Throughout our time reading the novel, Octavia Butler's Kindred, published in 1979, has proven to hold many plot twists and pull on our heart strings. Not only does the book raise questions on slavery and race, but also on the system the United States was founded on, and it does so by adding the element of time travel. Dana's narrative is so complex that it leaves us filled with questions even after the end of the book.
From the start of her time travel, Dana is aware that she is different than the other slaves but must act the part the best she can. She begins by trying to fit in as best as possible, but quickly realizing she can't assimilate to this lifestyle. Not only that, but she instantly thinks of ways to fight back and help the other slaves. She hates seeing other slaves get whipped and talked down upon, and wants to help them at almost all costs. However, by the end of the novel we see a much different side of Dana; she get's used to plantation life to the point where she feels like it's more home than her apartment. And she even begins to have this ideology that she is "safer" than the others so as long as it is not her then it is okay.
Her different treatment, other than the fact that she has time traveling abilities, also has to do with the connection she has with Rufus. He is able to protect her from some of the harsh punishments Tom would've given her, and he too has a different way of seeing Dana. Although this plays to her advantage for some time, Dana quickly realizes that it is also dangerous after seeing what Rufus is capable of. At the end of the day, Dana is still a black women and Rufus is still a white male who grew up in the system of slavery. It is clear he still sees Dana as less than him, but also more than the other slaves. Part of Dana's change in attitude can clearly be shown through her interactions with Rufus. She used to object and find him horrifying when he did things. But by the end, she constantly finds herself creating excuses for Rufus and sort of just lets things happen to a certain extent. In her mind, as long as it doesn't happen to her and she's safe its fine, which is a huge shift from Dana's character at the beginning of the novel.
Dana definitely received some amount of different treatment compared to the other slaves, which I guess exemplifies how someone from our "modern" time period could never fully grasp the horrors that slavery brought with it. As you mention, it was surprising/interesting to see Dana find solace in this twisted time period. But we also receive another shift in her mindset at the end, when she kills Rufus. Her patterns of thought concerning Rufus certainly change as the story progresses. Great post!
ReplyDeleteExcellent post! Dana's mindset develops greatly throughout the story. In the beginning, she clings to her 1976 thought and even tries pushing it onto others by telling Rufus not to use the n word, teaching the children how to read, telling Alice her body belongs only to her, trying to stop slave sales from occurring, and so much more. However, as time progresses and she realizes her efforts are futile, she becomes more submissive and docile to simply get by in these harsh times she now considers her home. We see her obediently follow Margaret's every move and continuously forgive Rufus for the physical and emotional pain he inflicts on her.
ReplyDeleteI feel like Dana's change was foreshadowed during the scene where the slave children pretended to sell each other off. There, she said something like it was easy to get used to a life of slavery, and that's exactly what ended up happening to her. She also knows she can't change the past too much, or else events like Hagar's birth would never occur. I think that's part of the reason why she became more and more submissive throughout the novel.
ReplyDeleteGreat work! I really like your analysis of Dana's character and her development, and how the time travel to the past turned her from playing a part to basically almost becoming that part. Dana put herself in a much more dangerous position than expected just by pretending to be a slave. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteI think the idea of "getting used to slavery" is a concept that is truly horrifying. As the story continues, Dana is less and less able to push back on Rufus's Racist tendencies and has to live with the fact that he doesn't value her as a human being based off of her skin color. I think that Butler masterfully crafts the environment of slavery in a way that makes you feel the sheer totality of it.
ReplyDeleteNice post Lili! Dana's increasing tolerance to her situation in the past was scary to see develop, but not entirely bad as she develops bonds with the people she meets. Butler seems to counteract this tolerance by having Dana stay longer and longer in the past each time as she gets used to the horrible circumstances. In a way that seems to explain Kevin's incredible five year stay in the past, he was able to take it and it did not break him as a person as much as Dana was broken. Her last trip to the past finally broke her, mentally and physically, and its almost like whatever caused her to time travel knew that and stopped.
ReplyDeleteI agree that she definitely changes her mindset throughout Kindred from one of revulsion about everything that happens on the plantation to one of acceptance and excusing of the terrible things Rufus does. In a way, what Dana was so worried about happening to Kevin regarding how he views the world of 1800s America happens to her and she becomes the one who is changed for the worse by the past.
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely fascinating how Dana's mindset changes within her time at the plantation. The plot of the story clearly shows the profound effect that a person's environment can have on their personality. I think the most interesting part is that it's not a single big, shocking event that changes Dana, as is often depicted in these kinds of novels, but rather the constant wearing down of the situation on her psyche that changes her. Dana is lulled into a sense of normalcy by everyday life, causing her shift in mindset. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI noticed the shift in Dana’s mindset and behavior in the plantation setting the longer she spent time there as well. It’s initially very shocking to her and she seems to have a sort of sense of responsibility to help the people on the plantation, and doesn’t see herself as an actual part of the world there. However, this changes as she is forced to spend more and more time on the Weylin plantation. She seems to fall into a sort of depressed acclimation and acceptance of the situation and stops fighting back as much. This was a good exploration into Dana’s changes as she experiences this world she is pulled into.
ReplyDeleteI think that the shift in Dana's mindset is also due to the fact that she realizes she doesn't have much of a choice. Looking at what happened with Alice and her becoming a sex slave, although Dana could've done things to prolong that event, it was inevitable. As sad as it is, Dana becomes more accepting of the behavior of Rufus because it has to be done in order for her family to exist. Dana is put in an impossible situation that would've made most people lose there minds.
ReplyDeleteI think that her shift in mindset is also largely due to her kind of accepting the condition and place that she's in, and her lack of control over the situation. Although her acceptance of Rufus' actions seems messed up to us at times, we have to also keep in mind that basically all of us would behave very similarly if we were put in her position, no matter what we think while we're reading.
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