Kindred

In the novel __Kindred,__ an African American woman named Dana, travels back in time as a slave. She travels back in time to save Rufus, the son of a slave master. As Dana travels back in time, she is known as a slave, and throughout her time there she had to be one. As for Rufus he helped Dana when she did something wrong, or something that will question people about where she came from. As kind as Rufus is, sounded sometimes he have a side of him that he wants more than he can handle, and many of the times he got what he wanted. Although, Rufus and Dana cannot always rely on each other, they realize that they need each other for help. Rufus, as strong as he seems he was a selfish person most of the time he was never dependent for his self therefore, he had Dana coming back to his time when in need. Dana observes that Rufus is only using her because she is always there. “He had already found the way to control me-by threatening others.” (page 169) This proves how selfish he is just to get what he wants but in fact, without Dana he would might not become or done some things that he did. As He was drowning, Dana ran up to him saving him from dyeing, then there was nothing to do , but then Dana try her best to remember how people did cpr, it was her first, she breath into his small mouth, pushing his chest so the water can come up, this show the first time she save him and “I was beginning to realize that he loved the woman-to her misfortune. There was no shame in raping in a black woman, but there could be shame in loving one.” (page 124) As she witness this she realize that Rufus, do whatever he have to do to get what he want, for example, when Alice told her husband about what Rufus say when the husband came over Rufus try to kill him. Dana struggled through her time in the south, she realized that she needed Rufus for support. Time to time, in the story it states, how strong Dana is but when she needs help from Rufus. “ I couldn’t. I didn’t think anything could make me get up just then-until I saw Folwer raising his whip again. Somehow, I got up.” ( page 212). This was during the time when Rufus was all grown up, and because Dana tries her best to save his dad, she failed and therefore, Rufus punished her. So as a result, he force her into the fields, and for a whole day she work as much as can, as the leather whip hit against her fragile dark skin, she hold the pain in, and got weaker by the minute, as she try her best to stand up, she heard a voice, it was Rufus, as he came closer she look at him like with fire but sorrow in her eyes, then at last he say, “Dana, get up. You’ll be hurt more if I carry you than if you walk.” (page 213). Together the both quotes that I stated show me how strong Dana is with her self but everyone needs help, even the strongest people out there, need help. Although the first quote shows how much Dana stood strong through her beating, she could have nearly died between the whips, and sun. Without Rufus being there, she would not be living.

Although both characters Dana & Rufus are strong people they realized how much they need each other, This is when Dana realize that Dana realize that there is not going to be no fair fight and that she can’t do this by herself she needs someone she knows that can help her through her struggles. “ it shouldn’t take him long to realize that he and I needed each other. We would be taking turns helping each other now. Neither of us would want the other to hesitate.” ( page 121 third paragraph three sentences down). This might be a small quote but to me I think this is one powerful one from any other this shows that you can never dependent on each other all the time but when you need each other and they are there you should take the advantage but honor each other for their help because although it sounds like Rufus is the one always in trouble, really both chacters have equally pushiest don’t matter in Rufus time African American are suppose to be punish not white. In conclusion, Both Rufus & Dana might have many difficulty to get help from each other because Dana always go back to her time, or when both Rufus & Dana is separated because of their race, they don’t realized as much as they try nobody is perfect and there is going to be a time when one is not going to be there and they have to depend on their self, and try there best to stay strong.