Who is Rufus to Dana 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.

How are Rufus and Dana related in Kindred?

Rufus is a plantation owner son and is also the father of Dana's ancestor.

How does Dana feel about 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.

Why did Dana stab Rufus in Kindred?

Dana is disgusted by all of it. After the funeral, Rufus gets Dana alone and talks about how scared he is that she'll leave him someday and let him die. He gets really up in Dana's face and even grabs her. Dana realizes that he's going to try and rape her, so she grabs a knife and kills Rufus.

Does Rufus abuse Dana?

Dana resists, but she worries that even if Alice refuses to go to him willingly, he will simply resort to rape. Rufus abuses Dana on the subject of Kevin, suggesting that maybe Kevin wants to be with “his own kind.” Rufus tells her that his father thinks he should just sleep with Dana.

Kindred by Octavia Butler | Characters

What happens to Rufus at the end of kindred?

Summary: Epilogue

They find a newspaper article describing the sale of the Weylin estate, including the slaves, after Rufus's death in a fire. Dana figures Nigel set the fire to cover up her murder of Rufus.

How does Dana find Rufus?

Dana travels back to 1976 when she sees a man pointing a shotgun in her face. She returns to her living room not knowing what just happened. Dana travels back to the past to find little Rufus (the boy she saved) lighting his bedroom curtains on fire. She puts out the fire and has a chat with Rufus.

What does Dana beg do Rufus?

She is a laudanum (opium) addict, and he wants Dana to take care of her. Dana begs him to reconsider, and he says he will think about it. As Dana leaves, Rufus tells her she can read a book for the rest of the day, or do whatever else she likes.

Why does Rufus summons Dana the second time?

Why does Rufus summon Dana back the second time? He is drowning.

Who is Dana Franklin?

The protagonist and narrator of the novel, Dana is a black woman from 1979 California who gets pulled back in time to Antebellum Maryland to save the life of her white ancestor, Rufus Weylin.

What is the relationship between Rufus and Alice?

In contrast, Rufus and Alice are the ultimate example of an unhealthy interracial couple. Rufus is obsessed with “possessing” Alice as both a slave and the object of his affection, while Alice regards Rufus, her master, with a mix of fear, loathing, pity, and hints of affection.

Who did Nigel marry in Kindred?

Yet Nigel is tied down on the Weylin plantation when he marries Carrie and has a son, Jude.

Who betrayed Dana Why?

Liza. The cleaning woman, who betrays Dana to Weylin. Like some of the other slaves, Liza is willing to do whatever she can to protect her own interests. She pays for betraying her fellow slaves, however.

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 color is Rufus hair?

Rufous (/ˈruːfəs/) is a color that may be described as reddish-brown or brownish-red, as of rust or oxidised iron.

How did Dana and Kevin meet?

Dana tells the story of how she met Kevin. She wrote late at night, and to make ends meet, she did menial jobs assigned to her by a temp office, which they called a “slave market.” While working at an auto parts warehouse, she met Kevin.

Why does Dana cut her wrists kindred?

Dana and Rufus have always had a tacit agreement: she will save him and care for and about him, and he will respect her. Rufus has repeatedly broken the spirit of that agreement, but when he lays his hand on her, he physically breaks the pact. Fury at this betrayal may be part of what motivates Dana to cut her wrists.

Who is Tess in Kindred?

Tess: A slave woman at the Weylin plantation used as a sexual slave by Tom Weylin and later by Edwards, the white overseer. Jake Edwards: One of the overseers of the Weylin plantation.

Where is Rufus from in Kindred?

A white, red-headed slave owner in Antebellum Maryland, and Dana's ancestor. Rufus is a product of his time and culture, becoming harsher, more selfish, and crueler as the years go by and he is more immersed in the patriarchal slave-holding culture of the South.

Did Nigel run away in Kindred?

Rufus warns Dana that if she acts like Luke, Weylin could sell her too. He says Nigel ran away but was caught, whipped, and brought back. Rufus finds a book on slavery that Dana brought from 1976.

Why does Margaret slap Dana?

One day, Margaret asks Dana where she slept last night. When Dana admits that she slept in Kevin's room, Margaret slaps Dana. Remembering the whip, Dana does not answer back or defend herself.

Which one of the following is not one of the reasons Dana stabs Rufus?

25. Which one of the following is NOT one of the reasons Dana stabs Rufus? He attempts to rape her.

What does Kevin look like in Kindred?

Kevin is a progressive, liberal, middle-aged white man who defies convention and the disapproval of his family to marry the black woman he loves. Slavery appalls him.

Who murdered Dana Ross?

Two other people in Amanda's friend group soon echoed these allegations: It was Emily, who was known to be freakishly strong for her size, who'd killed Dana and everyone knew it. Investigators called Emily in for questioning and she angrily denied having killed Dana.

Who beat up Rufus in Kindred?

Summary: The Fight, Part 3

Dana wonders if she is pregnant with Hagar, Rufus's child and Dana's ancestor. Isaac knocks Rufus unconscious, and Dana intervenes to prevent him from killing Rufus, asking him to consider what will happen to him and Alice if he doesn't restrain himself.