Nathan is an unusual character. One of the unusual things about him is that even though he is a central character to the story and the reason the entire story unfolds, his is the only voice that we do not hear. Now there are probably several reasons for this. One of them I believe is that the Kingsoliver wanted the mystery to be there about his voice, but I also believe that due to his complexities, she decided to have his story told by various points of view from none other than the people who know him best, his family. These are the people who see him for who he really is. They see him on good days and bad and behind closed doors. I felt like another reason he didn't have a chance to tell his side of the story is that he believed in his mind that he was sharing the "truth" when in fact he actually had alterior motives. Nathan was a coward from his WWII experience always trying to prove himself to God, but more importantly to him, he was trying to prove himself to himself and he was willing to lose it all for this selfish ideal.