Character Devices In Octavia Butler's Novel 'Kindred'

As all readers and writers know, transitions are an essential component to storytelling as they provide the physical shift from section to section. More importantly, if used in the right way a transition can advance the plot itself. Octavia Butler is a master of the transition device in her novel, Kindred as she physically shifts her characters through time and space as well as developing powerful changes in their individual characterizations. While there are a plethora of examples that can be used to demonstrate this, one of the most formidable transitions occurs simultaneously with and within Dana herself. Although up to this point she has experienced and witnessed immeasurable terrors, there is an instance in which Dana takes physical control

These few instances of their 1977 life though brief are significant to the way Kevin views Dana and even in the way Dana views herself. For example, the simple fact that Kevin has asked Dana, a fellow author, to succumb to his menial work is a telling sign that he does not see his wife’s work on par with his own. Instead this task he attempts to force on her means only to serve his purposes as an author not to advance Dana’s. Although she refuses and they argue, she willingly comes back to him without any work on his part for reconciliation; a trait that will become dominant in her relationship with Alice and Rufus. Throughout the novel, Dana is often seen as Alice’s doppelgänger. Butler first shows this to her readers in noting the physical similarities they share, so much so that they are often mistaken for sisters. They can further be paralleled by the situations they are in. Both women were born free but are thrust into the institution of slavery, and under the control of Rufus are denied the rights they previously held. Although powerless by these laws, both of these women share such a unique relationship with Rufus that eventually he begins to see them as the same woman. Because of this, Alice and

But what contributes to Dana’s selfless character is the manner in which she accepts this criticism and cynicism. However despite the way she talks to Dana she is also protective of her against the other slaves and encourages Dana’s thoughts to escape as she plans her own. This complex relationship adds more significance to Dana’s actions at the end of the chapter for two reasons. First, the event leading up to the slicing of Dana’s writs was the unethical sale of Sam, the field hand. Rufus’s jealousy causes him to sell Sam because he seems interested in Dana and the two of them fight until he breaks their unspoken bond and hits her. The breaking of their agreement pushes Dana to her limit and she accordingly slits her writs to escape from Rufus. In doing so, there is a transition in her character that simultaneously separates her from Alice and strengthens their parallels. When Dana cuts herself it is deliberate, vindictive, and a selfish motive to ensure her own survival. At this point she is no longer considerate of what consequences may be left in the wake of her actions. This mindset is the first time Dana’s character experiences such a shift and will thus