First of all on page 507(the title page of book six), the quote says: "All that you have brought upon us and all that you have done to us, You have done in justice... Deliver us in your wonderful way". This is from the Song of the Three Children, 7-19 in the Apocrypha. This passage shows the main concept throughout the book. The Price family women (some may argue except for Rachel) were each able to learn life changing things in the Congo. This was great for them but they had to learn it the hard way. They had to live in a place of famine and disease. They also lost Ruth May and everything they had believed in. They had to live in disaster and lose all the things they did in order to arrive at a greater good and understanding which changed their lives dramatically. This is like the quote because the it explains how God had put people through these things to eventually deliver them to his greater good.

Song of the Three Children

Page 511: "Mostly I kissed it for still being there, since I still expect every plank of this place to be carried off by my own help during my absence. But so far, so good" (Kingsolver 511).

This passage just shows how little Rachel had progressed since she had moved to Africa. She had spent such a long time in Kilanga, and even though she really didn't pay much attention to what was going on and stuck her nose up at everything, you think she would have at least noticed that not every native in Africa is a savage. During their time in Kilanga, the Price family had trouble with some of the natives, but what Rachel had ignored is all the good things the people had done for eachother and had done for her own family. Some had brought food for the family and had even thrown them a feast at their arrival, etc. I believe it would take a lot of virtue for these people to help the Price family after how Nathan had acted. They also were not truly savages they cared for their children, gathered and cooked food for their families, helped their neighbors out. All the women in the Price family understood that, all except for Rachel. She still regards the natives as savages. This just shows her ignorance and a strong similarity to her father.

The Song of the Three Children

p. 515: "You can't just sashay into the jungle aiming to change it all over to the Christian style, without expecting the jungle to change you right back" (Kingsolver 515).

I believe this his is the smartest thing Rachel has said throughout the entire book. What she states is entirely true, the jungle did change her family dramatically. Although her as an individual didn't change much.

Song of the Three Children

p. 520-521: "What did I see?' I always ask, thoug I already know. They saw Africans...The priests were dismayed to learn the Kongo already had their own Bible. They'd known it by heart for hundreds of years" (Kingsolver 520-521). ------------ I skipped a big chunk of the quote b/c it is too much to type so if you want to see it you'll have to look in the book

This passage is very interesting, b/c it shows the people of Africa as completely opposite of how most of the Europeans and Americans had seen them throughout the book.

[mzmarymack]

Kingsolver addresses a lot of politics in PB. The arrest of Patrice Lumumba, the diamond mines, and the US's involvement in these issues.
Can someone explain them from a historical perspective? Is Kingsolver true in narrating these events, or are some of the parts possibly fictional?

[mzmarymack]

So having begun our examination of biblical allusions, what is your overall impression of the biblical allusions in the novel The Poisonwood Bible? Why does Kingsolver include so many allusions?

When I first read PB, I didn't really notice the allusions. After discussing the book, I don't berate myself for not seeing them, even though there are SOO MANY ALLUSIONS! It's amazing how BK (not Baby Kochamma... haha) can masterfully cram so many references in this novel. But that's beside the point. It's up to the reader to read/interpret as deep as he/she wants to, and Kingsolver appreciates that. You can't fully recognize the author's skill or her message if you ignore the allusions, but you still understand the story.

The Biblical allusions portray the fact that something with a pure intent can be twisted and melded so that it is no longer recognizable. People have brought up Nathan's butchery of the pronunciation of the native language. His intent is good, but the message he actually conveys makes people run away. If I had PB with me, I would quote a passage where Adah wittily captures the Africans' thoughts to Nathan's preachings. oh well.
So what I'm saying is this:
it's up to the individual to interpret however he wishes. While the allusions do characterize, they also show how something can be read in different ways, and different perspectives change everything. This is shown with the most clarity through Adah. She tells us of one Sunday school class. The one where she stopped believing in God. Her teacher said that those who didn't worship God went to Hell, and Adah asked her if God would be so cruel as to damn those people whose only mistake was to be born into a different religion. The teacher, instead of considering Adah's point of view, sentences her to kneel on rice or something.
Different people's perspectives lead them to view life differently and this can affect the rest of a person's life.

[mummu:)]

It seems this post is really delayed but I just read it over this past summer. We haven been discussing it in class for one or two weeks already.
When I first read through the novel, I did not see the allusions either. I think they are so well put in and describe the scence quite well.
Something that I noticed with Kingsolver's allusions and biblical symbols are how she uses them more to contrast than compare. In other words Kingsolver is uses these biblical allusions and symbols ironically. For example, Ruth May turns into a Mamba Snake after she dies. Snakes represent temptation, evil, and satan in the bible. Something also ironic, using Foster's piece, "How to Read Literature Like a Professor" (I don't know how to underline :/), there is a chapter which informs about marks/physical differences that show a character's personality. Typically, the mark will usually represent a bad/evil side of the character. Back to "The Poisonwood Bible", the people of Africa/Congo have unique physical deformities but their character is much more clean, kind, and open than when we first are introduced to the Prices. Which then directly contrats with Adah and her physical difference-her deformity represents evil which in turn, if you will, begins to compare and contrast culture and society of the West to other countries/cultures.
Back to solely biblical allusions again, I think Kingsolver uses the whole bible tone and references as a way of representing what people consider normal in their culture and how they are apt to see only from one perspective of what they are used to rather than being more open in new situations. Overall, the biblical references are very interesting, to say the least, and fit in the novel perfectly even though they are not completely similar are representing the same thing-duality is brought out on many symbols just like "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

[African_Love]

I would have probably enjoyed it if the author hadn't have pissed me off as much as she did.

[nickname0811]

First of all, Rachel is the wife of Abraham, and her names means beauty, which she always considers it as a very important factor. Leah is a wife of Jacob. In the bible, she gave birth to many children, which later on, she had 4childrens in the poisonwood bible. Also, the page 20, Ruth may is addressing the story of Ham. Noah and his three children. Shem, Ham, Japheth. Ham was the youngest and worst child of all. Ruth May compared herself to Ham and decided not to be like Ham. Ruth May is saying that "You're supposed to hate Devil and love everybody else"(p24). She also mentioned that she hated Devil so much. By comparing Ruth May and Ham, she basically purified herself from the Devil and could see her childish view points

[rachmaninoff]

Kingsolver’s use of biblical allusions helps to make the characters and events in the story come to life, and they help define the characters’ personalities. For example, Methuselah, in the bible, was held captive in his human form for 969 years living during a wicked time, and he died before the flood that cleansed the earth of all evil. Similarly, Methuselah, the pet parrot in The Poisonwood Bible, lived most of his life in captivity and was released into the wild before the Congolese gained their independence, which cleansed the Congo of oppressive European rule.

[fruit loops!]

In Book Two: The Revelation, we as readers witness as the Price daughters gain more knowledge of the differences between Africa and America. Everyone in the village of Kilanga is fighting for survival. Each person is trying to fend for themselves and their families as best as they can with the limited resources they are given, yet they are happy and do not even seem to realize that they are fighting a daily battle. On the other side, those living in America represented by the Price daughters take what they have for granted, and until they moved from America to a place like Kilanga, they never realize and fully appreciate the many resource they had while living in the U.S. One of the many examples in which the girls notice a significant difference between themselves and the African children is when Leah, playing with her friend Pascal, realizes how different their lives are from each others. Leah narrates, “It struck me what a wide world of difference there was between our sort of games- “Mother May I?,” “Hide and Seek”- and his: “Find Food,” “Recognize Poisonwood,” “Build a House.” And here he was a boy no older than eight or nine. He had a younger sister who carried the family’s baby everywhere she went and hacked weeds with her mother in the manioc field. I could see that the whole idea and business of Childhood was nothing guaranteed” (114). Leah comes to realize that all the children of Africa are similar to Pascal. They all carry a weight on their shoulders, whether it be having to save ahead from a young age to be able to provide for a family in the future, or taking on the role of mother or father from a young age. The society in Africa expects each person to carry a weight in order to move forward, unlike in America where the parents are responsible for carrying this burden.

[sal7861]

The Poisonwood Bible does not only incorporate biblical illusions but various other literary devices. Foreshadowing is a key device. In Book Two: The Revelation the Independence of Congo is mentioned, the Congolese people are excited to know that they might receive independence. But this can prove dangerous to the white people in the Congo which is making Nathan Price worry. He wants to get his mission accomplished as soon as possible. Patrice Lumumba is the one who is preaching independence in the Congo. In the end of Revelation Methuselah, the bird that represented hope and independence in the Congo, died. Ironically it was on the day of Independence for the Congo. This did foreshadow Congo's independence from Belgium. But the way Methuselah died, the civet cat who spied on the bird and became the bird's predator, foreshadows on how the United States takes advantage and captures the Congo later on. "The smiling bald man with the grandfather face has another face," a section from The Judges (third book) in which Leah makes the comment on Adah's discovery of President Eisenhower's plot to kill Lumumba. This is evidence showing that the US is after the Congo as well.

[asdf99]

Kingsolver designs Nathan Price’s character to portray everything that can be wrong with Christianity. Instead of drawing in the people around him to worship God, he instead pushes them away from the idea of worship. Brother Fowles on the other hand symbolizes the positive side of Christianity. He introduces a new form of worship to Orleanna and the Price girls; the worship of nature as a part of God. Orleanna slowly accepts this form of worship, as she begins to appreciate her long walks in the forest of the Congo. She later also shows his form of worship with her love of gardening in her later years. Leah also accepts this form of worship. At the beginning of their life in the Congo, Leah worshipped her father, and believed that he was always right. When she begins to see how ignorantly and blindly Nathan tries to push his religion onto the Congo people, she slowly drifts away from him. She instead begins to appreciate the land of the Congo, and even ends up living there with her husband Anatole.

[rachmaninoff]

"Sometimes at night I think about how he (Nathan) might be dead and I haven't heard yet. It's a hard thing to live with in the dark, and I lie awake cooking up plans to go hunt for him. But in daylight a wall of anger pushes me in a different direction, roaring that I must leave Father behind me" (Kingsolver 435). (Leah)

This quote is significant because it refers to the theme of duality of individuals, which is also evident in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. We can recall how Leah gets older and matures, her attitude towards her father changes. Young Leah strongly supports her father (Nathan's) beliefs and actions and believes that everything her father does is correct, but the older Leah gets, the more she sees her father as an evil, despicable man. However, Leah still realizes that no matter how hard she tries, her father will always be a part of her. This is evident in the above quote as the two sides of Leah, the old Leah who followed in Nathan's footsteps and the grown Leah who hates Nathan, internally struggle over what to do about her missing father. :argue:

[rachmaninoff]

The title of the fifth book of Poisonwood, Exodus, is a significant biblical allusion. In the Bible, Moses leads the Israelites away from slavery in Egypt to freedom and safety. In Poisonwood, Orleanna gets the courage after Ruth May's death to lead her children away from the Congo and their abusive father, which is Orleanna's immediate redemption. Orleanna also redeems herself by marching for civil rights in Atlanta and collecting money to help Leah and her family in Africa. :angel:

[rachmaninoff]

"His (Nathan's) medal is not, as we were always told, for heroic service. It is simply for having been wounded and having survived...The conditions of his discharge were...cowardice, guilt, and disgrace. The Reverend the sole survivor in a company of dead men who have marched along beside him all his life since then. No wonder he could not flee from the same jungle twice" (Kingsolver 413). (Adah)

In "The Judges", Orleanna tells the story of how Nathan was transformed from a serious, but loveable man into an abusive, religious fanatic by his horrific experience in the Bataan Death March in World War II. This allusion evokes at least some sympathy for Nathan and helps the reader understand his guilt.

Relating to Exodus, Nathan's tragic memories of war makes his unwillingness to leave the Congo make sense. Nathan feels guilty because he knows he should be dead with the rest of his company, and now, he feels obligated to dedicate the rest of his life to his deceased military men. Nathan sees his commitment to his missionary work the same as his commitment to his fallen comrades, therefore he refuses to leave because he thinks that his departure of the Congo would be seen as cowardice in God's eyes. However, since Nathan only thinks about his guilt and salvation, he puts his own family in danger just so he can feel better about himself. Because of his inability to see past himself and his salvation, Nathan is beyond redemption.

[rachmaninoff]

Guilt and redemption is a recurring theme throughout the novel, especially in Exodus. Leah and Adah's redemptions are opposites. While Leah already has a passion for the world, she always believed that good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people. In her redemption, Leah forces herself to see and live a life of injustice, especially when she sees herself as an African. Eventually, Leah loses all faith in a world with justice and instead, hopes for a world with balance.

Adah, on the other hand, already knows the injustices of life due to her disability. However, once she discovers her will to live during the raid of the driver ants, Adah redeems herself by opening herself to the world for the first time, although she is afraid and misses the old Adah who walked with a limp and read backwards.

The differences in the two twin sisters' redemptions relate to Adah and Leah being two opposite halves of one person.

[asdf99]

The Song of the Three Children shows Orleanna’s suffering and her obsession with forgiveness from Ruth May. Her suffering forms a new religion that she takes in, along with her worship of Nature. This book shows how each of the Price women deals with their guilt. Leah responds to her guilt by attempting to right the wrongs in the world-especially ones that she had experienced. Adah responds by turning to science, and devoting herself to understanding the world and how it works.
Adah’s view of the world becomes transformed in this section. She believes that God not only protects humans, but all life forms:
“God is everything, then. God is a virus. Believe that, when you get a cold. God is an ant. Believe that, too, for driver ants are possessed, collectively, of the size and influence of Biblical plague”
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“I must sometimes appear at public function where I am lauded as a savior of the public health. This startles me. I am nothing of the kind. Certainly I’m no mad exterminator bent on killing devil microbes; on the contrary, I admire them. That is the secret of my success.”
Therefore, Adah believes that everything happens for a reason- even plague, drought, disease. She specifically defines that the purpose of her study of viruses is not exterminate them, but on the contrary simply to study their function.

[Watermelon]

What are some of the important quotes in PB? I know there is so many, but what are some of them are are really IMPORTANT?????

[taztara158]

While there are countless important passages in the Poisonwood Bible, the passage I had chosen was on page 235. It's fairly long, but starts with "Since the day we arrived, Mother has nagged us to write letters home to our classmates at Bethlehem High, and not one of us has done it yet. We're still wondering, Where do you start? 'This morning I got up...' I'd begin, but no, 'This morning I pulled back the mosquito netting that's tucked in tight around our beds because mosquitos here give you malaria...' And you wouldn't even get as far as breakfast before running out of paper" (235).

Much of the passage I cut out because it simply described the hardships the Price family faced and thought about before they even got out of bed. Leah is the narrator of this passage, which is located in the book The Judges. Just before she says this, Anatole talks to her. Every time they have a conversation, Leah has deep thoughts on her own provoked by what Anatole has said, and in this case he mentions how children's deaths make them precious (231). He also talks a lot about the political events going on. From there, Leah considers how the rest of the world sees the Congo. She concludes that it's nearly impossible to tell anyone who does not see it for themselves.
As a reader, even with the imagery portrayed throughtout the novel and even this passage, it is hard to even imagine what life in the Congo is. This is exactly what Leah's goal is when she says this. Kingsolver is showing that even as we read from the girls' perspectives, its still not easy to imagine what they are going through.
This passage also represents Leah's maturity and growth. She is becoming more attatched to the Congo. It foreshadows Leah's later inability to relate to her home country. In the book Exodus, Leah is unable to stay in America because it is so different to what she has become used to. She feels white people are ignorant for not seeing what's happening in the Congo. The passage above could easily have been said near the end of the novel, because Leah's feelings do not change and only became more evident. It is possible any daughter could have said this passage, because they all have an inability to relate to their home country once they experience the Congo. This is the reason both Leah and Rachel find it hard to go home- they have become so used to the Congo and its people that they can't imagine a world without it. They also feel they can never express what they felt while in the Congo.
The overall theme of this passage is the ability to adapt. Leah makes it clear that once you are in a place for so long, you become so used to it and it is hard to relate to another place or explain the surroundings to an outsider.

[cl@rinetguy42]

An important quote in The Poisonwood Bible is found on page 327. Leah states, "You can't just point to the one most terrible thing and wonder why it happened. This has been a whole terrible time, from the beginning of the drought that left so many without food, and then the night of the ants, to now, the worst tragedy of all. Each band thing causes something worse. As Anatole says, if you look hard enough you can always see reasons, but you'll go crazy if you think it's all punishment for your sins. I see that plainly when I look at my parents. God doesn't need to punish us. He just grants us a long enough life to punish ourselves (327)." At this point of the novel, the Price family has endured many hardships, such as the invasion of ants and the drought that made finding food near to impossible. The worse thing that happened to the family has just happened in this part of the book and that is the death of Ruth May.


With all of these bad things happening to her family, Leah is challenged about what she believes in. All of her life her father has made it clear that bad things happen to bad people and good things happen to good people. This ideology contrasts with what is happening to her and her family in the Congo. Anatole tells her that bad things do not neccesarilly only happen to bad people. He tells her that bad things can happen to anyone. Leah is forced to decide between these two opposing ideas.

A huge theme of this novel is the confliction of beliefs. Leah has to choose between Anatole's beliefs and her father's beliefs. Just as Leah did, the reader has to make many choices about what he/she will believe in.

[asdf99]

In the last chapter of the Poisonwood Bible, Rachel mentions a few things about their life and survival in the African Congo.
She realizes what her fathers mistakes were, and explains how his actions somewhat ruined the Price womens lives.

On pages 515 and 516 Rachel says:
"That's the lesson, right there. If you take a bunch of practically grown, red-blooded daughters to Africa, don't you think at least some of them are going to marry or what have you, and end up staying? You cant just sashay into the jungle aiming to change it all over to the christian style, without expecting the jungle to change you right back."

"From teh very first moment I set foot in the Congo, I could see we were not in charge. We got swept up with those people that took us to the church for all their half-naked dancing and goat meat with the hair still on, and I said to myself: this little trip is goign to be the ruin of the Price family as we know it. And, boy, was it ever. Father's mistake, see was trying to convert the whole entire shebang over into just exactly his way of thinking."

These two passage sum up the main reasons that the Price family did not succeed in the Congo. It shows how ignorant Nathan was in understanding the Congolese culture, and shows that he shouldn't have tried to "convert the whole entire shebang over into just exactly his way of thinking". She also mentions how the Price family could not control their life in the harsh Congo. This is quite a revelation for Rachel to say, considering that she is the one who tried to cling onto her old life the most.

[asdf99]

Soon after their arrival in Kilanga, the price family learns that death is one of the constants of life in Africa. They constantly see many children in the village dying and suffering from disease and hunger. They see that to the people of Kilanga, death is not as big a deal as it is back in Georgia. It greatly surprises them that the hazards of nature in the Congo are extreme and it is common for children to be eaten by crocodiles, or bitten by poisonous snakes. The Congolese people see death as something eventually bound to happen, and as something that is unavoidable.
The idea of the Congolese view of death is handled most adeptly by Adah Price. She has a distinct appreciation of nature- both its beauty and its cruelty. She seems to understand it so well because she herself was somewhat a casualty of nature; always left behind because of her deformity. When Adah looks back upon a conversation she had with Nelson, she realizes that she now understands why twins were seen as a great evil in the Congo. Before she was horrified by the fact that twins were left to die, but now she better understands it. She says that although this ritual is mainly due to superstition, there is a practical purpose to it as well. The village simply cannot support the extra children.