The novel There There by Tommy Orange is a collaboration of twelve different Native Americans’ experiences in the twenty-first century. The twelve different stories told in the novel present a diverse range of opinions, experiences, and lives that these Native Americans have experienced. However, certain similarities between these individuals and their lives exist throughout the novel. The most profound parallel between a majority of the twelve stories is the similar behavior exhibited by the men who are involved in the characters' lives. Overall, the examples in the novel show that the men are abusive and absent, only affecting characters in a negative way.
The characters in the novel who discuss their parents usually describe an absent father, some not even knowing who their father is. Most characters briefly address the fact they don’t have a father figure in their lives, but some don’t mention any sort of relationship with their father at all. An example of this is Dene, who details conversations with his mother and uncle, but never mentions his father. The foil to Dene in this regard is Edwin, who is determined to find out about his father and his heritage. Edwin says, “I personal messaged ten different Harvey’s from [my mom’s] profile who seemed obviously native”, in an attempt to find his father(Orange, 69). Though there is a variance in responses to not having a father in the novel, there is a void left in the life of anyone without a parent.
Unfortunately, The men in the novel that are actually present aren’t any better than those who left. A theme of abuse is present throughout the book from men with a variety of relationships with the central characters. Multiple of the novel’s central characters describe experiencing or witnessing abuse where a man was the perpetrator. Yu shows that abuse comes from a variety of sources in terms of relationships to the character. A prominent example of this abuse is Blue’s journey to escape her husband. Yu describes her husband in a predatory manner as he tries to figure out Blue’s location in aggressive texts and prowls around a woman’s restroom to find her (Orange, 206). Octavio also describes his uncle, “throwing [his aunt] against the wall, slapping her once with each hand” (Orange, 176). These examples of abuse in the novel are different in the actions of the perpetrators, but the idea of a culture of abuse still remains present.
Overall, Orange uses these examples of cowardly and poor behavior by men as one of many hardships Native Americans go through. Many Indigenous People are subjected to environments filled with substance abuse, crime, and abuse, but Orange shows no help or sympathy given by white people to these hardships. Orange presents this abuse and neglect by men as so common in the Native American community as a way to explain to the reader how Native Americans have grown accustomed to being treated in this abusive manner, whether it be from a family member or a white man on the street.
I think this is a very good observation of the thematic behavior among men in "There There." Tommy Orange writes of a plethora of abusive, absent, and neglectful fathers. This is reflected in many of the backstories of young men in the book, as well as the older male characters. For instance, when Hector is told he has a daughter by Jacquie, his immediate response is to talk about the other child he just found out about in a conversational tone, he states "I just found out I have a son too" (Orange 113). This is a reflection of Tommy's generalization of absent men and fathers in Native communities.
ReplyDeleteThis also could be a reflection of the advice "write what you know" that many authors follow. Tommy may be writing mostly of the male experience as a Native American, as that is what he knows from his personal life. His writing that depicts a lack of strong male figures and only strong maternal figures could be mirroring his own life. The apparently lack of young female characters could also be an extension of this style of writing, as Tommy Orange stuck to what he knew and focused on the male Native experience. It was discussed in class that Orange is missing a large part of the Native experience by not discussing the Murder of indigenous women. However, he may have wrote his book to explain his viewpoint and experience as a native, which didn't personally include that part of many people's lives as natives.
This analysis of men's behavior in this novel is largely accurate -- men are often observed as harsh abusers or manipulators to family and the people around them. However, it is important to note the single case in which men do not have toxic relationships with others and are able to lead a healthy and purposeful life.
ReplyDeleteDene Oxendene is the only adult male character who is able to go through life without causing or contributing to familial or legal disruption. Despite facing challenges and being slightly lost in his direction, he focuses on his goal and does not hurt those around him. Even Bill, who seems to be in a healthy relationship with Karen and doing well in his job, once went to jail for stabbing a person (Orange 85).
This contrast between Dene and the other men in the novel somewhat pushes Dene to the side, making him stand out less to the reader. I wonder why Tommy Orange wrote the characters in this way, but I believe it relates to the general theme of the struggle as an Urban Native. It is as if Dene is recording the stories of the other characters (and at times, he literally does) and represents an observer into the chaotic lives of others. In a way, I see Dene as the outside world -- not in terms of his Nativeness, but in terms of noting the deep tragedy in the lives of many Urban Natives.