The Poisonwood Bible Character Analysis

In the novel “The Poisonwood Bible” written by Barbara Kingsolver the character that mainly catches the readers attention is Nathan Price. He is major character but he is not given a voice of his own, but seen through the eyes of his wife and daughters. Yet his role was the main reason why his family and him ended up in the Congo leading to conflicts in the novel. His role was leading his family, he was the one who gave the orders and had the final say in every decision. The determination he had to change the Congolese with his religious beliefs is going to destroy his family,relationship with the Congolese people,and ultimately himself. Nathan Price is a character that we would call complex, because even after his reason for his
These symbols either show a characteristic,opinion,or what his actions have created in this novel. Nathan uses religion as a weapon he thinks that only his beliefs are right and imposes them upon others which shows the destructive side of religion. Leah states in the novel the difference between her father and other Christians “He wears his faith like the bronze breastplate of God’s foot soldiers while our mother is more like a good cloth with a secondhand fit.”(Leah pg.68). She is saying that her father sees faith and religion as a battle, a source of struggle and strife that he has to achieve but also strive farther than other Christians. As for, the poisonwood bible it applies to all the characters in the novel but it is mainly targeting Nathan because he is the one which got the poisons effects. The poisonwood tree in Congolese language has a certain way to pronounce and also tone and everyone knew Nathan was pronouncing it wrong at the church meeting but he was to stubborn to learn the culture around him. Which lead him saying that the meaning of poisonwood tree as that it can cause intense pain and even death because of the way he pronounced and tone he said it in. But this mistaken phrase becomes a great description for Jesus in the hands men like Nathan. This mistaken phrase, a great description of Jesus meaning that it is a very