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The Poisonwood Bible Analysis

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The Impact of Childhood

The Poisonwood Bible ,by Barbara Kingswood, is a remarkable tale that expresses the several political transitions in the Congo through the eyes of a Baptist family. Nathan Price , a cruel and ironically a fiercely religious man, is the head of this family followed by his once effervescent wife, Orleanna, and his four daughters; Rachel the eldest and vainest, Leah, a tomboy who strives for her father's attention, Adah, Leah's disabled and genius twin, and Ruth May the youngest of the family. In the midst of several familial struggles, the conflict between Adah and Nathan Price is one that greatly contributes to the interpretation of this piece.

At their birth, Adah and Leah appear to be a healthy set of twins. However, as time passes it is discovered that the left side of Adah's body is paralyzed because of a lack of nutrients in the womb. Due to her condition, she spends her detached from the world and maintains a cynical perspective at a young age which can be seen in her words concerning her twin," But I am a lame gallimaufry and she remains perfect" ( Kingsolver 34). Over the course of her early life, she maintains her position as an observer in the life of others and absorbs much information. Clearly, Adah's disability greatly affects her outlook on life. …show more content…
They each find ways to pass the time and Adah does so by gathering more information about the world. She does so through any book she can possibly obtain o r through her observations of the world. Her father, instead of supporting her, cruelly makes fun of her books and efforts in obtaining knowledge. In fact, readers find out much later that he stooped so low as to regularly punish her,"...for being slow"(488). Obviously, we can see that Nathan Price's bullying and tormenting of Adah likely pushed her further into the sanctuary of her

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