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.

Nathan Price is meant to be showing the community of Kilanga the beauty and grace of god.

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

teachings.
Finally at the climax of the story, Nathan’s neglect for his family’s well-being causes the death of his youngest, most innocent daughter. Ruth May dies after her father’s disregaurd for Nelson’s , a boy from the village living by their chicken coup, safety. The four Price girls set up a trap to see who was planting mamba snakes by the boy and because the girls had to take the situation into their own hands, Ruth May was killed by the thing she was most afraid of. However, we are left with just a miniscule amount of sympathy for Nathan as Leah explains, “Was that really what mattered to him right now—the condition of Ruth May’s soul (Kingsolver 368)?” This moment shows he cares for the girl but his fixation over his religion restricted him from being a better man.
Nathan was a very dynamic character with many secret meanings behind him. He represented the bad in the government and his religion. Though he was controlling, abusive, and stubborn, readers can sympathize with his blindness to the severity of the situation. This is what makes Nathan Price one of the most intricate villains in literature.