The Poisonwood Bible Character Analysis

In Barbara Kingsolver’s The Poisonwood Bible, a southern family moves to Africa trying to better their living conditions and introducing the natives to God. While this family thinks they are helping the community, Nathan Price, the father and leader of the family, is doing the opposite of that. Nathan will be the sole reason for the deterioration of his family. Though not explicitly stated, he is the ultimate, hypocritical villain in this story. It is Nathan’s stubborn, uncaring, delusion that ultimately tears a family apart. By the beginning of the book, readers already are aware that there is a negative connotation that follows the narrator’s husband. Orleanna describes her husband as a conquerer and goes as far as to say, “I rode in with the horsemen and beheld the apocalypse (Kingsolver 9).” The audience has not even met the villain himself but are able to conclude that this man had an excruciatingly negative change in this novel. However, what makes this detail more interesting is that Nathan Price represents the United States government. Nathan is demonstrating what happens when people try to get involved in a community they do not understand and refuse to adapt to that community.

Instead, he shows them the negative, oppressive side of the religion. In this work, Nathan has a dramatic foil by the name of Brother Fowles; Fowels represents the positive side of Christianity while Nathan is the walking paradox of everything Fowels represents. This adds depth to the story because, as Nathan preaches, “Nakedness…and the darkness of the soul! For we shall destroy this place where the loud clamor of the sinners is waxen great before the face of the Lord (Kingsolver 27),” Fowels proves that a country can be helped once their culture is understood and incorporated into ones