Strengths And Weaknesses In Kindred

The act of having power can be beneficial or dangerous, and that all depends on the choices you make. In Octavia Butler’s novel, Kindred, the choices all of the characters make greatly affect their future, and reveal their strengths and weaknesses. Dana’s survival is dependent on every decision she makes, and whether she uses her strengths to her advantage or not. Every choice Dana makes will influence her life, because of how she is tied back to her ancestors. Alice, Rufus, and Dana all demonstrate their strengths and weaknesses through the many obstacles they face together. Dana has always used common sense to help her survive the difficult obstacles that were thrown at her throughout her transition between the 1940s and 1970s. That was …show more content…
She knows her power over Rufus, which gives her the confidence to speak to him the way she does. Dana is a very confident person and knows her own strengths and weaknesses. She knows the consequences of her own actions and that greatly helped her survival. Another strength that Dana has includes her strength, both physically and emotionally. “I had taken her through all the other stages of healing, and somehow, I couldn’t abandon her now,” (Butler165). She had endured all of Alice’s verbal attacks, because she knew it would have been the best option. If Alice had lashed out at anyone else, she would be in serious trouble, and Dana realized that. Dana put Alice’s future in front of her own, because no matter what, Alice controlled Dana’s future. Dana, a strong and caring individual, was smart about things instead of being careless and selfish. Her actions reflect her sweet natured personality as well as the side of her that is direct and demanding. On the other hand, some of Dana’s actions led to severe consequences. She is sometimes too caring for her own good, and it ends up leaving her in certain dilemmas where it comes down to being selfless or selfish. Dana has been in the situation where she had to choose between