Examples Of Power In Kindred

Imagine living in a world where there is a constant fight for power; a place where people are controlling others’ every move, no matter how good or bad it may be. That was the unfortunate reality for slaves. The novel, Kindred explores the idea of power through a hierarchy on a plantation. Dana, a 26-year-old woman from the present, jumps to the past where she faces a hierarchy of power alongside the Weylin family. Throughout the book, Dana experiences the betrayal of trust, from a young boy, named Rufus. Along the way, she develops mechanisms to cope with the controlling threats and abuse from the Weylin family, and even reminds Rufus of what she is capable of doing. Throughout the novel, Kindred, Octavia Butler expresses the idea

In reality, Rufus is just happy to take Dana back without thinking that he is betraying her trust. Rufus’s controlling attributes and amount of power interferes with Dana’s trust in him, furthermore demonstrating that there is only a true connection between Rufus and Dana when neither of them are structuring their thinking and actions based off of power.

Contrary to what is believed, Dana does have power over Rufus, and she uses her power to remind Rufus of what she is capable of. To prove this, Butler states, “‘I said we were dangerous to each other. That’s more a reminder than a threat.’ Actually, it was more a bluff. ‘I don’t need reminders or threats from you.’” (Butler 125). Although the amount of power Rufus has over Dana is quite evident, he tends to forget that Dana does have power over him as well, however, she does not make it as translucent as Rufus does. In an instance, Dana could let Rufus die, so she has to remind him of what she is capable of doing, without actually harming him.

Dana explains that what she is trying to convey is “more of a reminder than a threat.” Dana is still considered a friend to Rufus, and she does not want to break their bond, so rather

The last time Dana had come in contact with Margaret Weylin, she stood her ground and spoke for herself. The more time Dana spends on the plantation, the more she learns to act “slave-like” and develop “slave-like” habits, such as obeying Margaret Weylin’s orders, because of how frightened she is of the power of the Weylin house. There is a lot of tension brought up between

Dana and Margaret, mostly because Dana is far too afraid to speak and is uncertain about what exactly she can and cannot say. After Margaret finishes threatening Dana, she responds with a simple “yes ma’am.” Dana’s stickler response to Margaret’s threat and referring to her as

“ma’am” encapsulates the hierarchy shown on the plantation. Dana’s response also shows that even if power were to be removed from the equation, she and Margaret are still unable to communicate effectively due to Margaret’s dominating power over Dana.

In short, Rufus’ betrayal of trust and the complex power dynamic between Rufus and

Dana present that genuine relationships can remain successful when power is removed from the equation, however removing power does not always guarantee validity in a relationship, as