The Poisonwood Bible

1. The Poisonwood Bible • By Barbara Kingsolver

2. Author Background • Born in 1955 in Annapolis, Maryland but grew up in rural Kentucky • Lived in the Congo for 2 years and kept detailed diaries of what she saw • Said that she never considered writing because all the authors she knew were “old dead men.” • Went to DePauw University in Indiana to study biology (after giving up on classical piano) • Became very interested in social activism

3. She believed her calling was to change the world through fiction • She worked in the field of scientific journalism while writing novels at night • The Bean Trees was her first novel • All of her novels have social, ecological, or political messages centered around family stories

4. Background on Novel • Set in the Congo in Africa mainly during the late 1950’s and 60’s. • Traces the story of a missionary family (parents and 4 daughters) when they move to the Congo

5. Background on the Congo • The Congo is located in the heart of Africa and had no borders until Europeans took over in 1881.

6. Belgium as Colonialists The Belgians ran the Congo very brutally Diamonds and rubber were the main export in the Congo If Congolese miners didn’t work “hard enough” or produce enough diamonds, the Belgian leaders cut off their hands.

7. The leaders didn’t allow the Congolese to become educated for fear that they would one day retake their nation. • At the urging of the United Nations in 1960, Belgium withdrew from the Congo and the Congo gained independence. • Chaos ensued as law and order collapsed. • No one had any idea how to run a country…there were less than two dozen people with degrees at the time in the country.

8. Patrice Lumumba: elected prime minister by the people and the UN protected him with its troops. Charismatic, beloved by people. • Clashed with army (didn’t raise their pay) and President Joseph Kasa-Vubu (elected by Parliament) • He asked for aid from the U.S. and was denied. When he considered aid from the Soviet Union, he was seen as a threat (aligned with a communist nation) • Within 10 weeks of election, Lumumba was removed from office and was murdered by Joseph Mobutu, a former army sergeant and Lumumba aide, who took over. • It is well documented that the CIA and Belgian authorities were complicit in Lumumba’s murder.

9. Mobutu renamed the country Zaire • He won the support of western leaders who merely saw him as anti-communist. US gave millions in aid. • For 30 years, he robbed his country, taking government revenue for himself. • Mobutu was overthrown by rebel forces in 1997 and a rebellion in 1998 launched the country into renewed chaos. • The Democratic Republic of the Congo today is a country where poverty is rampant and corruption is the norm

10. Post-Colonial Lit Crit Theory • Concerned with works produced by colonial powers (formerly or currently) OR by those that were/are colonized. • Analyzes issues such as power, religion, culture, and economics, particularly when viewing the Western colonizers’ control of the colonized. • Believes those colonized are marginalized. “History is written by the victors,” so texts are biased or have omissions. “Empire” is not seen in positive light.

11. Some Post-Colonial Lit Crit Questions • How does the text, explicitly or allegorically, represent various aspects of colonial oppression? • What does the text reveal about post-colonial identity? (“double-consciousness”) • What group is treated as “the other”? How are they treated? • What does the text reveal about the politics and/or psychology of anti-colonialist resistance? • What does the text reveal about cultural differences that shape identity (race, religion, class, gender, customs)?

12. Theme Topics • The cultural arrogance of the West (including the United States) • Guilt and redemption • The picture of true Christianity/faith • Social justice issues (poverty, war, injustice done by those in power)

13. Characters • Nathan Price —preacher, father in the family, arrogant, determined • OrleannaPrice —mother • Rachel —15, girly, hates the Congo • Leah —14, admires her father, strong mentally and physically (enduring) • Adah —14, twin of Leah, has a limp, doesn’t speak but understands others, has strange talents (reads backwards, poetic) • Ruth May —6, gives the child’s perspective

14. Central questions… • How does the Price family (and others) function on a smaller, fictitious level to symbolize universal themes that occur on a broader level throughout history? (What can each character “stand in” for?) • How are Biblical allusions used to add meaning? (Look for irony!) • How are the themes timeless and universal (transcending gender, culture, race, time and religion)? • How does Kingsolver’s style establish and build character in the novel?