# data[].attributes.body
A sword is forged through fire. The fire gives the sword its imperfections, burns, but also its strength. Without the flame, the sword is untempered and fragile. Without the flames of slavery, Alice was naive and unaware of the fighting spirit within her. In the novel Kindred by Octavia Butler, Alice starts out as a frightened and sheltered girl protected by her mother. However, as the novel progresses, she loses her protection and is hardened by the inferno that is Rufus and enslavement. Hatred and hardship are the tools that turn her into a lethal weapon instead of a rough, unfinished chunk of iron.
Moments - 1.) The whipping of her father
2.) The rape by Rufus
3.) The realization months after the rape that Rufus now owns her
4.) The hatred her fellow slaves show her as being "white".
5.) The loss of her children

# data[].attributes.body
In the beginning of the book Kindred by Octavia Butler, the character of Alice is a young, free black girl in the Antebellum south. Years later, the bonds of slavery entrap her when she attempts to run away with her lover. From then on, her mental health only worsens. Rufus's obsession forces her to become submissive, following the order of her master. She constantly experiences abuse both physically and mentally. The one positive outcome is her children she gives birth to. They become her one purpose in life. They are her only reason to keep going and pushing for a better life. Sadly, she gets caught trying to run away again and believes that her children have been sold. Just like that, her purpose is gone. Her strong will crumbles, and she hangs herself. Alice's development tells the reader about the struggle of slavery.

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel "Kindred," by Octavia Butler, Alice's character development is constantly growing. In the beginning of the book, Alice is good friends with Rufus as a child and continuously defends him, but Rufus consistently takes advantage of her. As the book progresses, Alice starts to take control of her life after losing her memory, being sexually assaulted, and witnessing the "selling" of her children. One repeated theme throughout the relationship between Rufus and Alice is that she is afraid of him, no matter how unknown control over him she has. The character development expressed through Alice is everchanging and although her decisions throughout the book led to her ultimately taking her own life, she grew significantly in the sense that her only purpose in life changed from being a slave to a mother and independent woman.

- Alice's suicide
- Dana realizing Rufus loves Alice
- Dana and Alice's conversation about Rufus's intentions with Alice

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel, Kindred by Octavia Butler, Alice's development throughout the novel shows a sense of deterioration. Alice's painful life symbolizes the narritative of the white man having the black under his thumb and the pain that the slaves endure.

- Selling the kids
- The forceful love and the white man's power
- The loss of her entire life prior to the white man and everyone hating her for a choice she didn't make.

# data[].attributes.body
Alice starts out as an outgoing free child who lives just outside the Weylin plantation. Rufus is nothing more than her friend during their childhood, but as their lives move on, Rufus becomes more and more attracted to alice. However, alice sees the erratic and uncontrollable behavior of Rufus and strays away from him, she then gets married to an enslaved man named Isaac. Rufus's attraction for alice eventually overcomes him and he decides to exert force on alice. This is the turning point in her life as it pushes her to run away with isaac, which they are then caught and alice is sold to Rufus. Alice's state of slavery was surprising to her and she was almost in denial. However, she suffered abuse both emotionally and physically from rufus for the rest of her life, until she is driven to kill herself. This represents not only the affects of slavery, but also of the treatment of all blacks at the time. She was a free woman but she did not receive the same rights after escaping with isaac as a white woman may receive.
-Alice running away with isaac
-Rufus buying alice with all or most of his money
-Alice having her children taken away from her

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred by Octavia Butler, Alice's character development is instrumental in conveying the author's main message. Throughout the book, Alice is a symbol for the suffering of slaves and the harsh oppressions against them. Alice's death, a key point in the book, represents how Rufus continuously pushed her further and further to make her be who he wanted. Rufus's constant need for Alice causes Alice to change in an unexpected way. She  is strengthened by the stress and pressure put on her, but fragile at the same time as the only thing holding her down are her children.

- Alice killing herself
- Rufus's talk with Dana about convincing Alice
- Rufus realizing he loves Alice

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred by Octavia Butler, the character Alice has a very interesting  arc with much growth and cognitive dissonance. She begins as a somewhat innocent child but toughened by the hardships of her time. She had to witness her father hurt badly, and her mother hit across the face and passed out. Her reaction to this, in fact surprised Dana who at the time was very new to the antebellum south and was still learning about the ways of the people who lived there. We also see that Alice and Rufus are friends, though there is the boundary of race between them, it not not explored here much because of the age of the two children. Later we find Alice and Rufus' relationship to have changed greatly, Rufus has decided that he wants her and so he tries to rape her, this leads to Isaac beating up Rufus and Isaac dying because of Rufus. This and much more covered in the novel leads to Alice's hatred for Rufus. However, later in the novel Rufus and Alice seem to have a somewhat "better" relationship shown when Alice and Rufus joke about Hagar's hair color not being red. Later Rufus tricks her into thinking her children were sold and she kills herself. Alice began as a free child, to being married to a slave, to being forced into an abusive and toxic relationship with a white man with significantly more power over her. Essentially, Alice shows that she is a character with much depth, with hating Rufus and Dana for forgiving Rufus time and time again, to wanting to "forgive" Rufus or at least change the relationship dynamic. She is a character that has experienced much loss, horror, and fear and was very realistically portrayed by Butler to show the truth of the antebellum South.

-When the patrols attacked Alice's parents
-Alice calls Dana a white n-word because she is so filled with hate for Rufus that she takes it out on Dana because Dana is, for lack of a better word, nice to Rufus
-Alice and Rufus joking about Hagar's hair color

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred, Octavia Butler uses the character of Alice and her development to portray the suffering of slaves in the 1800s and the conditions they were forced to endure.

-when her and isaac were caught and she became a slave
-having her children taken away causing her suicide
-loss of her two babies

# data[].attributes.body
Alice's character development is symbolic of Dana losing her innocence and her character development. In the beginning, Alice was simply a young black girl who had not yet been hardened by Rufus's abuse. But as the novel progresses, Alice becomes more callous. When Dana entered the past, she was not yet damaged from the trauma of seeing slaves whipped, hurt by Rufus, nor hardened by negative choices.
-Alice hanging herself
-Alice complying with Rufus
-When Alice lost Isaac

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel, Kindred Alice changes greatly. She goes from being a young free kid on the plantation, then to becoming a slave to the Weylin plantation. Towards the early stages of the novel her and Rufus are just friends. While as the novel progresses Rufus becomes more greatly attracted to Alice. As this happens Alice strays away from him. Alice then marries Isaac and as Rufus continues to like Alice it overcomes his morals. This is the main point in which Alice after being physically attacked by Rufus changes. Causing her to try to runaway with Isaac. After they are caught Isaac is taken away from her and she becomes a slave is when her mental state begins to deteriorate. The psychological effect of becoming a slave changed Alice in a negative way eventually causing her to commit suicide.

-Suicide
-Rufus's assault
-Being a free child

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred, by Octavia Butler, Alice's character development is one of the most influential things to happen in the book. Butler uses Alice's development to show the growth of Rufus, and even Dana as the book progresses. Alice starts as a relatively innocent child, and as Rufus develops, she comes along with him, and Butler uses there two developments together to grow both characters and write the book more effectively.

- Alice committing suicide
- Her arrival on the plantation
- Rufus rescuing Alice from the slave auction

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred, by Octavia Butler, Alice is one of the most developed characters throughout the story. The novel shows her growth from being married to a slave to becoming enslaved herself and being forced into being the object of affection for a white landlord. The only other characters as developed as Alice were Dana and Rufus. In short, Alice's development teaches us that it is possible for your feelings to change no matter where you started.

Alice being raped and her first arrival to the plantation while Dana heals her.

Alice's recovery period where she yells at Dana and is really frustrated

The events leading up to her suicide and Dana's trip before that one

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred by Octavia Butler, Alice's death represents how the hardships of slaves can drive an innocent young women to end her life.
- Alice's death led Dana to kill Rufus
-When Alice lost her kids, she lashed out on the people closest to her
-Traumatic experience as a child when her father was whipped by a patroller

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred, by Octavia Butler, Alice is a character that the story follows closely. She moves from being an innocent child with parents attacked by patrollers to a complex character whose whole life has been plagued by racism and the affects of slavery. Throughout the entire text, she is taken advantage of and made to seem as though she is less than those around her. Through these means, Kindred teaches the reader in use of Character Development in Alice that racism in the Antebellum south and slavery was an unescapable evil that destroyed many souls.
- Alice's suicide
- Patrollers attacking Alice's mother
- Rufus holding her hostage

Big Picture: Her life is only important to birth a child and work. She serves no other purpose and it is within the law.

# data[].attributes.body
In Octavia Butler's Kindred, Alice's naive innocence is slowly hardened to a suicidal state of depression by the times of slavery and severe misogyny. She starts out as a born-free black girl thrown into the midst of the chaotic antebellum South. She has a white childhood friend, Rufus, who she regards as on of her "besties" but her mother's weariness of this uncommon relationship proves true. Her mental state decays into a suicidal state where, rather than living in these horrid conditions and perceiving no chance to see her children, she would kill herself.
- Alice being childhood friends with and the run-in with the patroller
-Rufus going after her and getting beat up by Issac
-Being raped constantly by Rufus
-Her suicide.

# data[].attributes.body
Graphite can be grounded into dust or diamonds. In the novel Kindred by Octavia Butler, Alice was thrown into the middle of the antebellum south. Throughout her struggles in the Weylin plantation, Alice both grew and decayed in both her mental state and her individuality. She was beaten down into submission by whips and threats, kin to the likes of many slaves; however, she still flared defiantly - running away multiple times- to prevent her "whitening." The tale of Alice shows the thin thread of fate she balanced between submission and independence, between present and future, between Rufus and herself. The dynamic changes in Alice shows the readers and eventually Dana to where the thread leads: not diamonds, but dust.

Alice running away with Issac
Alice's many confrontations with Dana
Alice's eventual hanging.

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred, by Octavia Butler. The main character, Alice clearly has  major development throughout the novel. Alice starts out as a kinder person who eventually turns into a meaner, colder person. We see examples of development in many places in the book. Alice is designed to show all the pains that the black slaves faced during slavery. She shows that no matter what your attitude is, your attitude is always affected by your environment.

-When she wants to live her life with Isaac, but eventually realizes that the idea isn't possible with the white landlord.

-She starts out in the book being a nicer person, and eventually becomes a colder person as a result of what she has seen and eventually commits suicide.

-The suicide is a clear example as everyone can see that she has completely changed from her original state of mind in the beginning of the book.

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred written by Octavia Butler, Dana’s arm being stuck in the wall in the closing scene symbolizes the part of her that will always be left in the 1800s; that no matter how hard she tries to forget her endeavors, Rufus will always be lingering in the back of her mind.

The visiting of the plantation in current day

The first whipping of Dana and the aftermath

Kevin’s struggling to conform back to current day

# data[].attributes.body
Dana’s arm being stuck in the wall holds a significant amount of symbolism for the book Kindred as a whole. Dana’s relationship with Rufus throughout the text becomes increasingly toxic as time goes on in the 1700s when Rufus gets older and starts to develop some of the characteristics of his father. When Dana is transferred back to her own time Rufus is turned into a wall and her arm gets stuck in Rufus’ time. This symbolizes a part of Dana being left in the 1700s because this is clearly not something that one would forget very easily.

When Rufus first started threatening Dana

When she first witnessed a slave being beaten

When Dana hears about Sarah’s children being sold away from her

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred by Octavia E. Butler, Butler portrays Dana, the main character in a painful situation with her arm stuck in the wall, having her pulling it out causing her to lose half of her arm. This symbolizes the fact that even though history is in the past it is difficult to separate from it and there will always be an everlasting detail that affects society.

When her arm is stuck in the wall and her having to pull it out

When she tried to run away but failed and no longer tried to escape

Dana and Kevin talking about the impact of slavery and how dreadful it was

# data[].attributes.body
Dana’s arm intertwined with the wall at the end of the novel speaks not only to the personal impact of her time in the 1800s, but to the divide between then and the modern era. Her arm is cut off at the place Rufus grabbed her, demonstrating how Rufus and his fate permanently anchor her to this time period.
- Dana's conversation with Alice in her cabin
- Time spent in 1976 after Dana and Kevin return
- Dana in the hospital at the beginning of the novel

# data[].attributes.body
Dana'a arm being trap in a wall was a symbol of how her time in slavery affected her and has p changed her.

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel Kindred by Octavia Butler, the character Alice has an interesting character development that shows us the impact of a slavery environment, and how being around Rufus truly affected her. Throughout Alice's time at the Weylin plantation, the struggles that Alice went through really affected her "growth" as an individual and ultimately what led her to take her own life. Whether it was the abuse she endured from Rufus, or the loss of her husband, the events that happened in her life turned her from an innocent and free young girl, to the hardened and tough individual she became up until her end.

When Alice was first introduced as a young girl

The multiple times that Alice attempts to run away

When Alice realizes what happened to her husband and that she'd been lied to

# data[].attributes.body
In Octavia Butler’s Kindred, the book is filled with connections between modern society and the Antebellum on topics of racism, sexism, and the difference between following family versus following what is right. In the final scene of the book, Dana’s arm is trapped within a wall as she returns home for the final time. This represents her eternal connection to Rufus and the south.

Dana and Rufus discussing where she belongs after Alice dies

Rufus and Dana burning the maps showing his want for her to be there

Dana cutting herself showing how she wants to go home

# data[].attributes.body
Octavia Butler portrays a vivid, symbolic scene of Dana's arm being stuck in her apartment wall. The scene is a culmination of the themes that have been exemplified in the novel until the end, and it represents the contrasts and difficulties that Dana had dealing with the completely different time periods that she was catapulted back and forth from.
-When Kevin came back with Dana and had trouble readjusting to his own time period
-When Dana first was called to the South and was rudely awakened to that racist reality
-When Dana had her conversation with Alice after she tried to run away and Alice called Dana "too white"

# data[].attributes.body
Symbolism is a very important part of Octavia Butler's Kindred, as it helps to convey the idea that even though much time has passed since the slavery-ridden 1800s, there are still very similar issues going on today. Just as Dana impacted the past, the past has also affected her and her lost arm is one of the major pieces of evidence for this.
- How Rufus' grip was compared to the wall
- When Kevin was left behind and then her arm was
- How she affected Rufus' behavior and because of that she was impacted (Hagar)

# data[].attributes.body
In Octavia Butler's Kindred, Dana gets her arm stuck in the wall during her final return from the anti-bellum south. This is a huge symbol that represents the psychological and physical toll that her time being in the 1800’s has taken on her. She will forever have a piece of her soul in the 1800s that is now part of who she is. Her arm is used to represent what has been taken from her.

Scene where she explains how Slavery has dulled her

How she tried and failed to escape and was no longer tempted to run away

Scene Where she didn’t feel like being in the present time felt off and unlike her real home.

# data[].attributes.body
Octavia Butler's carefully constructed image of Dana's arm stuck in a wall in the novel Kindred both symbolizes how she personally has to struggle to free herself of the 1800s, but also how America as a whole hasn't entirely disconnected with its racist roots.
- the moment her arm is stuck in the wall/ when she pulls it out
- when Kevin's sister was mad that he was going to marry Dana
-

# data[].attributes.body
Octavia E. Butler shows us amazing symbolism with the vivid scene of Dana's arm being stuck in the wall. The wall in this symbol represents Rufus and the South and because Dana's arm is lodged in the wall a part of her will always belong in the south. The wall can also represent racism in the 1800s which is being pulled into modern society through Dana's arm.

-Kevin's thoughts on slavery and how they compare to Dana's
-Dana teaching the kids on the plantation to read
-When Dana gets back to the South and says she feels like she's home

# data[].attributes.body
Octavia Butler's "Kindred" explores the idea of an alternate universe between different time periods. At the conclusion of the novel, Dana and readers are released from this alternate universe when Dana finally pulls away from the wall. In the novel, the wall is gradually built as readers find heavy oppositions between the times.

- Dana silting her wrists/ whipped (or another moment in the 1800s were Dana hates the 1800s.)
- a moment Dana feels comfortable in the 1800s
- One of Dana's first experiences in the 1800's

# data[].attributes.body
The symbolism of Dana's arm being stuck in the wall demonstrates the barrier between the 1800's and 1967.
- destruction of maps from 1900's
- slaves not being allowed to read
- marriage between races

# data[].attributes.body
Dana's arm stuck in her apartment wall shows the main theme of Kindred: the past is always a part of our present selves.
- When Dana first meets Rufus
-  Dana struggling to adjust to her present life (not being able to use her typewriter)
- When Alice dies (how emotionally attached she becomes)

# data[].attributes.body
Octavia Butler demonstrates the dual complexity of Dana's arm trying to free herself from the 1800s and Rufus, but also represents that the 1800s will be apart of her for the rest of her life.
Three moments:
-Killing Rufus
-the moment her arm is stuck in the wall
- Where she didn't feel like being in the present time

# data[].attributes.body
In Kindred by Octavia Butler we see Dana's arm become stuck in a wall at her home.  The wall that the is caught it was where Rufus was holding her as she went back home.  The wall represents her time in the 1800s which leaves a permanent mark on her.  When her arm has to be amputated that was a symbol of how the 1800s had affected her.
- Dana in hospital explaining what had happened
- When Dana tries to pull her arm out of the wall.
- Her talking to Kevin about how other people can not understand.

# data[].attributes.body
What kind of man did Rufus end up becoming? Did Dana succeed at all in preventing him from turning into his father, and if so in what way(s)?

# data[].attributes.body
How would the story have been different if Kevin never went to Easton with Dana.

# data[].attributes.body
Was it the best decision to kill Rufus?

# data[].attributes.body
How are Kevin and Dana's experiences in the 1800s reflective of one another?

# data[].attributes.body
Did Alice killing herself prompt Dana to kill Rufus? Why or why not?

# data[].attributes.body
Would Rufus be different or a "better" person if he was born in a more modern time(post-antebellum times)?

# data[].attributes.body
How have Dana's experiences fundamentally changed her both mentally and physically. (What changed throughout the book that made her able to kill Rufus?)

# data[].attributes.body
How did Dana's character change throughout the course of the book? Does her perspective change at all?
If so, what does does she gain a new perspective on?

# data[].attributes.body
What symbolism does Dana's arm being severed off present?

# data[].attributes.body
Is Dana and Kevin's relationship dynamic? Static? How does it change

# data[].attributes.body
How did the complexity of Rufus' character evolve throughout the book

# data[].attributes.body
How does Rufus's change of character throughout the book affect Dana and other characters?

# data[].attributes.body
Are there any major aspects of the older society that we can see in our current society? Do you think that Dana killing Rufus will lead to any major problems in the future?

# data[].attributes.body
What were some of the complexities in Kevin and Dana’s relationship? How did it change throughout the novel?

# data[].attributes.body
Was Dana acting selfishly or with forethought when she killed Rufus? Was it a spur of the moment decision, or had she known she would kill Rufus that day? Keep in mind that she was the one that told Rufus to be the father for his children since Alice had died, so how does that affect your answer?

# data[].attributes.body
How is Dana and Rufus's relationship complex? How does it develop throughout the course of this novel?

# data[].attributes.body
In the novel, we see Alice criticize Dana for being 'too white'. If Dana had told Alice that she was her ancestor, would the relationship between the two have been any different?

# data[].attributes.body
How does Kevin's 5 years spent in the 1800s add to the novel? Does Octavia Butler thoroughly unpack the events from the five years?

# data[].attributes.body
What are some major examples of cognitive dissonance in the book and why are they what they are? (What do they contribute specifically to the book)

# data[].attributes.body
How does the title relate to the book? Is it literal, ironic, or both?

# data[].attributes.body
Was Dana destined to be born, or could she have changed her own fate? Would Dana have been able to kill Rufus before she did even if she had wanted to?

# data[].attributes.body
Why did Octavia Butler purposely choose to leave out details about the characters' personal lives? Why are they not discussed in detail?

# data[].attributes.body
Do you think the relationship between Rufus and Dana was crucial to the development of the story? How do you think the story might be different she were connected to Alice instead of him?

# data[].attributes.body
How did Alice change throughout the novel? Did she seem to get more accustomed to Rufus and actually like him, or did she just want to run away with her kids?

# data[].attributes.body
What character development do we see from Rufus throughout the novel? Has he improved, stayed the same, or has gotten to be similar to his father?

# data[].attributes.body
How did Rufus's attitude change towards Dana and his children after the death of Alice?

# data[].attributes.body
Did Rufus really treat his slaves better than his father?

# data[].attributes.body
Was it selfish or noble that Dana killed Rufus, what are the direct and indirect consequences of her interactions and impacts on rufus?

# data[].attributes.body
How did Tom Weylin's treatment of Rufus affected Rufus's character development? How did Tom's parenting affect how Rufus treated Joe? How did Margaret Weylin's parenting affect these aspects as well?

# data[].attributes.body
What are some themes in Kindred?

# data[].attributes.body
How is the Rufus's character change after Alice's death? How does it change after his father's death and if he hadn't have been killed, how would he change if Dana left forever?

# data[].attributes.body
How does the amputation of Dana's arm symbolize a larger theme in the book?

# data[].attributes.body
How did the complexity of Rufus's attitude change throughout various parts of the book?

# data[].attributes.body
Why do you think Nigel set the fire? Was it to cover up for Dana or was it so that he was not blamed if anyone else saw what had happened.