Prejudice And Racism Exposed In Octavia Butler's Kindred

Octavia Butler’s Kindred was an astounding book written in 1979 about a character name Edana Franklin, who is simply called Dana, is pulled continuously back into the 19th century by a boy name Rufus every time his life is in danger. This book is an unconventional tail about slavery, sexism and racism. Not only is it entertaining but it stirs up deep emotions inside of you about your history. This story makes you feel love, compassion, hate, and sorrow all at once. Octavia Butler wrote this book to bring knowledge and emotion to our pass time, as well as showing the reader how the past should and does effect our present time. Because Octavia Butler read a lot of science fiction when she was a child this influenced her writing style. There could not have been a better way to write Kindred than science fiction. Taking the characters from the present and connecting them to the past by ways of time travel made the book more relatable to the reader. How else could one feel connected to slavery or be more understanding? One
In college she over heard a student talk about how his parents held him back and killing off the past generation and she felt as if he new his history but he didn’t feel it. This was one of the reason she was motivated her to write Kindred. She wanted people today to not only know the past but feel it so they can understand how and why they got to be where they are today. Butler also wanted people to understand the mentality of their parents which would ultimately make them understand them better. Sara, the cook is used brilliantly to prove this case. Sara was a slave on the plantation who has already lost it all and because of that does not have the desire to want more or even know what it looks or feels like. This character helps Dana understand the mentality of the older