The Poisonwood Bible Essay, Research Paper

Adah Price: the Embodiment of Congo

She says she spent 30 old ages waiting for the wisdom and adulthood to make bold compose this book. Never has such forbearance been more rewarded ( Forster 3 ) . Yes, Barbara Kingsolver has every right to thirty old ages of contemplation before trying to make such a complex political novel as The Poisonwood Bible, and yes, ne’er has such forbearance been more rewarded, for the novel has opened the eyes of citizens and politicians likewise. It is a fresh preponderantly about the Congo about what first the Belgians, so the Americans have done to it, and what better manner to portray such positions than through the incarnation of the Congo through a kid ( 1 ) . The kid s name is Adah Price, and she represents the Congo before and after the influence of America. Why did Kingsolver take a kid to stand for this state? Simple, she chose a kid because a kid can be molded while in young person, but as adulthood comes, so does the realisation of the effects of such casting and the determination of whether such casting is good or evil. Adah Price is the perfect incarnation of a developing state vulnerable to foreign influence in Barbara Kingsolver s The Poisonwood Bible.

In the beginning of the novel, Adah describes herself as a disabled kid: My right side retarding forces. I was born with half my encephalon dried up like a prune ( Kingsolver 33 ) . The status she has is called unilateral paralysis, and, as a consequence, she is presumed to be deaf or feeble-minded ( 33 ) . However, Adah s status has allowed her to hold a different

McMillan 2

perceptual experience on life. She establishes an single character unmatched by anyone in the novel. The lone lucifer can be seen in the Congo, for the Congo s perceptual experience on life besides differs from environing states due to its status. Rachel, her younger sister, explains that Used to be, Adah was the lone one of us in our household with something incorrect with her. But here cipher stares at Adah except merely a small because she s white. Cipher cares that she s bad on one whole side because they ve all got their ain disability kids or a mamma with no pess, or their oculus put out ( 53 ) . Disability is common in the Congo. This similarity between Adah and the Congo allows Adah to associate with the Congolese and demo that she is, in fact, a representation of the Congo. Adah s individuality is obvious in the things she does and believe. For illustration, when she finishes reading a book from forepart to endorse, she read [ s ] it back to forepart ( 57 ) . This individuality, aside from its obvious actual relevancy, is parallel to the Congo s alone single character and history prior to the invasion of America and the Belgians. Before the invasion of Western civilisation in the signifier of these two states, the Congo has its ain imposts and traditions, and that gave them the chance to be different and contribute to the universe in their ain alone mode. However, as the Belgians and, predominately America, conveying their influence, the same alteration as seen in Adah can be seen in the Congo.

The alteration in Adah begins as she moves back to America to get down a new life free from the evil domination and subjugation of Nathan, her male parent. Once back, Adah enters a medical school, where she is re-diagnosed as person whose disablement is a wont learned in babyhood instead than the consequence of neurological harm ( Aull 2 ) . With the loss

McMillan 3

of her status, she besides loses her individuality. This loss is obvious to her because when Adah loses her limb-impaired angle every bit good as her ability to comprehend the universe in a palindromic model, she is non thrilled but ambivalent. ( 2 ) . She no longer has Ada, the enigma of approaching and traveling ( Kingsolver 492 ) . Adah realizes her loss because as she lost her split-body retarding force, she besides lost her ability to read in the old manner ( 492 ) . Adah has lost a important portion of herself, and she knows it. In the same manner, the Congo has the same realisation of the possible effects of American imperialism, which causes the battle for independency in the novel. Merely Adah can see the effects of her loss of individuality, and merely the Congo can see the possible effects of American imperialism: No 1 else misses Ada, and no 1 else misses the ancient Congo except those straight involved and affected ( 492 ) . Adah resents the haughtiness of the able-bodied and wishes she could merely be herself, and have that be all right ( 493 ) . She says, Don t the hapless suffering sodomites all want to be like me? Not needfully, no ( 493 ) . If everyone were the same, so there would be no single intent in life. Everyone would be a whole, but Adah admirations, How can I expl

ain that my two odd halves used to add up to more than one whole? ( 493 ) . Individuality is a greater hoarded wealth than uniformity. Just think of the effects of American imperialism. All treasured imposts and traditions of the Congo are minimized and in some cases destroyed. The history of the Congo would be erased. Both Adah and the Congo recognize that such individuality is non deserving giving up.

McMillan 4

Adah s clip in medical school is limited as she begins to recognize the lip service involved in her pursuing such a calling. Doctors, such as Albert Schweitzer, travel to the Congo to salvage the kids and others that are sick ( 528 ) . How can Adah, who represents the Congo, travel to mend such a topographic point of what made it particular and different when she resents her ain healing? For this ground, she [ foliages ] the healing profession ( 528 ) . After recognizing her lip service and abandoning it, Adah moves her focal point to the survey of African parasites, for as parasites feed on Adah, so is America be aftering to feed on the Congo s resources. Through Adah s research, she begins to understand the importance of the partnership between the parasite and the host. She sees that if you could for a minute rise up out of your ain darling tegument and appraise emmet, human, and virus as every bit resourceful existences, you might look up to the agreement they have all struck in Africa ( 529 ) . In the same manner, the West has built a way to its ain door and thrown it broad for the pestilence ( 530 ) . Adah realizes that America s engagement with the Congo is a God-sent partnership, and it is the semblance of this relationship we call civilisation, that is the paving under our pess, our intent in life ( 532 ) . At this point in the novel, Adah s position of American interaction with the Congo evolves from one of incredulity to one of understanding. As the misprinted Bibles Adah collects are a symbol of the multiple mistakes in the texts of America s faith because of the laterality Christianity holds as a faith in the United States, so is America [ coming ] in [ the Congo ] stamped with such mistakes we can ne’er cognize which 1s made a permanent feeling ( 533 ) . However, the errors are portion of the narrative, a portion of God s ultimate program for this universe, and no individual has the right to contend such a program ( 533 ) . Both Adah and the Congo must larn to accept

McMillan 5

the fact that although it may convey about the loss of individuality, the relationship between different species and states is portion of God s program and, hence, will non be altered.

Barbara Kingsolver, a literary mastermind, creatively portrays the Congo metaphorically through the life of Adah Price in The Poisonwood Bible. Adah begins with individuality unmatched by any other character in the novel. Through her disabled status, she is able to perceive life in particular ways. After traveling back to America and being capable to American positions and influence, Adah loses her status and, as a consequence, her individuality. Initially, she realizes and regrets the loss, roasting the able-bodied as chesty and stressing the greater hoarded wealth she found in her two odd halves. However, subsequently analysing the relationship between host and parasite and between the West and the Congo, she realizes that such relationships are a portion of God s program and must be accepted, non fought. On the other side of the metaphor, the Congo begins as a really alone state, keeping its ain antediluvian imposts and traditions. As America efforts to convey its imperialism to the Congo, the Congo sees the possible consequences of leting such influence and, as a consequence, battles for its independency. However, the Congo, like Adah, must understand the necessity of such interaction with America, for it is a portion of the narrative, a portion of God s program, and learn non to contend it. Adah is the incarnation of the Congo in The Poisonwood Bible, and the political relations affecting the Congo are seen through her. Basically, this is the political issue confronted in the text of The Poisonwood Bible: the value of saving of national individuality as opposed to the necessity of advancement as a consequence of imperialism.

McMillan 6

Plants Cited

Aull, Felice. Kingsolver, Barbara The Poisonwood Bible. 17 May 2000: n.pag. On-line. Internet. 8 Oct. 2000. Available World wide web: hypertext transfer protocol: //endeaver.med.nyu.edu/lit-med/lit-med-db/webdocs/webdescrips/kingsolver1686-des-.ht.

Forester, Margaret. Way Out of the Congo: The Poisonwood Bible by: Barbara Kingsolver. n.pag. On-line. Internet. 8 Oct. 2000. Available World wide web: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.litreview.com/reviews/1999/02/FORSTERONKINGSOLVER.html.

Kingsolver, Barbara. The Poisonwood Bible. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. , 1998.