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Rae Long
Professor M. Kolakoski
English 206A, Section 04
10 December 2012
The Global and Familial Span of Discrimination
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver explores many global issues that arise as
the result of a clash between two different cultures. The most prevalent of these issues is the
discrimination that is expressed by different characters in the novel. Discrimination is a global
issue that affects many different racial, religious and cultural groups--like the Congolese in this
novel—around the world. The attitudes expressed by members outside of these groups, in this
case the Price family, are the catalyst to many other internal and external conflicts among
characters. In the novel, the Price family experiences total immersion in the Congolese village of
Kilanga and with this drastic change in lifestyle comes hateful opinions towards the natives from
some of the family members. Because of this, the feeling is reciprocated towards the Prices by
some of the villagers as well. The main cause of these tensions originates from Nathan Price’s
ignorance towards the religious aspects of the Congolese lifestyle and how he refuses to deviate
from preaching what he believes is right for the citizens of Kilanga. It is not only Nathan’s
religious intolerance towards the Congolese that is a source of discrimination in the novel, but it
is also Rachel Price’s distaste for the behavior and living conditions of the Congolese which
stays with her later in her life. On the reverse side, Orleanna Price feels a sense of discrimination
herself as a result of the combination of verbal and physical abuse from her husband and the
actions of the villagers, especially the women, who make her feel as though she does not and
never will belong in the Congo. The different facets of the discrimination in The Poisonwood
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Bible explore the broader global significance of intolerance as well as reveal significant and
specific parts to the main characters’ identities.
Nathan Price’s mission to “save the souls” of the villagers of Kilanga and the negative
effects of his unwillingness to deviate from this goal is very clear from the start of the family’s
time in the Congo. Because the Congolese don’t fully understand Nathan’s intentions, they are
very welcoming to the Price family when they arrive in Kilanga. However, Nathan’s first sermon
to the village clearly sets the dynamic that will remain between the family and the villagers. As
Nathan becomes more worked up in his speech, he points out a woman whose breasts are
exposed and makes sure all of the attention is focused on her. He goes on to say:
“‘Nakedness…and 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) The hateful and
disgusted tone of his words is enough for the Kilangans’s cheerful attitude to change completely
in the span of minutes. Nathan successfully establishes himself as a fearsome beacon of “truth”
and, in turn, alienates himself from the village. Later in the novel as Nathan continues his efforts
to sway the Congolese, Anatole informs him that Chief Ndu is concerned about the increase in
numbers that attend church because he fears that it will taint the morality of the villagers. In
response to this, Nathan exclaims, “‘Brother Anatole, I fail to see how the church can mean
anything but joy, for the few here who choose Christi-an-ity over ignorance and darkness!’”
(Kingsolver, 128) Nathan’s close-minded approach to his work as a missionary poorly reflects
the family as a whole as well the goal of all missionaries.
The intolerance behind Nathan Price’s method to his work is one that has been instilled in
the attitudes of Christian missionaries of multiple denominations for many years. In Gundani’s
article on the missionaries of the Portuguese era, he describes them as such: “they shared the
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common belief that their religion was absolutely true (and therefore all others were radically
false). They regarded heathens as 'unwitting precursors or unregenerative enemies or miserable
souls in need of the light.’” (300) In terms of the beliefs and mindset of an exclusivist Christian,
this attitude makes sense. However, as we see in The Poisonwood Bible with Nathan Price, this
view is discriminatory and insensitive towards a culture that does not understand the origins of a
missionary’s beliefs. Nathan’s unwillingness to change his methods and accommodate the
Congolese shows just how spiteful he is. His discrimination makes the experience for the rest of
the Price family much more difficult than it could have been.
Although her contempt for the Congo is based on different reasons than her father’s,
Rachel Price’s distaste for her family’s new way of living in Africa shows the span of
discrimination through the different characters. Rachel is quite vain and thinks little about
anything else other than her physical appearance, so when her family arrives in the Congo, she
does not hold back in showing how she feels about the change. Her very first impression says
enough by itself: “We are supposed to be calling the shots here, but it doesn’t look to me like
we’re in charge of a thing, not even our own selves.” (Kingsolver, 22) Despite knowing nothing
about this new country she’s about to enter, Rachel automatically feels a sense of superiority
over the inhabitants. Since she is thrust into an environment that is not familiar to her, she
immediately makes a point to separate herself from the people in it. Another reason for Rachel’s
disdain for the Congolese is her loss of control in her day-to-day life. Back in Georgia, she has
her identity as a beauty queen and once she arrives in Africa, she must leave this behind and
subject herself to whatever the Congo has in store for her. During the ant infestation in Kilanga,
Rachel goes back to the house to salvage one important item. Her reasoning as to which one to
take is as follows, “Not my clothes, there wasn’t time, and not the Bible—it didn’t seem worth
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saving at that moment, so help me God. It had to be my mirror.” (Kingsolver, 301) Rachel feels
so unconnected to this new home that she holds onto the one object that represents her identity
from her old life. While it is natural for a girl of Rachel’s age to express her frustrations towards
such a drastic change in lifestyle, she does so in a way that makes the Congo seem like a godless
wasteland where she feels trapped and therefore dehumanizes the people who inhabit it as well.
In his essay “An Image of Africa,” Chinua Achebe discusses the preconceived notions
that people in the Western world, like Rachel, have of Africa. He extensively analyzes Joseph
Conrad’s novel, Heart of Darkness, and makes the point that Conrad’s racism is simply
overlooked in most teachings of the novel because the mental transformation of the main
character, Mr. Kurtz, is more important. Africa simply acts as nothing more than a setting for the
story. Achebe explains that Africa is all too often thought as simply a backdrop to a bigger and
more important picture and that the danger behind this is “the dehumanization of Africa and
Africans which the age-long attitude has fostered and continued to foster in the world.” (7) This
idea relates to all of the members in the Price family, but The Poisonwood Bible demonstrates
that it is possible to move away from these images if one chooses. Unfortunately, Rachel does
not and the views of Africa she had prior to living there only manifested into a more personal
hatred towards the villagers.
Although there is a substantial amount of discrimination towards the villagers from
Nathan and Rachel, Orleanna Price is also on the receiving end of discrimination from the many
of the Congolese. As a result of the tension that builds between Nathan Price—and thus the
entire family--and the village of Kilanga, Orleanna feels as those she is living her life as an
outsider. A key moment that defines Orleanna’s alienation from the Congolese lifestyle is when
Leah stumbles over a pile of oranges in the marketplace belonging to a native woman. Orleanna
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is stunned by the reactions of the villagers: “The woman squatting beside the oranges leaped up
hissing, slicing her hands like scissor blades at the two of us, scorching me with eyes so hot the
angry chocolate irises seemed to be melting into the white.” (Kingsolver, 89) This string of
events triggers Orleanna’s realization of how of how insignificant she feels after living in the
Congo. Her main frustration deals with her sense of belonging in her new home: “Until that
moment I’d thought I could have it both ways: to be one of them, and also my husband’s wife.
What conceit!” (Kingsolver, 89) Not only does Orleanna feel helpless in her role as a minister’s
wife, but she also cannot find any sort of connection to a country where she feels obligated to
make a home for her family.
Orleanna does face tremendous struggles throughout the novel as she tries to liberate
herself from her husband as well as protect her children. Even though it seems the Congolese
turn their backs on her, countries like the Congo face bigger challenges than most people in
America and other Western countries can imagine. In her article on missionaries in the Congo at
the time of its independence, Melani McAlister discusses the hard truth regarding the living
conditions of missionary families: “It was true that missionaries made enormous sacrifices
compared with their fellow believers at home, in terms of money and comfort and intense bouts
of loneliness. But this mattered little to local Congolese who had problems of their own and a
new determination to act.” (34) This connected with the issues surrounding Orleanna because
although she does become a victim in many ways, the troubles and concerns of the Congolese
are simply different from hers and therefore it is very hard for the inhabitants to relate to
Orleanna or any of the Price women. The lack of understanding between the two cultures is
further proof of the complexities of discrimination.
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After reading The Poisonwood Bible it is clear that the global issue of discrimination is
the result of a lack of knowledge from one culture to another. If one has an established
perception of another culture, race or religion, it is very difficult to deviate from this belief.
Exposure and immersion can have a major impact on these fixed ideas, but in the case of Rachel
and Nathan Price, discrimination can be a deep seeded aspect of one’s identity that may never be
eradicated. Connections to other cultures may simply not be possible for some people, but the
attempt to gain experience and knowledge are key factors in facing any source of discrimination.
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Works Cited
Achebe, Chinua. "An Image of Africa." Research in African Literatures. 9.1 (1978): 1-15. Web.
9 Dec. 2012.
Gundani, Paul. "Views and Attitudes of Missionaries Toward African Religion in Southern
Africa During the Portuguese Era." Religion & Theology. 11.3/4 (2004): 298-312. Web. 8 Dec.
2012.
Kingsolver, Barbara. The Poisonwood Bible. 1st ed. New York: HarperCollins Publishers Inc.,
1998. Print.
McAlister, Melani. "Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner: American Missionaries, Racism, and
Decolonization in the Congo." OAH Magazine of History. 26.4 (2012): 33-37. Web. 9 Dec. 2012.