"Kindred" is an interesting example of a first-person American slavery narrative, due to the fact that it is told by a modern day black woman. This fact makes the narrative seem more real, and often shocking at times. Dana seems more like a real person to the reader than a story one would encounter during a history lesson. As a result, her story stands out and deserves attention. Dana's story shows the reader the hardships of slavery, both psychologically and physically; and how these hardships are not how modern day Americans picture them.
As Dana visits Rufus in the past she eventually becomes enslaved at the Weylin plantation. She almost does so without even noticing. At first it seems that Dana believes that the role of the slave is to merely do the chores of the house and be respectful of the masters, but as she spends time with the Weylin's she learns otherwise. Upon watching Wyelin beat a slave for talking back, Dana realizes the situation she is in. "The whipping served its purpose as far as I was concerned. It scared me, made me wonder how long it would be before I made a mistake that would give someone reason to whip me (92)." As time wears on Dana is subjected to verbal abuse at the hands of Mrs. Weylin (93) and is worked harder and harder. While her workload increases, her list of rights decreases. For example, Dana is forced to read to Rufus, but she is not allowed to read for herself (97). The realization that she is a piece of property rather than a human being finally settles in when she is whipped by Mr. Weylin for teaching Nigel how to read (107).
At this point, Dana realizes her misconceptions about the life of a slave. She had been beaten for something so implicit in today's society, that of teaching another human being how to read. Before going into slavery the idea seemed interesting to her, as long as her stay on the plantation was temporary. Perhaps, Dana had no idea what slavery was about. Before knowing slavery first-hand, she once described the labor agency she worked for as a slave market (52). Now she knew the devastating restrictions placed upon the people brought into slavery. If you went against the master's orders, just once, you paid severe consequences. There was no relationship with the white man as a slave, only total authoritarian rule. As time wears on, each trip to the Wyelin home becomes increasingly harder on Dana, both physically and mentally. She struggles with getting whipped and beaten by her masters, as well as the cycle of lies and betrayal committed by Rufus. Slavery is real to Dana by this point, and it is more than she ever could have prepared herself for.
It is hard to picture a time in America in which these terrible things happened on a regular basis. We learn about slavery in school and read about it in books, but we never truly see the effects slavery had on this country. Dana, however, had the opportunity to see, and feel, slavery first hand. Her sacrifice allowed us to see the horrible things prejudice, racism, and discrimination can lead to. Dana's story was not told in vein, though. We can use this story to structure our actions on a daily basis in today's world based on what the past has taught us.
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I agree with your thoughts about how Dana at first did not really understand or comprehend the idea of slavery. It seemed like a past time that she had learned about, but could not actually place into a realization. It makes the reader realize that maybe we do not fully understand the severity or reality of slavery and the torture the people went through. As they were beat and frowned upon for learning to read, one gains better realization into the severity carried with slavery. That is something so common. I think today one is more likely going to beaten for not knowing how to read rather than trying to learn to read.
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