The Poisonwood Bible: An Antidote for What Ails International Relations?

Abstract

To examine the heuristic value of a work of fiction in an international relations classroom, students in an upper-level political science course were asked what stood out to them about international political economy in the Barbara Kingsolver novel, The Poisonwood Bible. Student papers were analyzed in a phenomenologically informed hermeneutic study, for which they received no extra credit. Collective thematic analysis of responses identified three meanings common to student experiences of the book. These themes included the relative power of international political economy theories to explain the Congo’s underdevelopment during the period covered in the novel, the salience of interpersonal skills in international relations, and holism in knowledge and politics. Underlying theoretical implications and study results are discussed in terms of the pedagogical implications for the ongoing debate within international relations as a discipline of explaining versus understanding.