Kindred

Kindred was a very interesting book. The part of the book that I enjoyed the most was when Kevin time travelled with Dana. I think he would have never been able to understand what she was going through if he hadn't went with her. I think the trip helped the dynamics of their relationship. They both could understand the moral sacrifices that each other had to make to stay alive and they appreciated each other for it. For instance, Kevin had to pretend as though he was Dana's master even though they were married. This really could have put a strain on their realtionship, because they didn't get to spend alot of time together. But this was not the case because Kevin made it so that Dana could sleep in his room, and he always looked after her the best way possible. What struck me as odd was the trust that Dana had in Rufus. I understand that it was her destiny to make sure that Hagar was born but I never would have given Rufus as many chances as he had to betray her. He sent her to work in the fields and he ran after her when she tried to escape. After those incidents I would have killed him myself. When I was reading the book, I was really sad about the things that the slaves had to face: the beatings, and the degradation. I ask myself if I would have had the courage to live a life of this sort; if I would have had the courage to defend my family when needed. To my dismay, I don't think I would have been mentally or physically strong enough. To have to be beaten by a person who had just raped you, or to have my children and family sold away while I worked in the fields, would have been too much for me to handle. I begin to wonder about my own lineage. What kind of cruelty did my ancestors have to face? And are there any stories of courage and valor? Reading a book like this puts alot of things in perspective for me. Had I been born a hundred years ago or even 60, I think my life would have been drastically different.