Guilt and Blame Quotes in The Poisonwood Bible

How we cite our quotes: (Book.Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #4

How could I leave Adah behind again? Once in the womb, once to the lion, and now like Simon Peter I had denied her for the third time. (3.18.10)

If you don't have our Bible guide open side-by-side with this one, you'll want to check out Simon Peter, or Saint Peter, here. In one of his not-quite-finest moments, Simon Peter denies knowing Jesus after Jesus gets captured and hauled off to be crucified, and Leah similarly believes she has, once again, denied her sister Adah.

Quote #5

"God hates us." [...] "Don't blame God for what ants have to do." (3.21.12)

This interaction helps Leah transition from believing that God has the good of mankind at heart, to blaming Him for all the world's troubles, to maybe not believing in Him at all. Talk about a character arc.

Quote #6

I shook [Ruth May] too hard and screamed at her. Maybe that was the last she knew of her sister Leah. (4.9.5)

Even though Ruth May was probably insensible at this point after her snake bite, Leah still blames herself for making Ruth May's last seconds less than serene.