kindred post

Ricky Woodie
Ehtics
Kindred
6 October 2007

Kindred

In Kindred blacks were not only discriminated against, but so were women. One section of the book displayed both taking place. In the middle of the book When Dana comes back Rufus is older now around 19 or 20 and he is seen fighting Issac, who is Alice’s husband. The fight takes place because Rufus, who is in love with Alice, raped her because he wanted her. Rufus gets knocked out and Issac and Alice run away. Later they were found and Alice was brought back. She was in really bad shape. She had flesh missing from dogs attacking here, she was black and blue, and she was beaten and whipped. This was her punishment for running away. She was hurt badly, but Rufus’s father did not want to pay for a doctor and waste his money to help her. Rufus said his dad says they will either get better or die. Later Rufus told Dana how the judge had Issac’s ears cut off and he was then sent to Mississippi. If they would have known that he beat Rufus he would have been killed.
Butler through out the chapter the fight and the book shows first hand how slaves were treated as well as women. He even shows how Margaret, Rufus mother was beat and treated like an Object by Rufus’s dad. Even the slaves were seen asking Dana if Kevin ever beat her like it was a normal thing back then. He also shows through out the book shows how the slaves were treated like pieces of meat. Issac was Alice’s husband and they didn’t even hesitate to give him away like the slaves feelings didn’t matter. One of the slaves children, maybe Sara’s were given away so Margaret could have more money to buy more furniture. The slaves were beat nearly to death for even talking back.
They then were left for dead, if they got better, they got better. If not, then who cares? They slept on the ground and at table scraps as if they were pigs.
In my opinion the book did do a good job on showing how graphic slavery really was back in the day. It also does a good job showing that women were not considered equal to men in that time period. It even shows that it didn’t matter how much she helped Rufus Dana was still a slave he was still a slave owner. And in the end she had to take his life. That shows no matter how much she educated him or cared for him when he was hurt of sick. It didn’t matter she was still nothing more then a slave and was treated less then a human being.