Kindred

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Dana struggles to reconcile her modern values with the brutal social realities of the antebellum South. Have you ever had to adapt your beliefs or behavior in order to survive in a different social or cultural environment? 

2. Kevin experiences the past differently than Dana does because of his race and gender. How do you think privilege shapes people’s ability to navigate difficult situations in real life?

3. The novel highlights the importance of literacy as a tool for freedom. Have you ever experienced a moment in which learning something new changed your life or sense of self?

4. Dana and Kevin’s interracial marriage is met with resistance, even in the 1970s. How do you think attitudes toward interracial relationships have changed since then? What challenges still remain?

5. Dana initially believes that she can influence Rufus to become a better person. Have you ever tried to change someone’s harmful behavior? What was the result? 

6. Dana loses her arm as a physical reminder of her experiences in the past. How do you think trauma—both personal and generational—manifests in people’s lives today?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. Butler uses Kindred to examine the lingering effects of enslavement upon modern American society. How does the novel challenge the idea that enslavement is “distant history”?

2. The novel explores the various ways in which systems of oppression shape individuals, including both enslaved people and enslavers. How does this dynamic apply to modern social and political systems?

3. Kindred highlights the complicated power dynamics among enslaved people. How does the book challenge stereotypes about resistance against (and survival under) systems of oppression?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. The title of the novel denotes a sense of relatedness or connectedness. What different kinds of kinship are explored in the book, and how do they shape Dana’s experiences in both timelines?

2. How does Butler use dramatic irony in the novel, particularly given Dana’s abstract knowledge of history versus her lived experience in the past? 

3. The motif of literacy appears throughout Kindred. How does Butler use reading and writing as symbols of power and resistance? 

4. Dana frequently struggles with her own agency; sometimes she actively resists Rufus, while at other times she feels trapped by her need to ensure his survival. How does Butler use Dana’s internal conflict to explore broader themes of power and survival?

5. Butler subverts traditional time-travel tropes by crafting the character of Dana as a Black woman and placing her in a brutal historical setting. How does Kindred challenge or reimagine the conventions of science fiction?