Painfully Nurtured In Octavia Butler's Kindred

Painfully Nurtured
What makes a person mature is something that can be easily defined, even though it’s an abstract concept. For instance a person is not considered mature from the moment they’re born until they’re past the age of around twenty-one, and there’s all this scientific research showing why this is the case and so on and so forth. One could argue, however, that what makes a person mature isn’t how old they are, but how they were raised. So is the case with Rufus Weylin from Octavia Butler’s book Kindred. Due to traumatizing and recurring events in his childhood as well as a prominently misogynistic, racist, and unforgiving society, the hedonism that Rufus carries limits him to his Id, the instinctual part of him that prevents him

His upbringing caused him to be the type of person who would do whatever it took to get what they wanted, including threaten other people. His earliest example is of him talking to his mother, Margaret Weylin, when he was stuck in bed with a broken leg. “‘I don’t want no cake, Mama.’ ‘You sure? You ought to see the fine white icing Sarah put on it.’ ‘I want to hear Dana read, that’s all.’ ‘Well, there she is, reading. If you can call it that.’ I let my voice grow progressively softer as they talked. ‘I can’t hear her with you talking,’ Rufus said. ‘Baby, all I said was . . .’ ‘Don’t say nothing!’ Rufus took his head off her lap. ‘Go away and stop bothering me!’ . . . ‘You’d better be careful,’ I said. ‘What if your mother told your father you talked to her that way?’ ‘She never tells.’ He grinned. ‘She’ll be back after while to bring me a piece of cake with fine white icing.’ ‘She was crying.’ ‘She always cries. Read, Dana.’ ‘Do you talk to her that way often?’ ‘I have to, or she won’t leave me alone. Daddy does it too.’” (Butler, 103, 104) In this situation, Rufus knows exactly what to say and how to say it to manipulate his mother into getting what he wants. He wanted to hear Dana read, and he only got it after hurting his mother by yelling at her. Another one of the most memorable moments is when he persuades Dana to help him get Alice in bed. “‘Dana, listen to me!’ I turned to face him. ‘I heard you.’ ‘Well?’ ‘I can’t stop you from raping the woman, Rufe, but I’m not going to help you do it either.’ ‘You want her to get hurt?’ ‘Of course not. But you’ve already decided to hurt her, haven’t you?’ He didn’t answer.” (Butler, 163) By threatening to hurt Alice if Dana didn’t help him, Rufus is manipulating her to get what he wants. Dana knows what he’s doing as well, and