The institution of slavery was based on the premise of a distinct racial hierarchy in which blacks were to be considered and treated as the property of whites. A concept alien to us a century and a half hence, the principle of human ownership based upon skin color is a dubious one when one considers the ambiguity of racial categorization, the unnatural condition of this subjugation and the essential immorality in denying one the freedom of his own life. That notwithstanding, slavery and racism are two very distinct elements of American history and identity, with the institution and its eventual banishment both contributing directly to the cultures of both blacks and whites, even all this time later. It is, in fact, the gap in time which has caused the obscurity of the slave experience, with the fragile racial parameters of modern America persisting with infrequent acknowledgment of their origins. Science-fiction author Octavia Butler utilizes an unusual vehicle to close this gap. In her 1979 novel, Kindred, Octavia Butler uses the device of time-travel to bridge the divide both between the slave and the modern black woman as well as between blacks and whites. Using Dana's experiences in the antebellum south, the author explores the impact of the physical abuse, psychological conditioning and familial dependency which supported the institution of slavery, revealing a system which has had an indelible impact on shaping our current racial culture. The author accomplishes this by placing such emotionally grounded characters as Dana and Kevin into an extraordinary situation, using the emotional connection between reader and character to allow the former to willingly suspend disbelief concerning the plot devices.
             This impact is made clear by Butler's use of racial ambiguity to discuss the unfounded justification for physical abuse which marks the slave era. Butler makes an interesting decision in creating a protagonist wh...