The Poisonwood Bible essays
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While the basic perception of the use of gardens is to sustain human needs, gardens symbolize life and how it can be created by simply placing a tiny seed into the earth and properly caring for it. In The Poisonwood Bible, Nathan’s garden illustrates his ignorance of Congolese customs while the plants in the garden that refuse to bear fruit reflect the deterioration of African culture because of Western imperialism. When going to the Congo, each family member took with...
1 Page
563 Words
Arrogance has proved to cause more harm than good in history, specifically between the United States and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The United States and the Congo have a very chaotic past, with the US constantly trying to interfere with the Congolese’ decisions. The USA, in this case, is unable to admit to their faults within their system. Kingsolver uses the Poisonwood Bible to show the consequences of intervention into another culture. Their religious and cultural interference is...
2 Pages
1072 Words
“The Poisonwood Bible,” by Barbara Kingsolver, uses the character of Nathan Price to address the effects of western supremacy and one’s personal superiority, specifically fueled by religion. The Price family travels to the Congo on a mission trip, is only a year before the country secedes from Belgium, leaving them in great need of assistance. Nathan was determined to give them this help by will or by force, all while dragging his family along with him. The way each child...
3 Pages
1593 Words
“The Poisonwood Bible,” by Barbara Kingsolver, is a scathing critique of the destructive nature of pride and ambition, its narrative spanning over thirty years to reveal the tragic shortcomings of evangelist Nathan Price and the Western colonial attitudes he represents. In order to personalize the epic scope of the novel, Kingsolver writes in the first person, alternately inhabiting the minds of the four Price sisters and their mother, Orleanna. Although the hotheaded preacher, Nathan Price, is usually caught at the...
2 Pages
916 Words
Difficulty pertaining to the acceptance of cultural differences is a prevalent motif throughout “Poisonwood Bible,” and is an idea that Kingsolver routinely reinforces through the implementation of allusion. The Price family, though having left Georgia to complete a religious mission in the Congo, attempted to maintain the cultural practices of a modern society, which eventually proved to be unsuccessful. While attempting to plant a garden upon his arrival in Kalinga, Nathan proceeded in using Western planting techniques, despite having been...
1 Page
675 Words
