Keywords
Kindred
Afrofuturism
antebellum
trauma
identity
How to Cite
Abstract
This paper aims to analyse how identity is formed in Octavia Butler’s Kindred (1979) while using Afrofuturist techniques to connect the twentieth and the nineteenth centuries. The analysis does not only focus on the contemporary period but also on the antebellum period, as the main character, Dana, must face and endure difficulties that will make her question who she is and where she belongs. The paper draws from Afrofuturist and sociological studies, as well as literary criticism and feminist theory. The study explores how the influence of experiencing slavery through forcibly time-travelling to the past shapes Dana’s identity and personality, making her betray what is morally correct in the twentieth century and adapt to opposed conventions to survive during the antebellum period. The identity analysis in Kindred will be conducted through the lens of Afrofuturism to assess its connection with the novel and the Afrofuturist technology present in the work.
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