Poisonwood Bible Guilt

In the book The Poisonwood Bible, many characters aim for redemption. In Orleanna's story, she is dreading the death of her daughter Ruth May. In Rachel’s narrative, she puts on a poker face and acts like she does not care about Ruth May’s death and finally, in Leah’s narrative, she blames other people and calls them out as a way of coping with her guilt. These three characters experience deep regret and guilt in their stories, but embrace it differently in a compelling way. All of these characters seem to think that they had contributed to the death and live with regret and wish they could change what happened. Orleanna has the deepest regret and guilt for the death of Ruth May. It is a constant thought inside her and she battles to forgive herself because she believes it is her fault.

We know this because the first chapter is a narrative from Orleanna and in this read, when she says “you” she means her dead daughter. She still constantly has the idea of Ruth May in her mind and she “Stirs in bed and the memories rise out of me like a buzz of flies from a carcass”. I crave to be rid of them.” (p8) In book seven, there is a heartfelt message from Ruth May to Orleanna “Mother you can still hold on but forgive, forgive and give for as long as we both live. I forgive you, mother” “You are afraid you might forget, but you never will. You will forgive and remember” (p543). Even though Orleanna does not know that this spirit or Ruth May is, there is some sort of redemption for Orleanna. In Rachel’s Narrative, she speaks on the death of Ruth May and tries to convince herself that it does not bother her. She first brings up the idea that the family fell apart due to Ruth May’s death and talks about what the family is probably doing right now. She calls the circumstances in the Congo “bad luck” and then starts talking about Ruth