I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.’” Muhammad Ali. In Kindred by Octavia E. Butler, a book about a girl named Dana who magically traveled back in time from the 1970’s to pre-imansipation proclamation 1800’s. And in this book, Dana meets Luke. Luke was an overseer on a slave plantation, a dream. Work hard, then you and your family will be free to pursue a better life. Only to be stabbed in the back, lied to, and disenfranchised. Luke was motivated by his and specifically his son’s Nigel survival, later being re-sold into slavery by Rufus Weylin for not being obedient enough and a threat to the system implemented on his plantation. “I realized survival was not the …show more content…
Three of the lessons Luke tried to pass onto Nigel was prudence and survival, adaptability, and self-preservation. Luke emphasized to be careful, as well as avoid unnecessary risks when it comes to the slave plantation overseers. He taught Nigel to be very careful of how he interacts with the slaveholders due to the inherent risks of potential consequences and punishments for his actions. Secondly, Luke teaches Nigel to adapt to change and the demands of his environment. He understands flexibility and the ability to adjust strategies as situations evolve is crucial to one’s own survival. Lastly, self preservation was taught to Nigel. Luke underscores the importance of putting yourself and loved ones first and making choices to prioritize yourself as well as family for your and their safety. This includes, but is not limited to, knowing when to act and when to remain silent to avoid drawing unwanted attention and/or risk of punishment. At the end of the day, although highly motivated to ensure his own survival as well as his family's survival, he overplayed his hand and was too loud about