Hill 1
Taylor Hill
Mrs. Dickinson
English 1302
20 April 2014
Annotated Bibliography
"A Review of The Poisonwood Bible." DISCovering Authors. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Student
Resources in Context. Web. 16 Apr. 2014.
In this source, the readers are told that Nathan Price’s determination to convert Africa to
Christianity is dangerous. The idea is doomed from the start by Nathan’s attitude towards
himself. He refuses to believe that his method is causing destruction to his family and is making
everyone around him miserable. The children are revealed through their thoughts, but we never
see what’s going on inside of Nathan’s head. In the end of the book the family is crushed all
because of Nathan’s self-righteousness. I can use this source to describe Nathan’s character.
Arnold, Karen L. "The Poisonwood Bible." Masterplots II: Christian Literature (2007): 1-3.
Literary Reference Center. Web. 17 Apr. 2014.
This article talks about how the story is told through the eyes of the mother and her daughters.
Nathan Price is high minded by his own religious customs and beliefs. He pays no attention to
the reality of his surroundings. Rachel is the daughter who believes that Africa should be rescued
by Western power. Adah is the silent twin and observes everything; she’s learning the actual
culture of her surroundings. Leah is very opened to the Congolese culture also. Nathan is brutal
towards Orleanna and the question of forgiveness rises in the book.
Fox, Stephen D. "Barbara Kingsolver and Keri Hulme: disability, family, and culture."
CRITIQUE: Studies in Contemporary Fiction 45.4 (2004): 405+. Literature Resource
Center. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.
Hill 2
In this article Fox describes how the book is introduced by Nathan dragging his wife and four
daughters on missionary work. Nathan is described as a “wild-eyed religious frantic”. The
characters are described and events are discussed. I can use this because it’s going to help
emerge a story line. I can use all the daughters’ thoughts that are said and write about how they
feel about each parent. Nathan eventually becomes so obsessed that he abandons his family and
everything goes downhill from there. In this article Fox also points out that every major character
in this book is disabled, emotionally or psychologically.
Mazzeno, Laurence W. "The Poisonwood Bible." Masterplots. 4th ed. Pasadena: Salem Press,
2011. Print.
In this book Laurence mentioned that the daughters of Nathan and Orleanna Price are present to
make the father life in Kilanga tolerable. They create his meals and keep his home and follow his
rules. Each of the four daughters has their own perspective of Africa and its customs. The
mother, Orleanna becomes complicit in her husband’s dealings with the family and the lifestyle
in the village. She doesn’t speak up to her husband and when she leaves him, it begins the start
of a new life. I can use this source to explain their relationship and how it failed throughout this
book.
"The Poisonwood Bible." Novels for Students. Ed. Ira Mark Milne. Vol. 24. Detroit: Gale, 2007.
199-220. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 16 Apr. 2014.
This source discusses a lot about characterization. I can use this source by discussing the view of
the four daughters on their parents. I can also give lots of information on the characterization of
the parents. This would be very helpful to my essay because I can use lots of description. Nathan
is considered to be a crazy person from his foolish ways about religion. Orleanna tries to always
please her husband but never stands up to him when needed, until it’s too late for her last born,
Ruth May.
York, R. A. "Kingsolver: The Poisonwood Bible." The Extension of Life: Fiction and History in
the American Novel. Madison, N.J.: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2003. 138-149.
Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Jeffrey W. Hunter. Vol. 346. Detroit: Gale,
2014. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
York describes in this article the story line of the book and what it could be compared to. I can
use this source in my writing because it helps develop the story line and I can use events that
happened in the book to prove my writing. The father is not used as a voice in the book and he is
very confused as to what is really going on around him. He doesn’t know what to do with
Hill 3
daughters “except to own them like a plot of land”. While the father struggles with reality, the
mother reminisces on one of her daughter’s death.