The Poisonwood Bible- The Judges

The third book of The Poisonwood Bible, The Judges, is the longest book of the novel, and a lot happens; Leah fails to charm Anatole, Rachel gets thrown into a love triangle (against her will), Ruth May gets sick, and the village gets eaten by ants. We also learn why the novel is named The Poisonwood Bible from Adah's perspective. When Nathaniel is giving his sermon, he declares that "Tata Jesus is bangala!" which means "Jesus is dear." However, he mispronounces it, making it sound like he is saying the word for poisonwood trees. To the Congolese listening he is preaching about poisonwood, meaning he is preaching the poisonwood bible.

Nathaniel

In my favorite chapter so far, we see (from Rachel's perspective) Brother Fowles, the minister who came before the Prices, have a conversation with Nathaniel. As Brother Fowles questions parts of the Reverend's outlook, Nathaniel attempts to disprove these questions with bible verses. However, Brother Fowles's knowledge of the bible is impeccable, and he is able to kindly retort Nathaniel's claims while simultaneously working him up. In a rare moment where someone is more knowledgeable of the bible than Nathaniel, we are able to watch as his flawed logic reveals itself. From Adah's perspective later on we are also able to see that he has been mispronouncing Kikongo words which result in far different meanings than intended, as he no longer trusts his translators. Between these two moments and his reaction to the ants (preaching instead of helping others or even his own family), it is clear that Nathaniel has started to go crazy. 

Orleanna

As in every previous book, the first chapter starts from the perspective of Orleanna. Yet in this chapter, she details her childhood and her relationship with Nathaniel, and how things became the way they are. She remembers her problems and herself being slowly pushed to the side as Nathaniel took over, and she watched as she became a mere afterthought to his grand vision. She includes the key detail that their marriage was suggested by her aunt and accepted by Nathaniel, and yet she had never even thought it through. After being yelled at by Nathaniel at the end of the previous book, her eyes became hollow and she rarely interacted with her family for over a month. However, eventually she comes back to her senses and stops caring what Nathaniel thinks. She loses her happy, occasionally sarcastic self and focuses all her energy on keeping the family alive (especially the sick Ruth May) and trying to escape the Congo. 

Rachel

I predicted that Rachel would start becoming emotionless or muted after a certain point, which was true for the first half of the book. Towards the second half of The Judges, Tata Ndu (the chief of Kilanga) attempts to purchase her. Apparently six wives isn't enough for Tata Ndu, so he wants to buy another to add to his collection and to keep his other wives entertained. Rachel, upon hearing this, does everything she can to reduce her appeal, eventually deciding (at the strong suggestion of her mother) to feign an engagement with Eeben Axelroot, the man who has essentially exploited their family for money and resources. She ends up going on a walk with him and when he leans in to kiss her, she only pulls away after a few seconds. Her choice to allow him to kiss her reflects her desperation for male contact, especially considering the several times she refers to him as "creepy." She also steps up as the family cook (despite her lack of knowledge on the subject), and fails miserably until her mother teachers her how to cook properly. When she is evacuating her house along with her family, she chooses to take her handheld mirror, which eventually breaks as she unsuccessfully tries to climb aboard one of the many boats that are fleeing the village by river, leaving her behind. 

Leah

Leah spends the majority of the chapter thinking about Anatole. She talks with him a great deal throughout the chapter, often discussing differences in their culture and thought. Anatole also prompts her to question her beliefs, and especially the teachings of her father. A major turning point in her thinking is when she is finally able to admit to herself that her father was wrong about something, which brings into question everything else he's taught her. She begins to think more for herself, which she sadly chooses to ignore due to her respect for her father and her desire to please Anatole. At the end of the chapter, she makes it onto a boat with Anatole, whom she desperately projects her worries and thoughts upon. Anatole is not interested in having a conversation (reasonably so after his entire village was abandoned), and Leah makes the opportune decision to tell him she loves him, and he replies "don't ever say that again." Leah will likely continue a cycle of questioning her father then drifting back to him for his approval, which probably won't turn out too well for her.

Adah

Adah continues her odd trend of repeating words back and forth, and she grows closer to Nelson, a boy who helps the Price family out with chores for the cost of a portion of their eggs. She talks with him about religion, about difference in tradition, and about various other topics that she randomly thinks of. She has a very reduced role in this book, but at least her conversations are interesting. In one of the most important moments of The Judges, the ending scene where the ants are destroying the village, she is left behind, a fact she is very aware of. She slowly makes her way towards the water where Anatole puts her on a boat with her mother, but she continues to think about how her family abandoned her. 

Ruth May is sick for the majority of the chapter, and we gain a little insight into her character from her perspectives, but her point of view still primarily functions as a way to gain insight to other characters. Though Anatole and Eeben Axelroot are important side characters, we learn about them almost entirely through Leah's and Rachel's respective perspectives.