Poisonwood Bible~Barbara Kingsolver In 1959 an overzealous Baptist minister named Nathan Price drags his wife and four daughters deep into the heart of the Congo on a mission to save the unenlightened souls of Africa. The five women narrate the novel. From the outset, the attitudes of the five women cover a wide spectrum. The mother, Orleanna passively accepts the turn of events, as she passively accepts everything her husband tells her. Fifteen-year-old beauty queen Rachel resents her separation from normal teen life. Five year old adventurer Ruth May is both excited and frightened. Fourteen-year-old Leah, who alone shares her fathers ardent religious faith, is enthusiastic. Leahs twin Adah a cripple and mute by birth, but also a brilliant observer, merely views the move, as she does all of life, with a wry and cynical detachment. One thing that the women share, however, is the unwavering faith that they are carrying with them a culture far superior to the one already existing in the village of Kilanga, and that they will therefore instantly be masters of their new domain. The first sign that they have miscalculated the superiority of their way of life comes when Nathan attempts to plant a vegetable garden. His demonstration garden is intended to both provide food for his family, and to instruct the natives in simple agricultural principles that might save them from malnutrition. However, though his garden grows lush and huge, none of his plants ever bear fruit. It takes him several weeks to realize that his plants cannot bear fruit here, because there are no African pollinators suited to North American vegetables. The next, and much larger, blow comes when their live-in helper, Mama Tataba becomes so enraged at Nathans insistence on baptism for the villagers that she deserts them. As Mama Tataba explains in her final burst of anger, the villagers will never agree to being dunked in the river because a crocodile recently ate a young girl in that very river. Things get worse; much worse. The Poisonwood Bible is a rabid indictment of Western colonialism and post-colonialism, an expose of cultural arrogance and greed. Nathan Price serves as the personal embodiment of Western hubris, unquestioning in his missionary zeal to overturn the ancient traditions of the Congo and replace them with his own religious beliefs.One of my favorite books of hers, Marilyn
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 10:15:03 +0000
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