Over the next five months, I’m reading and reviewing ten pioneering works of science fiction written by women. This is my fourth pick. Stay tuned for more.
Kindred is the story of Dana, an African-American woman who is inexplicably and repeatedly transported back to the antebellum South from Los Angeles in 1976. Dana’s purpose is to save Rufus, her direct ancestor. Kindred succeeds because Octavia Butler deftly manages its timelines, in a masterclass for those interested in replicating her dexterity with chronology in their own work.
The primary timelines in the narrative are the present day timeline and the antebellum South timeline. The former begins with Dana’s first experience of time travel. The antebellum South timeline begins with Dana’s first visit to the past. These timelines each proceed linearly. Dana never visits the past timeline out of chronological order: after her first visit, each subsequent visit is later in time. Dana likewise never returns to the present timeline out of chronological order: she never travels back in time to a period after she was born. This structure helps the reader to remain oriented and dramatically engaged in both timelines as they unfold.
Dana’s time spent in the past is equivalent to much less time in the present. For example, Dana’s first episode in the past comes after a dizzy spell on June 9, 1976, her 26th birthday. She spends a few minutes saving Rufus from drowning, and when her life is threatened by Rufus’ father, finds herself back in the present. Her husband Kevin informs her that only a few seconds have passed. This conceit allows Dana and Kevin to spend years in the past, while leaving them solidly embedded within the present at Kindred’s conclusion.
Each episode of time travel, although it varies in onset and duration, follows a predicable structure contained within a chapter: dizzy spell in the present, time spent in the past, a near death experience, being transported back to the present, and time spent in the present. There are six trips to the past in total, each of which is self contained in its own chapter. In addition to the two primary timelines, there are two additional ones to consider. The chapters containing the present timeline and the antebellum South timeline are bookended by a prologue and epilogue, which both occur after Dana’s episodes with time travel have already ended. The prologue occurs after the present timeline, but before the timeline of the epilogue.
Kindred’s predictable structure, linear progression of both primary timelines, and division into sections helps the reader to follow Dana’s disorientation in time and space. Each episode in the past is more horrific and increases in duration, until the final short chapter comprising the climax. Kindred’s deft treatment of time travel makes manifest the reality that the reverberations of the antebellum South can still be felt.