A Prayer For Owen Meany And Poisonwood Bible

People and institutions have various interpretations about this Lord Jesus. Christians believe him to be the Son of God, Muslims judge him to be a prophet of the Lord, and Atheists merely consider him to be a person of profound teachings. In the novel The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver connects Jesus equally to a poisonwood tree; and in A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving corresponds Jesus to “an instrument of God.” Also, in addition to Jesus, these two novels comment on the nature of faith in modern society and symbolize upon several religious characters and subjects that appear in the Bible.

“Tata Jesus is bängala! (Kingsolver 533),” says Reverend Price. This can mean two things depending on how you pronounce it: “Jesus is poisonwood” or “Jesus is the most precious. Kingsolver says, “ Poisonwood!” What she means is that Jesus can be a dangerous poison that can cause intense pain and sometimes death. However, she does no

Overall, when comparing the two novels, Irving does a better job in sending his message about faith to the readers. By concentrating his idea of absolute faith solely on one character, Owen, Irving is able to leave a powerful image along with his idea in the reader’s mind. In contrast, Kingsolver emits her idea of religion in a complicated chain of events along with the characters, weakening her message to the readers.

Like Kingsolver, Irving takes a peculiar approach to Jesus. “HE WAS USED (Irving 212),“ says Owen Meany. Irving states in his novel that Jesus was “used,” thus, meaning, Jesus was an “instrument” of God that was used for some kind of intentional purpose, which also means that God has a purpose for everything in life. Therefore, there is no such thing as “coincidence.” Johnny, the narrator of A Prayer for Owen Meany, says, “Owen Meany believed that ‘coincidence’ was a stupid, shallow refuge sought by stupid, shallow people who were unable to accept the fact that their lives were shaped by a terrifying and awesome design…(OM186)” Also, Irving specifies three different kinds of faith that can be seen today. One is Owen’s genuine faith: having absolutely no doubt about the existence of God. Owen says, “I CAN’T SEE HIM—BUT I ABSOLUTELY KNOW HE IS THERE (Irving 451). “ This is a faith that Irving strongly adheres to throughout the novel. Another kind of faith that appears is one full of doubt, owned by Reverend Merrill. Merrill has faith but at the same time he doubts; his faith is ambivalent. Reverend Merrill says, “Belief is not something you have felt, and the not felt; you haven’t lived with belief, and with unbelief…You haven’t ever been full of faith, and full of doubt (Irving 524).” Reverend Merrill’s belief exemplifies a more than average faith that exists in people today. The last genre of faith that Irving portrays in the novel is a sudden one that Johnny models. Before Owen’s death, Johnny had hardly put faith in anything. Owen says to Johnny, “THE TROUBLE WITH YOU IS YOU DON’T HAVE ANY FAITH (Irving 338).” But after the predictions that Owen had claimed are verified, Johnny is transformed into a believer. Merrill says to Johnny, “You’ve witnessed what you call a miracle and now you believe—you believe everything.” But at times, Johnny is still doubtful. A believer like Johnny is rare because how many of us would witness a miracle?

As for the other novel, A Prayer for Owen Meany, Owen Meany himself is a holy figure. Owen says it in his own words, “I AM GOD’S INSTRUMENT (Irving 87).” Irving doesn’t biblically symbolize nearly every character in the book as Kingsolver does; he concentrates sacredness solely on Owen, and through Owen, different objects and actions establish symbolism relevant to the qualities of Owen himself. For instance, “The Foul Ball” symbolizes God’s influence on Owen. Owen underlines this part in a copy of St. Thomas Aquinas’ “Demonstration of God’s Existence through Motion,” “Since everything that

Some topics in this essay:
Owen Meany, Adah Price, Little Jesus, Nathan Price, Reverend Price, Garden Eden, John Irving, Merrill Johnny, Comparative Essay, Simon Peter, owen meany, prayer owen meany, prayer owen, poisonwood bible, nathan price, lot’s wife, lord jesus, god’s instrument, faith irving, simon peter, “the foul ball”, genuine faith, simon peter denied, little lord jesus, mother orleanna price,