relentlessly as a maid to provide for her family’s needs. It is this rich legacy that gives birth to the interest and relevance of the issue her story tackles. This essay seeks to analyse how Octavia Butler’s Kindred uses characters such as Dana‚ Kevin and Rufus as tools to boldly speak to the issue of colonialism and slavery and how these acts affects identity and gender relations of both the enslaved and enslaver. The story begins with a happily married interracial couple who had just moved into a house
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that makes a slave‚ and in doing so takes away their humanity. Tom Weylin knows that he can have any female slave that he wants; stripping that person of her dignity and sense of ownership in her own body. In using his slaves for his own sexual conquests Weylin is making it clear that he owns their bodies‚ not them. This is how he can make slaves. By stripping them of their own sense of self-worth‚ slaves know that it is Weylin who decides their fate not them. Upon seeing Dana step out of Kevin’s
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with new experiences as blacks are considered a lower class to all white males and females. As Dana is treated as a slave to the Weylin’s in 1815‚ Kevin tries his best to get Dana to leave the Weylin household. Dana and Kevin have both noticed that several of the female slaves’ children resemble the Weylin family. The 1800’s and late 1900’s are drastically different as Kevin and Dana both don’t know how to react too many situations in the 1800’s. They rely on each other for support as
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slaves and prisoners having a education is very important. Education was used to oppress and maintain power. Slaves were denied educated in secret. Prisoners were educated in the camps‚ but brainwashed as a way to keep them in line. For example‚ Mr. Weylin caught Dana teaching and reading to Nigel. Another example‚ the prisoner didn’t know what is was like around or life outside of Camp 14. Examples of slaves and prisoners
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by Walter Mosley‚ there are many examples of how ones appearance truly affects them. In this poem‚ there are four particular employees who work at the same office but on different floor levels based on their appearances: Rufus Coombs‚ Mr. Averill‚ Ernie‚ and Mona Donelli. Rufus Coombs was the main character of the poem “Pet Fly” In the beginning; he tells us that he had just graduated from Hunter College with a B.A in Poli Sci which makes us believe that he has surplus intelligence. However‚ he
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increasing their own power over others as they would create laws and decrees to punish the poor and increase the wealth of the wealthy. In Kindred‚ similar to the king‚ Rufus is faced with multiple opportunities to do the right thing; however‚ he decides to do whatever is necessary to gain more power and dominance over the slaves. Rufus’ refusal to take the ethical high ground and decision to remain a corrupt leader on his plantation shows how the primitive instinct to dominate overrules moral barriers
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human’s motivation. As Rufus’ father said‚ “A nigger lives his whole life‚ lives and dies according to a beat (Baldwin‚ 6)”. The saying obscures what is going on. Rufus describes how was his first taste of marijuana‚ gang fights and gang “bangs”‚ the boy who died from overdose‚ were events lived by the beat. The beat is supposed to be the rhythm of life. It is
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In order to educate Rufus about science and astronomy‚ Sheppard buys him a telescope. Sheppard is fascinated by science and astronomy as he claims‚ “We’re living in the space age” (151). Sheppard’s intention is for Rufus to detach himself about the idea of good and evil. The telescope instead becomes a source for Norton to see Rufus as someone who can enlighten him about death and heaven. Norton through Rufus receives more acceptable explanations where his mother is. Rufus tells Norton if his mother
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There are three main characters in this story: Sheppard‚ Norton and Rufus. Each character in this story is experiencing an emotional battle which they try to find healing but for some it will be too late. The narrator in the story is Sheppard. Sheppard is a widow‚ his wife died in less than a year before the story began. Sheppard experiences emotional distress by trying hard to change a troubled teen‚ Rufus‚ into an honorable young man while teaching his son‚ Norton‚ to be selfless
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Recreational Director on the weekends where he meets a boy named Rufus Johnson. Rufus is a troubled‚ yet intelligent fourteen-year-old who Sheppard feels shows a lot of potential. Sheppard immediately takes a liking to Rufus and after the young boy leaves the reformatory‚ Sheppard decides to invite him into his home with the belief that he can transform Rufus into a well-behaved‚ brilliant young man. Norton is not at all pleased by the idea of Rufus’ presence in his home and the story continues to describe
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