Final Thoughts on Kindred
Kindred was one of my favorite books we read this semester. I really enjoyed it because it was so different then all the other books we had read. I think one of the reasons I liked Kindred so much was it was the only book that we read that centered around a female story line. Another thing I thought was unique about Kindred was how "simple" Butler made time travel. From the beginning of the book the rules of Dana's time travel were established. Butler did not spend chapters explaining all the mechanisms of Dana's time travel. Explaining time travel can often get redundant and is not always necessary to the plot line.
Another thing I found really interesting about Kindred was how easily Dana and Kevin were able to adapt and assimilate to life in the early eighteenth century. We knew Dana was going to become part of the eighteenth century world right away. The first line of the book is "I lost my arm on my last trip home" (Butler 9). Right away we know how consequential time travel is to Dana. Even though Dana only spends a part of her life in the early eighteenth century it has permeant affects on her. One of the scenes that struck me the most was when Dana and Kevin were walking on the plantation together and they see the enslaved children playing slaves being sold on the auction block. This scene sparks a conversation between Dana and Kevin about how easy it is to grow accustomed to life on a plantation. Kevin being a white man does not see the abominable way the slaves are treated. As a result he unknowingly minimizes all the terrible things about life on a slave plantation. Dana on the other hand sees all the horrific ways the slaves are treated. She has to constantly remind herself and Kevin of their life in 1976.
At the end of the novel Dana an Kevin travel to Maryland and visit where the Weylin plantation was. They try to find out as much as they can about what happened after Rufus' death. Dana learns which of the slaves were freed or sold after Rufus' death. Even then Dana makes excuses for Rufus despite the terrible way he treated her. Kevin has to tell her to, "Stop defending him" (Butler 263). I think Dana's reaction to this shows how much she still cares for him despite all the awful things he did to her.
I like your point about "simple" time travel. I remember discussion in class how this doesnt seem obviously postmodern at first, and the time travel isn't like vonnegut. butler pulls it off in her own way
ReplyDeleteKindred was also my favorite book we've read this semester! One thing I disagree about is how easy it was for Dana and Kevin to assimilate themselves in the 1820s, but it can all depend on what angle you look at it from. One small example is that Dana struggles to call Rufus master and just act the role of a master-slave relationship. Yeah, Rufus gives her special treatment but it's not because he loves her, instead I thought of it because he fears her--he has no idea how she can just disappear and I think that unknown is what makes him treat her differently. Also for Kevin, although it's not the work that might get to him, it's still hard for him to see Dana (and other slaves) treated badly by their masters and not have much power to do anything about it. Overall, I still think that every time Dana returned to the 1820s she struggled playing her role because she didn't know which rules she can break and where to draw the line.
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