The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver is full of social injustice. Throughout the novel, we follow the Price family through their missionary journey in the Congo in the 1960s. During this time, the Congo was at a great disadvantage as it was being suppressed by Belgian and American leaders. The Price family witnessed the Congo and its independence being threatened, America claiming superiority, and women being seen as unimportant. Kingsolver uses the members of the Price family to personify this injustice. Other countries thought that they had the right to intervene in Africa’s affairs and take advantage of them and the Price family saw the effects of this first hand.
Early on in the story we see that Kingsolver uses the Price sisters to portray different views on the social and political situations in the Congo. The antithesis of Leah Price and her older sister Rachel Price is striking. Rachel very much represents the “western” outlook whereas Leah gains a global and personal understanding of the injustice. Rachel seems to agree that the Congolese are less than her but Leah sees them as the people that they are. Rachel only ever cared about herself and her own wellbeing, similar to the mindset of the western world. Leah cared about the Congolese and supported their independence. Belgium finally gave the Congo independence but that didn’t stop them from taking the diamonds and rubber the Congo supported. This is seen early on in the novel through the innocent eyes of the youngest daughter, Ruth May Price. Ruth May saw diamonds in the back of plane and was forced to keep quiet by the creepy, criminal pilot. Kingsolver tells this part of the story through Ruth May’s eyes but the audience knows that the situation is more sinister.
The failure of Nathan Price’s mission is another symbol of injustice. Nathan went into the Congo with a superior attitude, only to find that the Congolese were happy without his religion. His mission failed, showing that maybe whites don’t really know what’s best for Africa. Nathan Price also represented the unfair attitude that men had about women. He constantly spoke to his wife condescendingly and treated her like her opinion meant nothing. Kingsolver uses irony to show the Prices unnecessary presence in the Congo. Ruth May’s death was quite unexpected. Nathan Price was there to spread the word of the Lord, so why was he being punished by daughter dying? This shows that the Congo didn’t need the Price family to interfere in their lives.
The Western world was extremely unfair to the Congo during this time period. The Price family witnessed and represented the unfairness. Rachel Price portrays the hatred and ignorance some Americans had, while Leah accepts the Congo for what it is and loves it. The failed mission was a sign that Congo needed independence, not interdependence on other nations. The Price family witnessed these political injustices, rather they understood the implications or not. They suffered as well as a result. The personal experience of this family was used to introduce the things that happened in the Congo that were kept quiet for a long time.
Your essay is well-written and full of information about The Poisonwood Bible. It is very detailed and expresses the points of views from all of the girls. You also used literary techniques to support your points, which provided excellent evidence, but I would give this essay a 3-4 because it almost seems like a summary and didn't really discuss the changes in traditions or attitudes in which the author wanted to modify.
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