What does Mr Weylin offer Dana and why?

If Dana transports back to 1976, she might leave Kevin behind if he's not holding onto her. In the meantime, Kevin has told Mr. Weylin that he is a writer who's out of money. Weylin has offered him a job to teach Rufus to read and write, so it looks like Kevin and Dana have a plan for the time being.

How does Margaret weylin treat Dana?

Margaret Weylin resents Dana for several reasons, most of them motivated by jealousy. She hates Dana's affectionate, respectful relationship with Rufus. She hates Dana's hold over Kevin. She hates Dana's ability to read and write, and her educated way of speaking.

What job does Tom weylin give Kevin?

Kevin tells Dana that the doctor set Rufus's leg, and that Weylin has hired Kevin to teach Rufus while he recuperates. Kevin has told Weylin that he is a writer from New York and that he bought Dana because he thought her education might be useful to him.

Why does Dana work for the labor agency?

She goes into the office every day at 6 am to see if she has a job that day, accepting jobs that require menial labor for minimum wage where the more mindless the worker is, the better. Dana works here so that she can shuffle through the day and write her novel at night.

Who is Mr weylin in Kindred?

Rufus Weylin

The inconsistent, power-drunk slave owner and the father of one of Dana's ancestors. Rufus rapes and enslaves Alice and attempts to rape and enslave Dana. He longs to be loved but expects to always get his way, using coercion and violence if he is denied. Read an in-depth analysis of Rufus Weylin .

Kindred by Octavia Butler | Summary

Who is Dana in Kindred?

Dana is the narrator and heroine of the novel. A young black woman writer living in the end of the twentieth century, she finds herself plunged into the antebellum South of the nineteenth century, an alien world in which she must struggle to establish an identity and to maintain her freedom.

Why does Dana always forgive Rufus?

Dana reflects that Rufus loves her because she cares about him. She wonders why she does not hate him, as Alice does, and why she keeps forgiving him. Despite her fondness for Rufus, she thinks she would kill him if he tried to rape her.

Where do Kevin and Dana get married at?

Dana's uncle, who had been like a father to her, was hurt by her decision to marry a white man. Dana and Kevin married in Las Vegas. When they returned, Dana got notice that the Atlantic Monthly had accepted one of her stories.

What or who killed Alice in Kindred?

Summary: The Rope, Part 3

Rufus leads her to the barn. Inside, she finds Alice, dead, hanging from a rope. Dana cuts Alice's body down. Rufus returns and tells her that Alice committed suicide.

How does Dana find Rufus in the storm?

Dana arrives at the Weylins' alone. Rufus is drunk and lying facedown in a puddle. Dana turns him over and fetches Nigel, who carries Rufus to the house. Weylin, looking old and frail, tells her that as long as she continues to save Rufus's life, he will allow her to stay.

Why did Kevin leave the weylin plantation?

Kevin has been living in the past for five full years now and the time has aged him badly. Kevin is slightly uncomfortable because he's gotten so used to the ways of the past and doesn't know how to act toward Dana. Kevin puts Dana on his horse and they ride away from the Weylin plantation.

What happens to Sarah's children in Kindred?

Sarah is a black slave who fills the role of cook for the white Weylin family. We learn early on that she hates Margaret Weylin because Margaret was responsible for Sarah's children being sold off to slave traders.

What year does Dana travel to in Kindred?

After moving to a new home with her husband Kevin, Dana suddenly travels out of her house and back in time to 1815. She sees a young child drowning in a river and saves him using CPR. Dana travels back to 1976 when she sees a man pointing a shotgun in her face.

How is Dana treated in Kindred?

Dana is a strong, resourceful, intelligent woman, as well as a writer like her white husband Kevin. Dana learns how to adapt to the oppression of the Antebellum (pre-Civil War) era, but always retains her sense of self and autonomy despite Rufus's attempts to force her to become a true slave.

What happens to Margaret weylin in Kindred?

She goes to the cookhouse, where Sarah tells her that Margaret left after giving birth to twins who died in infancy. Rufus later tells Dana that Luke was sold because Weylin got sick of him acting white. Rufus warns Dana that if she acts like Luke, Weylin could sell her too.

How does Margaret weylin treat Rufus?

She always forgave him" (5.6. 85). This kind of treatment leads Rufus to believe that women should always give him what he wants and should immediately forgive him whenever he does something terrible to them.

What information does Dana get from Alice?

Summary: The Fight, Part 10

Alice asks Dana whether she, Alice, is a slave. After warning Alice that she might not want to know the answers to these questions, she tells Alice about her history: Because she helped a slave escape, she was made a slave herself. Alice then remembers Isaac.

How does Alice Use Dana in Kindred?

Due to her role as ancestor to Dana, Alice becomes an extremely important character in Kindred because she represents a version of who Dana would be if she were born in the past, a reflection of Dana herself, and a foil to Dana within the story.

How are Dana and Alice alike?

Alice functions as a mirror for Dana, and Butler creates notable similarities between them. Alice is Dana's ancestor, and the two women look alike. Both earn Liza's enmity. Both are loved by Rufus.

What is Dana's last name in Kindred?

Characters. Edana (Dana) Franklin: A courageous and compassionate 26-year-old African-American woman writer. She is the protagonist and the narrator of the story. She is married to a white writer named Kevin.

Why does Dana keep her journal in shorthand?

She begins to keep a journal in secretarial shorthand to keep herself sane and relieve her boredom. Dana even attends a corn husking party to distract herself.

Why does Dana write letters for Rufus?

Summary: The Story, Part 9

Rufus tells Dana to write letters for him to his creditors. She says in her own time, she avoided secretarial work, and he smiles and says Kevin told him that she was a writer. He offers her some paper to use as she pleases and says he doesn't want to sell any more slaves.

What does Sarah Warn Dana about?

She warns Dana that Margaret wants Kevin and that she dislikes Dana because Dana has him.

Why is kindred called Kindred?

Kindred is an old-fashioned word that means family members or blood relations. It's especially important to the themes of this novel because the black female protagonist Dana is actually related to the white male slave-owner Rufus.