Kundilla Character Analysis in Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence

The leader of a tribe of Aborigines, the Nyungar. Kundilla has heard stories of the aggression and brutality of white invaders, but when he witnesses white British soldiers treating his fellow tribesmen with respect, he assures his people that they have nothing to fear. Pilkington uses Kundilla’s point of view to convey what she imagines might have been an Aboriginal man’s perspective on racism and colonialism before colonizers had fully occupied Aboriginal land.

Kundilla Character Timeline in Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence

The timeline below shows where the character Kundilla appears in Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Family, Culture, and Identity Theme Icon

On a cool, early-summer morning, a man named Kundilla awakes before anyone else around him and breathes in the still, clean air. He surveys... (full context)

Loss, Dispossession, and Reclamation Theme Icon

Kundilla departs camp to find some solitude—it is time for his early morning rituals. On his... (full context)

Kundilla’s two wives are Ngingana—who has already lit a fire for breakfast—and Mardina, who is feeding... (full context)

Kundilla’s three older, married sons and their families camp nearby. The whole camp consists of about... (full context)

As Kundilla readies for a trip to the coast, he checks his spears and traps to make... (full context)

Kundilla seethes with anger as he thinks of how “cruel and murderous men”—American whale hunters—come ashore... (full context)

When whalers and sealers first began arriving on the coast, Kundilla and his tribesmen were friendly and welcoming, communicating through sign language with the white men... (full context)

Kundilla and his sons reach the coast, and Kundilla admits to his children that he is... (full context)