What "Getting Used to It" Tells Us About Dana, Psychologically
Kindred is the kind of book that makes you question humanity, and ponder ideas you thought you already had sure answers for. One line that has stuck with me was when it dawns on Dana that all the time she’s spent ‘pretending’ in the past has gotten her used to being submissive. That moment hit me in the same way it seemed to for Dana. It left me terrified right there with her, because it shows how deeply the past has broken her down and is getting to her mind. We’re introduced to Dana’s character at start of the novel as a confident and independent black woman, who had no problem speaking up to what she knew to be wrong. We see this when she would correct Rufus’ racist language, plainly set up rules between them, and clap back at Kevin’s murky remarks. But the longer she stays in the Weylin household, the more her survival depended on her staying quiet. She had no other choice than to play the role of a slave, lowering her eyes, biting back her tongue, acting in all the ways enslaved...