In reading the first section of Kindred, I have found Dana to be a character whom I truly connect with. Because of this, I am being taught lessons through her actions and through the way she deals with some of the seemingly unrealistic occurrences in the novel. Instead of mentally or physically collapsing after realizing that she has legitimately traveled through time, or breaking down at the impossibility of it all, Dana becomes willing to take on two realities that could not be more different. As readers, this stresses the importance of taking on multiple perspectives and not assuming such a fixed and inflexible approach to reality. It is this less rigid approach which allows Dana to even explore the possibility that the people she comes into contact with when time traveling are her ancestors--she has a hunch and it seems crazy, but she allows her mind to follow this instinctual feeling. In turn, she is able to determine her role/purpose in being there. This ability to take on multiple perspectives also allows Dana to feel the emotions of the time period she travels to (the antebellum South) in the most real way possible, and to truly experience history. In this way, I believe the reader is being taught the importance of experience in order to gain knowledge instead of being told something or reading about it--Dana's actions go to show that enormous value should be placed on experience.
As we touched upon in class, the structure of the text is entirely responsible for the connection I feel to Dana. The first person narrative draws me in immediately. Despite how little I know about her (when I step back and think about it, not many character details have been provided and there has been very little character development), the fact that she is the reader's one consistent element to the book, given the time travel that takes place, I feel like I know her well. From the very beginning, I am invested in her cause, assessing her role, and wishing the best for her.
I think Dana's ability to connect with these two very different realities connects to the basic human function of adaptation. We, as humans, can do nothing more than accept the reality we are faced with and adapt our behavior. Although it is almost impossible to believe, Dana must accept the 1800's as her reality because it is her only chance at survival and there is nothing else to turn to. As readers, we take on this mentality in a less extreme way when we read fiction. The reality created, however unrealistic or improbable, must be embraced in order for the effect of the story to come through.
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