Since this is your first venture into examining a novel this term, it’s interesting to consider the different ways that Tommy Orange establishes a foundation for his narrative in Part 1. We of course encounter myriad characters in this first part—many of whom are not only “characters” per se, but also serve as narrators. These differing narrative perspectives and voices certainly are a unique element within There There. Likewise these first 80 pages or so establish the context for our narrative—we encounter urban Oakland; we encounter individuals who speak in colloquial terms; we encounter the individual and collective issues that these individuals struggle with. Accordingly, for this initial discussion on There There let’s think about this beginning and the framework that Orange develops.
You are free to reference excerpts on your own, but I’d like to highlight two in particular. First, before “Part I: Remain” we actually encounter the Prologue. How would you characterize the 9 pages of the Prologue? How does the Prologue influence our reading Part 1 (and of course, beyond)? What is the narrative effect of it?
Second, in Dene Oxendene’s first chapter we encounter a reference to the title of the text, as Dene reflects upon Gertrude Stein’s description of Oakland—“there is no there there” (38). How do you interpret Dene’s exposition on Stein’s quote? What is the significance of the quote with regard to Native culture and history? Similar to the questions posed above regarding the Prologue, how does Dene’s reflection on “there is no there there” influence our reading of the narrative as a whole?
Again, you certainly are welcome to reference other passages from Part 1; I offer these two particular elements to get our discussion started.
Additionally, since you all normally respond to each other’s presentations, you also are welcome to reflect upon the biographies of Tommy Orange that your peers have generated for this particular lesson.
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The prologue sets the stage and immersing the reader in a brief history of Native Americans, a common myth of the culture, and insight on some of the problems facing the culture currently, including urbanization and how different parties within the Native american community view those who have moved to the cities and what the original movement was actually meant to do. The prologue reminds the reader of a lot of the tragedies committed against Native Americans and how they are often misconceived, such as the old holiday of Thanksgiving actually being a land-deal and leading to King Philip’s War. I thought that the connection between the Indian Head test pattern showing an Indian head above a bullseye and the image of Metacomet’s head on a stick outside of Plymouth did a great job of showing how the hostility between Native Americans and colonists has translated and carried into the present day. The prologue’s mention of urbanity and the strife within the Native American culture over it also does well to introduce the reader to pre-existing conflicts that will likely contextualize the whole story. This conflict of urbanization, a perceived attempt to assimilate and be rid of Native American culture by the United States carries even more weight when some have bought into it, many Native Americans feeling they have been able to make the cities their own while others, most being older in age, think that the urbanity of younger Native Americans has caused them to lose their connections to their heritage.
Gertrude Stein’s quote, used as the title of this text, launches an exposition by Dene that once again reflects on the hardships of Native Americans. I saw Dene’s exposition of the quote as leading into his idea for his movie, unearthing the stories of Native Americans across Oakland. In terms of the quote, a complete heritage has almost been erased from existence by the development of urban centers across America and encouraged by the original colonists and their descendants. While some might relate to the “there there” quote on a small level, like the hipster Rob, I think many of the voices that will be featured in Dene’s movie will reveal the even more significant changes which influence his own perception of the quote. It’s not just Oakland for Dene and many other Native Americans, the “there” that is America is no longer present, and has been revised and developed over.
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Tommy Orange opens There There with a prologue that sets the stage with the long transition of Native American history in North America from its state of origin to its urbanization. At first this prologue appears defeated as he speaks to the “Indian Termination Policy.” He walks the reader through the sorrowful massacres and treatment of the natives as they were killed, mutilated, and had their body parts paraded around and charged to be viewed by onlookers. However, he does not end on a sorrowful note as he mentions the native American descendants, the “urban Indians,” ability to claim their new environment as their own, recognizing the phenomenon that everything comes from the land and will always be connected by this fact. Therefore, despite being forcefully relocated, even the urban Indians find a home within the cities and downtowns. The prologue influences our reading of Part I by giving the reader the background to the Native American culture, most importantly how it still lives within the urban Indians. This will indirectly characterize all native American characters by connecting them with the history of their culture and allowing a connection to be made between all of them. The narrative effect of this prologue is establishing a narrative voice to the reader which knows about the plight of the Native Americans which gives credibility.
In part I, Dene reflects on the meaning of “there is no there there,” and he reveals that the original comment was about a place that changed so much that the memory of that place was unrecognizable in the current condition. Dene relates this to the history of the Native Americans, how Oakland used to be the land of the native but has been changed so much it no longer resembles that land. It shows Dene’s sense of connection with his native American heritage. It seems like Dene is personally upset at the treatment of his ancestors and still feels the sorrow of their past. His reflection influences the reading as a whole because it creates Dene’s character as feeling like he has been wronged. He lives in Oakland, where the rest of the world sees a dirt poor community, but he see a land where his people fell victim to white invaders, and he was left with the short end of the stick, the current Oakland that is there.
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The prologue is set as an introductory piece to place in the reader in a mindset or open the eyes of the reader to the reality of Native American history. The prologue is a tough realization of some of the atrocities that Native American’s have faced throughout their history and the new challenges they face today. Tommy Orange makes it a point to exploit events that are lost to common history, such as the colonist parading around with dismembered body parts. As I read, I instantly felt sympathetic to the native American and the challenges they have overcome. I feel like the real facts of how the natives were treated in the early years of colonization has been lost in history, covered up, to make those people are not seen as they are, murdered of children and women. The prologue influences the reading in part 1 because as I read about the many narratives introduced, I feel bad and almost like its not their fault that they face these challenges due to the forced urbanization place upon them. What stuck out to me in the prologue was the quote “make them look and act like us. Become us. And so, disappear,” which I believe is an accurate description of what the Americans wished would happen to the natives. The overall effect is that Tommy Orange wants the reader in a sympathetic mindset and as a white American, self-reflection into my history and how it has affected the native Americans.
After reading Denes explanation, I interpret is as how the “there there” that she was talking about is not the same for Dene because he was born and raised in Oakland so this new “there” is his “there.” The importance of her quote is to shed light on how much the traditional lands for the Natives have been taken and developed upon, creating this urbanization and force those natives to adapt and assimilate into it. Denes explanation explains the Urbanization process is something he was born into; Oakland is his “there” and he has every right it claims it as his home. My thoughts were that he feels this way, having to explain that his home is Oakland born and raised, because people assume since he looks different, he must be from somewhere else, that he’s different. Dene is a Native American, but he as just as much of an Oaklander as anyone else, he just has to deal with the daily stereotypes of his heritage and while staying true to who he is.
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The Prologue of There There serves to set the stage for the tone of the rest of the novel. It includes brutal, in-your-face reminders of the historical injustices and mistreatment of Native Americans by Colonists. The description of a mass poisoning of Indians two years after the feast that accompanied a land deal that has become Thanksgiving serves as one such reminder. The author goes on to describe the quartering of Metacomet, and how his head was displayed at Plymouth Fort for 25 years. This is interesting imagery in that the prologue opened with a description of the old indian head TV test image. A parallel between the two images seems to be implied by their proximity in the prologue. The author seems to be insinuating that the idea of persecution of and discrimination towards Indians has become an accepted image, one that has been so commonly witnessed that people think nothing of it. The influence this implication sets on the tone of the rest of the book is profound. There is an undertone of lament concerning the historical mistreatment of native Americans throughout the rest of the novel.
In the first chapter of There There we come across a reference to the title of the text, in Dene’s reflection upon Stein’s description of Oakland, “there is no there there.” By Dean’s quote Deane is saying that Oakland is no longer Oakland to her. Deane remembers it differently, and Oakland is no longer her “there”, because “there,” how she remembers it, is no longer Oakland. Therefore, there is no “there” there. The quote is significant in its relation to Native culture and history in that Native Americans have constantly been uprooted and replaced by European Cultures. This in turn is similar to how Oakland underwent massive urbanization and was stripped of its previous identity. A new identity was forced upon the city. The quote greatly influences the tone of proceeding novel. It is the source of its title, after all. In the same way that the prologue established an undertone of lament surrounding the historical mistreatment of native Americans, this quote cements it into the tone of the entire novel.
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The Prologue sets up the story about urban Native American lives by describing the plight of Native Americans in the country and the “evolution” (although not by choice) of their lifestyle to what it is now. The prologue is narrated with an interesting fascination with Indian heads as a symbol, a symbol of what the culture expects them to be and the exploitation of their culture with the Indian head in the TV and what they were prosecuted for throughout history with the stories about the massacres and the bullets through heads, but he also shares a Cheyenne myth about a rolling head. He discusses the relocation of the Native Americans into society in an attempt to crush their culture, but in that passage he reflects on the way that the urban Indians have evolved to know the “Oakland skyline better than we id any sacred mountain range” (Orange, 11). This evolution of what became the Native’s land is interesting when you look at it in tandem with Dene’s exposition on Gertrude Stein’s quote, because it seems as if Oakland has become a “there” for the relocated Natives. At the end of the prologue the narrator reflects, that “Being Indian has never been about returning to the land. The land is everywhere or nowhere,” indicating that the Oakland Indians aren’t missing their “there” however their “there” is different than the “there” of their ancestors (Orange, 11). Dene didn’t appreciate the guy Rob who just threw around Stein’s quote without any analysis or ownership of it like he felt that the Indians had to the quote, it seemed that Dene saw the quote as reflecting on the lost “there” of the Indians, however in the prologue the narrator mentions that “everything comes from something that came before” (Orange, 11). So even though the Oakland Indians have a different lifestyle and a different “there” than their ancestors, this prologue and Dene’s exposition on Stein’s quote set the tone that the story is going to look at the “there” that the Oakland Indians possess and how it evolved and how they attempt to maintain a grasp on what is theirs in this new environment.
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The prologue to There There cannot be addressed without looking at the introduction of characters. While they are not related, the author has placed it in front of the prologue, making it the first impression about the lives of modern Native Americans. They are classified by their connection to their heritage, and for some by their vice is included. This hints to the reader that there is some relation between the two, which has a potential to influence how the following stories are interpreted. The prologue then directs this sentiment into a different direction. It gives a raw look at how centuries of having your ancestors being pursued, massacred, and reduced to television stereotypes can impact your worldview. Tommy Orange convincingly relays his interpretations of the Urban Indian in a way that encourages the reader to evaluate the characters in the story as a member of their in-group instead of watching with a conventional attitude of dismissiveness. This prologue detailing multiple different atrocities against previous generations of Natives plays an interesting dynamic with the titular ” There is no there there”. Dene understands the phrase to be applicable to his heritage in America, how the modernization removed the aspect of ancestral land that made it ancestral land, and without the culture of people there is just a pretty landscape. This ties into the prologue because it also applies to the American culture of previous generations that held contempt for the Natives and took violent action against them. The people that reduced the Natives from an entire continent to a few reservations are just as removed from people today as the fabled ancestral land is removed from the Urban Indians of today.
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I see the Prologue is a clarification. Tommy Orange makes it clear that his purpose in “There There” is to write about the human experiences of individuals with Native American heritage. These experiences cannot be properly understood without a functioning understanding of the historical context for the experiences that the novel details. Therefore, Orange chooses to begin his novel with a critical essay that clarifies the intent the following story. More importantly, the Prologue clarifies why the experiences shared in the novel are valid and meaningful.
The Prologue has two distinct aspects: the historical experiences and the urban experiences. Orange uses his commentary on the idea of authenticity and survival as the link between these two. From Orange’s own experiences he draws on the sentiment that Native American’s struggle with their identity as they are continually given new localities and societal expectations. Simultaneously, Orange voices concern over the criticism that Native Americans face for being unauthentic. While the prologue details some historical circumstances – from colonial Massachusetts, to the Sand Creek Massacre, until modern urbanization – which readers are already loosely aware of, its purpose more is to incorporate aspects of the experiential and personal identity history that I believe is a novel perspective to most readers.
The Gertrude Stein quote in Part I represents Orange’s discussion of authenticity in the Prologue very well. Dene’s experience with the conflicting interpretations of the Stein quote are the representation of how white America has a misguided view of Native American experiences. The narrative among Orange and the Native Americans in the novel thus far has repeatedly been that what was once ‘there’ simply no longer exists, in reference to the heritage that humans rely on for sourcing identity. Rather, the Native American experience is being shaped by individuals trying to find their identity while society fails to adequately recognize the legitimacy of a Native American heritage.
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In the Prologue of “There There,” Tommy Orange talks about the symbolism of the “Indian Head” in post-colonial America as well as other Native American inspired events such as Thanksgiving. Tommy Orange dispels these myth-inspired events and symbols through historical facts and anecdotes that encompass the brutality, massacres, and genocide Native Americans faced since the arrival of Columbus in the Americas to the western Indian Wars. For example, the Indian Head we commonly see on sports team logos, coins, and on old televisions originates from the dismembered head of the Native American Chief Metacomet. Metacomet was killed by American Rangers and an Indian named John Alderman after losing King Philips War. Metacomet’s head was sold to Plymouth Colony and displayed at Plymouth Fort for twenty-five years. Likewise, in 1853, a group of Texas Rangers killed a native Mexican bandit, cut off his head, and showcased it around California. They charged a dollar to see it. From there, the Prologue addresses the new “Urban Indian,” who instead of being accustomed to nature are accustomed to the city. They carry on the same spirit of their ancestors—just in a different environment. It is here that the symbolic brutality of the “Indian Head” meets the new challenges of living as a conquered people inside a metropolis of the conquers. This idea sets up the plot of “There There” and introduces the reader to the malicious acts Native Americans endured in history and are still enduring in a different form today.
The title of the text is first introduced when Dene reflects on Gertrude Stein’s quote, “There is no there there.” The quote’s significance is captured in the idea that Native American life was forever changed when Europeans stepped foot on the Americas and that Native Americans will never be able to return to their old ways of living. Though they still connect to their ancestor’s identity through forms of dress, dance, song, and stories, it will never be the same. This quote links the Prologue to the body of the novel in the idea that the “Urban Indian” struggles to find their identity in modern times under the burden of old symbolism and the memories of their ancestors. Of what once was there, will never be again.
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The prologue of “There There” plays an important role because it offers the readers context in the Native American culture. It illustrates a brief timeline that highlights some of the events that took place during the Native American’s transition from living on a reservation to urbanizing and moving to the cities. Tommy Orange is able to show this transition and their history by providing brief descriptions of the stories they had been told over the years. These stories are particularly gruesome. He provides context about King Philip and how he was forced to sign a peace treaty in order to give up all the Indian guns and gives details of his execution. He was caught, dismembered, and pinned up on trees while some of his body parts were sold. In another story, he describes a scene where the volunteer militia “tore babies out of bellies” and “broke soft baby heads against trees” (Orange 8). When describing the transition from the reservation to the city, he says, “the city made us new, and we made it ours” (Orange 8). They made it theirs by finding each other and bringing powwows, dances, songs, and by renting homes, going to school, joining the armed forces, and much more (Orange 9). Although they are not in the physical land where their ancestors once were, they are able to make Oakland their own and establish their own new identity through their culture. The prologue acts as a backdrop and foundation for the characters of the story. After reading the prologue and beginning part one of the story, readers are able to connect the characters to their history and one another.
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Tommy Orange’s life has a great impact on the structure of the novel, There There, as seen through my peers’ biographies. There are many obvious connections between Tommy Orange and the flow of the novel. First, the story revolves fully around the Native American culture and there non-typical daily life. Interesting enough, Orange Native American and part of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes. Furthermore, Orange was born in Oakland, where the story is the backdrop. The city of Oakland has a tremendous impact on the story. From the biographical information, Orange was a Urban mental worker for the city, and a aid to the native American community. His dedication to aid Native American’s is possibility what drove him to write this book, as many urban natives “don’t experience their own culture” (CDT Hoffman). I believe Orange is trying to get the message across to the native American people of Oakland, as he mentions, “Urbanity” as a title in the prologue. I don’t think this is the only reason he writes this book though. Orange is a son to a white mother and a Native American father. This relationship had a lot of tension as there was a schism between the mother and father. This relationship between “Native American and Evangelical” people is seen in the prologue through the mysterious stories (CDT Amaru). The prologue, from my point of view, is meant to foreshadow what the story is going to be about and is inspired through Orange’s own life. The real life drama supports the meaning behind the narrative of the story.
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The prologue powerfully sets a somber stage for this novel. Orange wastes no time tapping into the reader’s sympathy by delineating a handful of historical atrocities that found the Native Americans falling into the merciless hands of the colonists. One particular example that I think set the tone more than any other was the story of Metacomet (known as King Philip among the colonists) and King Philip’s War. To summarize what happened, Metacomet, who was the new chief of the Wampanoag tribe, signed a peace treaty with the colonists following the mysterious deaths of two hundred natives after a feast with the colonists. It appeared they had been poisoned. The colonists signed Metacomet’s treaty but quickly fell back into their atrocious habits by killing Metacomet’s brother. This hostile action led to what later became known as King Philip’s War. This war was marred with unspeakable acts of evil—not only did the superiorly equipped colonists annihilate the Native Americans but they dismembered the natives and sold their body parts. This war highlights a reoccurring theme of slaughter and cultural destruction found in the history of Native Americans ever since they first encountered European colonists. With examples like this freshly imprinted on the reader’s mind, the prologue leaves us shaking our head at the atrocities committed against the Native Americans, yet curious about how modern Native Americans live in this new culture.
Dene’s reflection on Stein’s quote regarding Oakland, “there is no there there” serves as an open-ended statement for the reader to ponder. Considering how this occurred not too far from the prologue, an easy connection to make is that Oakland, which used to be native land, is no longer what it once was. It had been altered to the point where it is no longer recognizable to the natives—indeed, the place they might once have referred to as “there” is no longer there. It has been replaced by a new “there,” one that is foreign to those who claim to know the past of this particular location. I think this quote and the questions it leaves us with will cause us to ask ourselves throughout the story questions about what Native American culture means today and if it can ever be the same as it once was, and if so, then to what extent and in what ways?
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The prologue opens with a quote about “dark times,” saying that there will be singing about these times. The following pages proceed to detail the dark times that befell Native Americans during the destructive rise of colonialism and industrialism in America. The narrator lists various incidents detailed in short summaries, as if there are so many dark events that they must bullet point them one by one. The prologue sets the stage for the rest of the book by providing the series of events that led the descendants of those Native Americans to where they are today. The troubles of today’s people can be traced back to those traumas and the mass genocide of an entire group of people. They show themselves in alcoholism, substance abuse, weight problems, disabilities, and domestic troubles. Though the individual story of each narrator may differ, they originate from the same cloth. They are negatively impacted by the actions of those before them and struggle to identify with their place in American society as a person of native descent. This current generation is the one that writes songs about the dark times, though they still are not able to pull themselves out of the dark times, facing problems that appear different though are ultimately the same.
Dene’s exposition of Stein’s quote sets up a routine example of the type of cultural negligence and appropriate that bothers him. Rob, the man he talks to, has no idea what it means to be from Oakland, really from “there there” like Dene is. Rob has come there and thinks it is his, just as Europeans came to the Americas centuries ago and renamed it their own. Both Rob and the early colonizers aren’t really from there. They don’t truly know or appreciate the land and its people, clouded by negligence, arrogance, and generations of destruction. Dene’s thoughts describe the underlying conflict that causes each character’s individual struggle.
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The prologue sets the stage for the rest of the novel. In “There There” Tommy Orange uses the prologue to provide an initial look at Native American culture (past and present) and how the Native people’s experiences have shaped who they are today. Orange uses harsh language such as “massacre” and “genocide” to highlight to the reader the struggles of the Native Americans (Orange 12). However, Orange finishes with a touch of positivity as he says, “We didn’t get lost amid the sprawl of tall buildings … we found one another” (Orange 13). The duality of the massacres and suffering of the past combined with the resoluteness of the present unite to form the mold for the rest of the novel.
Dene Oxendene’s reference to the title and then describing it as “there is no there there” shows the loss that the character feels. So much has changed in her hometown of Oakland “that the there of her childhood, the there there, was gone, there was no there there anymore” (Orange 33). This quote is synonymous to the rest of the Native American culture. Everything they knew before has changed before their eyes. The heritage that they once had is “buried… [in] grass and concrete wire and steel, unreturnable covered memory” (Orange 33). Dene clearly feels that their ancestry is gone and that an irreversible gap has arisen between the present generation and their ancestors; not because of time but because of a forced separation. This beginning part of the novel prepares the reader for the emotions that have already been shown and will continue to be shown for the rest of the novel; a sense of loss and an irrecoverable past.
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The Prologue of There There provides the foundation of the topic that will be discussed by author Tommy Orange. It provides a background of the Native American Culture. He begins by providing an example of Thanksgiving I the early part of the prologue. Then, he explains the torture that Native Americans went through all the way from the top of Canada and Alaska to the bottom of South America and how moving Indians to cities would be the last part in their assimilation. Tommy Orange intends to amplify the struggles that Native Americans had to go through to get to where they are today. He provides in depth details of particular events of history for us to really grasp the significance of what he is trying to mention throughout his story. The urbanization of Indians that Orange describes in the prologue is a foreshadowing of what is to come in the story itself.
In part one when Dene reflects on “there is no there there”(38), he is disappointed in what Oakland has become. Gentrification took over Oakland, and Dene misses what Oakland used to be as it was his way of connecting with his past and his heritage. She had an emotional connection to the city of Oakland before all of it was forcibly removed. I feel like this part of the story is only the beginning to many of the changes that will possibly be faced by the Native American culture in Oakland. Tommy Orange does a good job with connecting his readers with the character in the story and almost forcing them to see the issues from the Native American point of view.
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In Tommy Orange’s “There There,” he narrates the story of a handful of Native Americans residing in the urban city of Oakland, California. Throughout the text, he consistently hints at the violent and difficult times which Native Americans face in the contemporary world. Often, these people are forgotten about, and when they are paid attention to, they face unequal treatment. In the prologue, Orange recounts the painful and violent history of relations with the white populations. At first, a friendly land deal led to several more land deals, each favoring the whites more. Then came the slaughter, cruel murders of their people then disenfranchisement. By including this portion of the book and giving the first part a somber, dark tone, Orange pushes the reader to assess the text with a renowned perception of the struggle. By telling the history of Native Americans, the reader experiences a shock which opens their eyes to the problems which Native Americans face today, evident in Part 1, where Tony Loneman touches on the plights of himself, his mother, and friends. Regarding Dene’s reflection, his perspective on how white people see him seems troubled, as they don’t know his true heritage. This becomes apparent in the topic of “there is no there there,” which Rob aims at the Native population of Oakland, not aware that Dene is a Native American. In response, Dene sees this comment as a derogatory, offensive statement and belief about those who live in Oakland. Further, he believes it is opinions and people like Rob who built on top of Natives and coined the term in its negative connotation. This exposition shows the reader that sometimes, the white population tends to overlook and hold an explicit prejudice against Native Americans.
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The prologue is a set up to the story, and provides backgrounds about Native Americans in general. It shows stories and myths, and how they are perceived by others. Additionally, it sets a tone for the story. The narrator is discussing somber events, and how the Native Americans were generally forced out of their land, or cheated by the white men, or just killed in general. This sets the story up to show how things can be unfair to those who are born with less. The Native Americans did not have the same technology as the Europeans, and were therefore dominated and forced to comply with the Europeans or face war. Finally, the prologue creates a feeling of sympathy within the reader. Orange uses the stories of mistreatment and unfairness of the Native Americans in order to create a feeling of sympathy within the reader, so a better connection can be made. Dene’s reflection on the quote “There is no there there” serves to show that nothing is how it once was. In the story, everything seems to change at a quick rate. The Native Americans used to own the land of Oakland, but as the prologue pointed out, it was quickly taken away from them as foreign people came and took the land away. Saying that “there is no there there” shows that things have change over time, and everything that once belonged to the Native Americans have changed. Now, instead of being the people who could live off the land, they are simply living on the land, and forced to work a hard life at a disadvantage because of their heritage.
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In Tommy Orange’s book “There There,” the prologue plays the role of the mood and stage setter. In the prologue, you can almost determine the direction and mood the rest of the book will take by providing a small window into the topics the rest of the book will dive into. The prologue starts off with an excerpt by Bertolt Brecht which reads “In the dark times/ Will there also be singing?/ Yes, there will also be singing/ About the dark times,” which sets a dramatic and seemingly colorless overtone for the rest of the chapter. The rest of the prologue talks about the injustices and the tragedies that the Native American people have suffered through. The narrative effect on the prologue seems to provide a more personal feel to the story, and better allows the reader to watch the story unfold in front of them, and establishes more credibility. Tommy Orange also happens to be a member of the Cheyenne Tribe of Oklahoma, and wants others to better understand the plight of his people, so he writes in the more narrative style. Following the prologue, we get a reference to the title of the book on page 38. The quote reads “There is no there there,” and I believe this quote is a reflection of how Dene believes that Oakland is not the same Oakland that he knew. I believe his meaning is that There (the state of being) is no there ( his there/ special place) there (Oakland). I think the significance of the quote on Native American history reveals, the Native American’s feelings about the lands they once owned and lived over. With all the urbanization their native lands would now be unrecognizable to what it was when they had it, so even though it is the same lands, at the same time it is not because all the culture and history has been drained out from the lands.
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Timothy Peyton Harris-
Orange begins his novel through a prologue in which he tells tales of Indians and how these tales have been altered. His first tale is the tale of thanksgiving but he shows that the holiday that we celebrate is nothing more than a lie as the settlers of Plymouth brutalized the Indians that we claim they had found peace with. Orange tells other brutal tales and then tells about how we have tried to kill Indian society through urbanizing them. This sets the stage for the novel by showcasing the lies that we have been told about our relationship to native Americans and the violence that they have faced and, in many ways, still do face. From that point Orange tells a series of tales surrounding the “urbanized Indians” of Oakland. Unlike the previous tales of Indians like the tale of the first thanksgiving these tales are not made to be pleasant. These tales show the suffering and the plight of a people whose entire culture has been shattered and how they connect with their heritage. These tales often show similar struggles such as how many of them deal with the problems that the community faces with alcoholism. The first tale deals with this problem in a very pungent way by making Tony Loneman a victim of fetal alcohol syndrome (the drome) and Dene Oxedene who lost his uncle to alcoholism and sees his mother torn up about the loss while he uses the loss as a driving motivation to move forward. Orange has introduced several themes in the first section of the book, and I am excited to discover more as I continue to delve into this work.
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Tommy Orange in his novel There There, examines the perspectives and interconnected narratives of a number of Native American individuals as they head towards a powwow being held in the Oakland Colosseum. The setup can only happen and be understood by the reader with a given history of Native American struggles throughout American History. Placing this at the beginning of the book gives the reader a foundation to have a constant reminder of the death and destruction faced by Native Americans and their culture and this history should be at least passively referenced in the face of the prejudice and discrimination experienced by the characters.
Dene Oxendene’s chapter sees him applying for a grant to continue the project idea of his deceased uncle, a film of interviews of Native Americans in the Oakland area. His reflection on the quote, “There is no there there”, is important to understanding the overall ideas of the novel. The quote is made in relation to Oakland, California. The starting point for this discussion is a man discussing the land values in parts of the city. He uses the idea that there really isn’t an identity to the city and echoes the sentiments of developers seeking to bring a “community” to the city. This idea is central to the idea of gentrification where minorities are forced out of their homes because developers make land values too expensive to afford. Dene silently discusses, out of fear that he won’t win the grant, the real meaning behind the quote. The quote actually meant that the developers had taken the community sense from Gertrude Stein’s childhood in Oakland. This could also be applied to the idea of Native Americans having their homes taken for development and this idea is constant throughout the rest of the work.
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The Prologue of Tommy Orange’s novel There There influences our reading in part 1 because it provides a brief but thorough overview of the struggles American Indians have faced throughout their history. It highlights the brutality they met, the misconceptions of the first “Thanksgiving,” the “Indian Termination Act,” and the overall mistreatment they suffered at the hands of American colonizers. I always knew that American Indians were not treated with dignity by colonists, but I did not know the worst of it. I did not know that after the first thanksgiving, “200 Indians dropped dead that night from an unknown poison” or that that colonists celebrated “successful massacres” by dancing and parading the heads of Indians on spikes (Orange P.1). The divulgence this information explains the history that has been taught in schools forever but from a different perspective. The way in which the prologue was delivered, as a bunch of little anecdotes, set up the trend of the novel; as an account of multiple stories that cumulatively describe American Indians. For example, in Dene Oxendene’s section, the reader explores the meaning of Gertrude Stein’s quote, “There is no there there.” We see how it is not only important to Dene and his home of Oakland, but also to the Native American people. Dene interprets the quote not as a bad thing but as a statement that what used to be his home, Native lands, has undergone so much urbanization so much change that the there that used to be there is no longer there; it is still his home, but it has significantly changed. I believe this interpretation of Stein’s quote is necessary to distinguish because it represents how the homes and cultures of Native Americans have not gone anywhere, they are just not the same as they used to be, the same as before colonization. Furthermore, I believe that Dene’s interpretation of this quote, and the title of the novel, is a representation of the stance Orange is going to take throughout the novel. Orange wants to stress that Native Americans do still exist just not in the way that is taught in schools. Native American culture has adapted, and this novel is Tommy Orange’s way of establishing a new understanding of who American Indians are, not what they were.
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The prologue introduces the long discrimination and hardships that the Native Americans faced since the beginning of European settlement. The prologue first introduces the holiday Thanksgiving. The first Thanksgiving marked a time that European colonists force unfair deals on natives to get land. On the other hand, “thanksgivings” were often held after successful attacks on Indians. Tommy Orange goes on to depict the savageness that the Europeans had themselves. They hung the head of Metacomet, a leader of the Wampanoags on a stick to boast about their success in defeating a tribe. Once, in the streets of Manhattan, colonists kicked around indian heads as if it were a game. The prologue further addresses other indian struggles throughout history. The prologue explains that indians are never just indians. They are people defined by somebody else. They are believed to be backwards and underdeveloped. As a result, the white people try to force assimilation on the Indians to stop the backwards culture. The prologue sets up our entire view for the rest of the book. It’s impossible to forget what we just read about the treatment of the Native Americans. The prologue ends with the assimilation of Indians into the American culture, and it is not coincidental that part one takes place in the lives of several indians who are in a time of assimilation and it takes us through their current journey of life and how they react to the American culture. The quote by Gertrude Stein “There is not there there” forces Dene to reflect on his hardships as well as the hardships of past native americans. I interpreted Dene’s exopsition as there is nothing left of the Indian culture because it has essentially been destroyed by the white people. The culture has dwindled because of assimilation. Indians don’t live on huge reservations and practice their beliefs. Instead many of them live in cities. In Dene’s case, Oakland is the city that many natives have come and must blend in. Overall, the quote represents the fight against assimilation and the destruction it has had on the different cultures of the Native American tribes.
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The prologue gives the reader something very important. This book is written by an American Indian and each part of it has narratives from American Indians. The prologue gives us a history. It is not a plain or neutral one, but a passionate and sad one. The author wants the reader to recognize all the bad things that have happened to American Indians as a whole, though not necessarily fully reflective of their post-Colombian history. It is meant to emotionally affect the reader, and to give them a new lens through which to observe the text that is to follow. The narrative itself is very sporadic and creates a web of symbols and images that are supposed to be familiar to us, and are supposed to be cruel at the same time. When we get to Dene Oxendene’s first entry, we are given a paragraph that is very important to the work as a whole. In this paragraph, the Gertrude Stein quote about there being “-no there, there”, is introduced. It is meant to be directly analogous to the plight of American Indians not just in North America, but in South America as well. Her quote is explained to mean that the place she grew up in and was familiar with had changed so much, that it had been swept away and no longer existed. Even though for the author of this book, this culture may never really have existed for him, it did exist for his people as a whole, in their collective past. He is reaching back to a golden age that no longer exists, and has been swept away, and he and many of his people feel a connection to it, as if they miss it, even though they were never a part of it. This gives the reader another lens through which to read the rest of the novel. It is similar to the prologue, and really just reinforces it.
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I believe that prologue is best characterized as a story of a terrible history. In the prologue, Tommy Orange contextualizes the book in the context of some horrible ways that the Native Americans have been treated and subjugated in history. The prologue influences our reading and opinions of Part 1 and beyond by setting the tone and atmosphere because it is part of the context of understanding the whole story. The story that appears in the prologue about the Massacre was horrific; yet, it was important to understand. Orange wrote the prologue for people to understand the truth in a compelling way. Orange wanted people to grasp the concept of what it really means to be a Native American living in the United States in modern-day times and trying to fully capture the urban Native American experience. When you analyze the prologue, you can see the social message Orange is conveying. When Dene reflects upon Gertrude Stein’s description of Oakland—“there is no there there” (38) I would interpret Dene’s exposition on Stein’s quote as Stein referencing how she grew up on land in Oakland that she was familiar to, but when she leaves and then returns she finds that the land she grew up on was unrecognizable. The significance of this quote in regards to the Native culture and history shows how the Native Americans experienced what it means to be a Native growing up in the city/an urban environment.
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The prologue was more shocking than anything to be because we hear about the stories of Natives and the Colonists, but we rarely ever get to see it from the perspective of the Native’s. I would characterize the prologue as unjust. It is unjust to me because it is the unjust treatment of people who had no right to be treated unfair.
Stein, when saying his quote, refers to Oakland as a place no one is actually from, people just so happen to end up there. Yet, it isn’t the physical place of Oakland that he is not from, it’s because the city has changed so much from what it used to be. The significance of the quote ties back into comparing Oakland to the Native lands. They have both changed so much in terms of physical appearance, things just are not the same from what they used to be.
To me, Dene’s reflection of “there is no there there” influences the reading of the narrative by opening up our eyes. For example, after he gives his presentation, another Native man argues with him thinking his idea lacks vision, the soul purpose of what he was trying to do. Yet, another man, a Black Judge, agrees with Dene showing others that all stories become important no matter who or where they come from. This influences us because it could become a foreshadow of someone else’s story that has yet to be heard.
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The prologue influences our reading by bringing to attention the wrongs that were committed by the white settlers and showing the background and recent history of the people we are about to read about. Each section in the prologue talks about how natives have been in the wrong since the white settlers arrived. They were beaten, killed, dismembered, sold, enslaved among other wrongs. Their land was unrightfully taken, they were forced to surrender, their leaders were killed and put on display and they have been forced to assimilate. The reason this prologue is included is to give readers background to what they might not understand. School systems do not teach most of what is talked about in the prologue, so many do not know the recent history of the Native peoples. It gives background to the reader as to who we are about to read about. I interpret Dene’s explanation of the quote as a way of saying that he never really feels at home in Oakland. By understanding the meaning of the quote in the sense that urbanization destroyed what once was, I believe that Dene thinks he does not belong in the current Oakland. This influences our reading because we can truly understand how out of place the Native community really is. They had their land taken from them over and over again until what they remember as “there” is gone. There is no real home for them anymore.
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The Prologue in “There There” by Tommy Orange presents the factually correct retelling of major events throughout Native American history with the coming of settlers in the post-Columbus era. Citing the explanation of the event that would later become Thanksgiving as actually a land deal, that would eventually culminate in a large killing of the Wampanoag tribe. More importantly, this story and that of the Texan Rangers places an emphasis on the brutality of the circumstance and what would transpire. That being the beheading and mutilation of Native Americans. Something that might add to this conversation is that the concept of drawing and quartering a person was a fairly common practice in the 1200s to 1600s, with numerous figures such as William Wallace being subjected to it. It also tells the story of the massacre of the Pequot in 1637 which had similar implications of mutilation. I would cite these themes of loss and death as a way that the author creates the tone of the book, at least initially by creating a literary backdrop to scenes filled with somber and saddening circumstances. In regards to the quote “there is no there there” (38), I think paired with the circumstances mentioned in the prologue, it emphasizes that such unfortunate experiences cannot be devalued or forgotten. As the author talks about after the quote, it is about the very different experiences between Native Americans and others. I think the quote much like that of the prologue is a way to differentiate the circumstances the Native American people face and remind the readers of the very deadly and harmful circumstances that the book covers, as a result, it grounds the book in a reality that those who might not necessarily live with the same circumstances can come to understand the gravity of the situations presented.
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The book opens with the prologue, which introduces the readers to the mindset of the author and explains some of the stylistic decisions he makes throughout the novel. It provides a historical context for the themes of the novel by explaining some of the tragic history regarding Native Americans in our country. He often uses graphic imagery to describe some of the atrocities committed against natives. An example of this is when he describes the colonist being proud of and parading around dismembered Indian body parts. He also describes the dark history behind aspects of normal American life today. An example of this is when he describes the events that occurred in the new England colonies soon after the famous feast we know today as thanksgiving. The natives there were driven off their land in an extended Indian war that took many lives. Despite this previous hardship, the author explains that Native culture is still strong even though their lifestyles have changed drastically. He says that the urban Indians know the sound of a freeway better than a river, and the Oakland skyline better than a mountain range. This comparison tells us that the urban Indians are applying their traditional beliefs to a modern setting and develop a strong community around this. As Dene reflects upon Gertrude Stein’s quote, she seeks to reference the change in the landscape of Oakland across in regard to Native life, and her own experiences. It began as a wild landscape where local tribes lived in their traditional ways. Then it became the small town that she remembered as a child. Finally, it became the big city that is now unrecognizable to her.
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The prologue sets the stage for the book and allows readers to empathize with Native Americans. It reminds the reader of the terrible treatment of Native Americans and the injustices they face. Tommy Orange uses specific examples of the injustices Native Americans faced, such as describing what actually lays behind the reason for the Thanksgiving feast. The descriptive language he uses sparks an emotion in the reader and the examples he gives help to verify what he is saying. The prologue gives a background and history about Native Americans and the troubles they face. Orange explains how Native Americans were relocated to urban centers. This prologue not only gives the reader an emotional investment in Orange’s words, but it also gives Orange credibility. The reader now has a different mindset when reading and can empathize more with all the characters for the rest of the narrative.
When Dene reflects on the quote, “there is no there there” he shows what white American culture has done. What used to belong to Native Americans, including Oakland, was taken over, and here Orange is talking about what he describes in the prologue. Dean reflects on the Native American culture and ethnicity in Oakland, which no longer exists. I think when he says this he means there is no Native American culture there, which was what Oakland was, hence there is no “there,” or Native American culture and everything that made Oakland what it was, “there” (in Oakland). This, like the prologue, helps us to empathize with Dene and have a stronger emotional connection to the narrative.
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I am really enjoying the start of Tommy Oranges, “There There.” Starting off with the prologue, I was very interested in how it set up my perspective for part one. In particular Orange’s brief histories of thanksgivings throughout early colonial history. He describes how Native Americans were poisoned at a thanksgiving meal in 1621, and how other colonies, even Plymouth have recorded stories of Native American’s being quartered (26). Orange doesn’t claim that the Thanksgiving Americans celebrate today is a coverup or built with false pretense, but he doesn’t have to. His stories automatically make the reader challenge their perspective the last four hundred years of Native American History. Moving on to Tony Loneman’s story, I was intrigued by how Tony’s intellectual abilities added to the story he is trying to tell. It feels like a very simple story, but it is also very personable which stokes more personal connection. I think this comes from the street smarts that he says he has, and I think he also has a level of emotional intelligence that makes his easy to relate to. Dene’s story is my favorite so far, however. I really like how Orange jumps back and forth in the timeline. This gives a confusing effect, but it also highlights how closely Dene’s project is connected to his uncle and unfortunately his death. I found the conversation with the other candidate interesting (about the quote there there), but I found Dene’s interaction with the Native American Judge more meaningful. I didn’t quite know what Orange intended readers to get out of that interaction, but I could tell there was something important about the possible discrimination that the older Native American showed the younger mixed Native American. Overall, I found part 1 to be intriguing and I am looking forward to the next phase of their stories.
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I believe that the way in which Tommy Orange sets up the story with a prologue is to help connect the various characters that he introduces in part one. He does this by describing the larger struggles of Native Americans in history and in particular the Native Americans of Oakland. By showing the larger struggle he can connect all his characters as people who represent something larger. The struggles that each character goes through is the same and builds on something beyond just them. I think that this is further expanded upon with the various characters being in different time periods. I see this as showing how regardless what point in time they are in the struggle is the same and that they are still connected even if they are separated by decades. I believe that the prologue also allows us to separate their struggles as a people and their personal struggles. By using the prologue to highlight the struggles of Native Americans we can differentiate them from the many characters personal struggles in life such as Tony Loneman’s struggle with fetal alcohol syndrome or Edwin Black’s addiction to the internet. While these characters may be connected in a larger struggle, they still have their own personal roadblocks that they encounter and over come in their own lives. It allows us to see them as a people and individuals. Not only do we have the context to see their stories as a part of a larger narrative, but we also see their own little stories.
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The Prologue traces the history of the urban life of the Amerindians by describing the plight of the Amerindians in the country and the “evolution” (but not by choice) of their way of life compared to what it is today. The prologue is told with an interesting fascination with Indian heads as symbols, a symbol of what culture expects from them and the exploitation of their culture with the Indian head on television and for what they have been pursued throughout. The story with the stories of massacres and bullets goes through heads, but it also shares a Cheyenne myth about a rolling head. He discusses the resettlement of Native Americans in society in order to crush their culture, but in this passage, he reflects on how urban Indians have evolved to better understand “the Oakland skyline better than we do” let’s identify a sacred mountain range ”. (Orange 11). This evolution of what has become the land of the natives is interesting when we look at it with the Dene exhibition of the quote from Gertrude Stein, because it seems that Oakland has become a “there” for the relocated natives. At the end of the prologue, the narrator reflects: “Being Indian has never been to return to earth. The earth is everywhere or nowhere “, which indicates that the Oakland Indians do not lose their” there “, yet their” there “is different from the” there “of their ancestors (Orange, 11 Dene did not appreciate the guy from Rob who had just dropped Stein’s quote without any analysis or ownership of it as if he felt the Indians should quote it, it seemed as if Dene saw the quote as a reflection of the “over there Lost from”. However, in the preface, the narrator mentions that “everything comes from something that preceded” (Orange, 11). So, despite the fact that the Oakland Indians have a different lifestyle and a “there “Different from that of his ancestors, this prologue and the Dene exposition of Stein’s quote set the tone that history will analyze the” there “that the Oakland Indians possess and how it evolved and how they are trying to maintain an idea of what belongs to them in this new environment.
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The prologue of “There There” by Tommy Orange describes the heritage and culture of Native Americans. He provides the reader with brief history of Massasoit and his son Metacomet also known as King Philip. Then the author tells a story about Indian Head which was supposed be the symbol of the New World. Throughout whole prologue he attempts to depict the transition of Native Americans from old to new reality. He describes the city of Oakland where he comes from, highlight the fact that “Urban Indians” fully accommodated to the city. “We came to know the downtown Oakland skyline better than we did any sacred mountain range, the redwoods in the Oakland hills better than any other deep wild forest. (Orange 14) The prologue exemplifies the difference between younger and older generations of Native Americans and the variability of their perception. Younger generations tend to lose connection to their Indian heritage and are fully assimilated. In the first part Dene reveals what the title “there there” means. When Rob mentions the quote from Gertrude Stein “there is no there there,” he relates it to his Indian heritage and Gertrude’s and his place of born – Oakland, which completely different, the same as Native Americans who lives there. Dean shows his emotions, he fells contempt for Rob, who does not know what the quote really means. What is more, we can absorb his sadness from narrative. For Native Americans in Oakland and in the US where is a lot of “glass and concrete and wire and steel,” memory cannot be returned, because there is no there there (38).
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Tommy Orange’s novel, There There, strives to depict the modern day native american experience through an authentic lens has already proven to be a fascinating page turner. I believe the prologue which serves as a contextual lift for an audience, like myself, who is predominantly unbeknownst to the plight, does a tremendous job at presenting the alternative to common american history and distinguishing differences between myth and truth in its narrative.
A part of the prologue that stood out to me the most was Orange’s comments on urban indians. He writes, “We came to know the downtown Oakland skyline better than we did any sacred mountain range…We know the sound of the freeway better than we do rivers… which isn’t traditional, like reservations aren’t traditional, but nothing is original, everything comes from something that came before, which was once nothing” (Orange, p. 11-12). When describing a mountain range, Orange’s particular use of the word “sacred” appears somewhat sarcastic. As if to hint towards the reader some of the arbitrary generalizations that mainstream society expects out of native americans. A prejudiced belief that their progeny must be conceived of an identity inherently exclusive and incapable of anything else. Specifically in this context: the underlying assumption that urban and indian cannot fully coexist in the same being. Orange’s direct confrontation of this perspective subsequently invites the reader to initiate a new understanding through an exploration into the lives of his characters.
Extending into Dene Oxendane’s story, I interpret Stein’s quote almost in the same fashion as Dene does. That there is this truth, a physical history, one so unique and essential to the native american identity, now, tarnished, transformed, and eventually, overwritten. Thus, Dene’s reflection on this quote sparks Orange’s thematic thread, one quite similar to what we explored in Sherman Alexie’s work “What You Pawn I Will Redeem,” that life for Native Americans has never been stable. It is history underscored by constant adaptation and new beginnings from one generation to the next. An ultimate battle to start a new life, yet maintain one’s cultural identity.
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The prologue to Tommy Orange’s Novel “There There”, details the violent nature to which Native Americans were faced with in the early stage of settlement of North America by white settlers encroaching upon their land. What he speaks to is what seems to be a mass eradication of not only natives themselves but also the culture they have shared for many years prior to the settlers arrival. This cruelty is documented in much detail such as the way the colonist themselves mutilated in ways that are almost unspeakable in their very nature. The point being made by the narration of the prologue is that these massacres at the hands of white colonists have been a stain on the very fabric of Native culture and their way of life to even this very day. The forced assimilation at the hands of the white man and even appropriation of their own culture made a mockery of the rich ancestry these natives held dearly. But despite all this hardship, the rich native community still managed to carry on in the cities that they settled despite what is described as the white America’s drive to root it out from the very land. It goes on to talk of the urban Indian, who though at never seen the open plains their forefathers once roamed, continued as best they could to adapt to the life they belonged even from city spaces. These Natives born in the bondage of a culture not of their own, in some form or another lived on despite everything being so called new and doomed.
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In the first chapter, we are able to see that Dene struggles making all of his decisions based upon his emotions and a song he listens to reminds him not to do that. Furthermore, we see a correlation to Native American history through his uncle who Dene was disappointed to find out he was a drunk. He was told his uncle Lucas made Hollywood movies, but turns out he was a mic operator instead and just made up the stories. Native Americans in their past passed down all of their history through stories. The prologue hints at the white Americans destroying not only the Native Americans physically, but their stories culturally by interrupting their rituals. Another odd thing I found in the story, was that Dene wrote lens on everything. I wonder if he is trying to hint that he will be a lens for the world to see the Native American culture and what was done to them. This is made more evident when he discusses his movie prompt to the panel of judges and that he wants to make people understand Native American culture. Also, hints that Dene will be the storyteller in the story. The quote “There is no there there” is really quite sad. I believe it is in reference to the Native Americans home that the prologue discussed being destroyed. The quote is saying there homes and culture and lifestyle they used to have isn’t there anymore.
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Tommy Orange goes makes sure a few points are established and that a mood is set before starting the novel There There. To do this, he wrote a nine-page prologue that covers a range of topics and events related to the oppression of Indian people. He first explains a few key moments in United States history in which white people had been responsible for Indian deaths, such the Sand Creek Massacre. Orange talks about disturbing and heartbreaking details from the event like Indian women and children having to hide in the sand by the creek and then the parading of severed body parts and corpses in Denver, Colorado following the attack. The inclusion of these details presents the novel in a serious way, causing readers to make no mistake that this book will not hold back from sad story lines and gruesome details. Orange then describes cultural events like Thanksgiving and claims that it is not an inclusive holiday, because of the actions of violent pilgrims. He prefaces the talk about violence by saying that the idea of the Native American Indian being sacrificial and violent is a construct from white people like Mel Gibson. Essentially, the prologue causes you to feel bad for the characters that you read about in the beginning of the book (as if the sad story lines he creates aren’t enough). The prologue acts as a foundation for which Orange wants to build his readers’ understanding of modern Indian struggles on, and it creates a mood for the novel that can be described as sorrowful. Related to the mood and themes that the prologue establishes, the reference to the title in Dene’s chapter is interesting, because his interpretation of Stein’s quote explains the relationship between the title and the novel. The term “there there” is used to describe a place of meaning for someone, like their childhood home and the Stein quote explains that the “there there” doesn’t exist in Oakland anymore. The quote resonates with Dene, because he is saddened by the loss of Indian culture and uniqueness that came with having Indian neighborhoods that cease to exist. This relates to the prologue quite directly in the sense that loss of land and culture drives the novel.
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In the novel “There There,” written by Tommy Orange, the prologue is used to set the tone of the book. It plays into the reader’s emotions by telling the American history from the Natives’ perspective. An idea that what the natives are telling is the truth and what we (as Americans) have learned in school for so many years, was just a coverup of all the bad things we did. The prologue also shows how this change effected the different generations of Natives. In Dene Oxendene’s first chapter, the reference to the book’s title and Gertude Stein’s description is very interesting. Rob, the guy who mentions the quote in the first place, uses it to say that there really is no one from Oakland. However, Dene explains the meaning of the quote. Gertude “was talking about how the place where she’d grown up in Oakland had changed so much, that so much development had happened there, that the there of her childhood, the there there was gone, there was no there there anymore” (38-39). Just like how the Americans had come and developed the natives land and even pushed them off of their original land. Americans forever changed the Native Americans way of living by stepping foot on the land and bringing their germs and guns. By overtaking the land, they also took part of the Native American culture. Though they tried to keep the connection to its traditions by dressing up and going to powwows, it was not the same as it was before the Americans came. The varying interpretations of the quote shows the different education perspectives they received and the culture of Oakland.
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The way Tommy Orange constructed the novel There There is unique and enhances the story in many ways. Orange immediately shows courage before the story even starts. Orange uses the Prologue to highlight difficult truths to the history of the Native American. The Prologue is shocking, profound and bold. I think the purpose is to get the reader’s attention and generate emotion and curiosity about more of the stories of the Native Americans. One part of the Prologue that was especially shocking was the part about the origins of Thanksgiving. The Prologue influences the reading connecting it to reality making each story seem realistic. I also think it reminds readers just how important it is to recognize and learn about this subject on the deepest of levels. The way Orange chose to write the narration also brings forth an everlasting effect. Tommy Orange himself Native American uses inclusive words like “we” and “us”. This emphasizes that the effects of the suppression of Indians and the massacres continue for generations. The Prologue is not something that can be ignored and voices many horrific events of history. As character is encountered the different battles Native Americans face are revealed. In Dene Oxendene’s chapter the title is referenced. I interpret Dene’s explanation of this quote shows a much deeper meaning. I think this interpretation is important because it shows how people in the United States are unaware of each other’s hardships. I think the point of this encounter is to stress so much was taken from the Natives and was also forgotten. This influences the reading as providing another perspective or “lens” as Dene might say, to the urban life.
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I would characterize the prologue as an important background that the reader must know to understand Tommy Orange’s perspective. He describes the Indian Head Test Pattern, how it depicted an Indian head surrounded by circles that looked like rifle sights. It shows the insensitivity towards Native Americans. He also describes how Native American imagery has become commercialized, and how their history has become forgotten. Orange wrote the prologue because most readers will not consciously remember these things, so he must remind them with the prologue.
The quote by Gertude Stein “there is no there there” means that Oakland had changes so much that place she had grown up was no longer there. When applied to Native Americans, it describes how America has developed and industrialized so much that it is no longer the place that the Native Americans once inhabited, wiping all trace of their existence. This influences our reading, reminding them that the Native Americans are trying their best to keep their culture alive through powwows and being active in their communities to prevent their culture from dying.
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The Prologue of There There by Tommy Orange sets the tone for the title of the novel. It describes, in detail, the many tragedies forced upon the Native Americans by white colonizers. It also serves the important purpose of introducing the concept of “Urban Indians”, who have adapted to life in the city in the same way their ancestors adapted to nature. After the complete disenfranchisement of Native peoples throughout American history, it is no wonder we find many of these Native characters struggling to get by in the novel. As these Natives were stripped of their land and ways of life, they left behind children unable to carry on their culture. This leaves many of the “Urban Indians” in a struggle to find their identity, a dilemma many of the characters in the book find themselves in. The quote from Gertrude Stein relates to this fight for a disappearing culture. Dene explains that, as Indian lands are buried both literally, in construction, and figuratively, as history’s myths cover up their story, the “there there” of true Indian culture is disappearing. This is his main motivation to collect Native American stories, in all of their variety, to convey the new Native identity. These passages show that, despite all that has been taken from them, these new, “Urban”, Native people are fighting to preserve the remnants of their lineage that they can salvage, while also forging a new, shared identity of perseverance.
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It seems to me that this book is an attempt to redefine Native Americans, at least in the Author’s eyes. The prologue is full of terrible stories, atrocities and massacres carried out against his people for centuries. But the purpose of his book is not to highlight the sad nature of native people. On the other hand, it seems to be the exact opposite. Tommy Orange does not want the Natives to be viewed through the European vision that so frequently had dominated perceptions of Native Americans. As I said before, his story feels like it is trying to redefine Native Americans. Because of this, I believe that the purpose of the prologue is to show how Native Americans got to where they are today. The tragedies of the past have contributed to the current state of Native life, but they are not the only defining moments. That is why Orange also puts a description of the Urban Native in his prologue. The short nine pages work to create the background for Orange’s characters. They are all urban natives, like the ones he describes at the end of the prologue, and his description is important and unique. His focus on war particularly stands out, as it seems to later represent the war that each urban native fights within themselves. Conflict runs throughout the book, and the battles that each character has with different things (crime, drugs, alcohol, abuse) are similar to the constant war that he describes exists in cities. The Natives are not necessarily shot down in cold blood by the US Military anymore, but they certainly still fight a battle to maintain their livelihood and their culture.
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The prologue of There There is effective in providing a background about the evolution of Native Americans and the different struggles they have gone through, while also introducing the characters of the book. Tommy Orange makes his purpose for writing his novel clear through his vulgar descriptions of the atrocities that have faced Native Americans since the early 1400s. Beginning the book with historical events such as the ones Orange speaks of, provides a solid historical context that helps the reader understand the characters and events in the book better. While the beginning of the prologue is very bleak, Orange goes on to discuss how Native Americans have adapted to their modern surroundings and maintain a bond despite the past hardships of their ancestors. They have moved into the cities, away from reservations, making it more difficult to maintain the traditions of their culture. Orange can write about these topics so passionately because of his own background, which will be heavily reflected in the novel. Orange fits the category of Native Americans he describes, as he grew up in Oakland, California, very removed from his culture. Orange struggled with this identity all of his life, which is another reason why it was so important for him to create There There as a platform to convey an important message that resonates with not only native people with similar struggles, but to outsiders who are unaware of the situation. The Gertrude Stein quote that is referenced gives good insight to the city of Oakland and the history of it. “There is no there there” (38) refers to Oakland, CA, which used to be home to mainly Native Americans until the whites took it over and forced Natives to assimilate to city life. The culture that once lived in Oakland is now gone, making people believe that the Native Americans are too, when in reality they are still there among the rest of the population, struggling to find their identities in a modern world.
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Tommy Orange opens in an unusual, however interesting manner. The prologue, which in many novels, goes undissected by readers is a key opening and is imperative to understanding the rest of the novel. Orange’s essay-like timeline and analysis of Native Americans depict the repeated trauma Native Americans have suffered at the hands of colonists since their arrival in the 1400s. The prologue sets the stage for the continuous problems Native Americans have suffered during modern times as their culture has been consumed by white Americans that have stripped the Native Americans of their rich heritage. As Native Americans have begun to leave reservations and move into cities, their culture has changed as well. Native Americans face struggles from their ancestor’s past while simultaneously having struggles of their own in this new world that seems determined to erase their culture. It seems as though each generation of Native Americans is destined to face a struggle that resembles that of their ancestors’ struggles before them; Native Americans are such in this repeating cycle of constantly being encroached upon by the people that have taken their land from them. Every generation loses touch of their roots further and further. To understand the novel, a reader must first understand the history of the Native American people. Tommy Orange is able to beautifully craft an explanation of their struggles by simply displaying history that speaks for itself.
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The prologue introduces us to the lens that the author, Tommy Orange, wants us to look through while reading the book. It gives a brief interpretation of how the author believes Native American people were mistreated throughout the past hundreds of years and how the Native people have been incorporated into modern society. The prologue gives the foundation for part I, because without it, the reader is left to wonder why certain characters are in the rough positions that they are in. The prologue lets the reader know what to expect before starting part I.
In part I, Dene Oxendene focuses on tradition and capturing other Native’s stories. The reader can see this when Dene goes faces a discussion board to try and receive a grant that would involve filming Natives while discussing their stories. Gertrude Stein’s quote regarding Oakland, “there is no there there,” strikes home with Dene because he holds deep meaning to the quote, and he is disgruntled when he feels as if it is interpreted incorrectly. Dene interprets this quote with regards to his Native culture because he feels as if the tradition in his culture is going away. He feels as if the Native culture has been “developed over.” In general, there are strong Native ties to Oakland, but there are no places to retrieve “covered memories,” and no “there there.” Seeing a link to the title of the book in the text early on catches the reader’s attention and links the information given in the prologue to the text.
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In Tommy Orange’s There There, the prologue sets the stage with the reminder of the brutality that Native American’s faced. Through the explanation of the industrialization and colonization, readers see and feel how the Native American’s were exploited from their land and the treatment they had to endure when colonists arrived. The narrator sets up the rest of the story by giving a summary of occurrences that led the Native American’s to where they are today. The mass genocide and constant mistreatment of this group of people created a long-lasting memory that leads to many of the issues faced by Native Americans today. Though this treatment allowed Native Americans to ban together and become closer as they had to rely on each other to survive these horrific events, Native American’s still struggle to find their identity and identify with their culture as the horrific treatment caused them to question who they are and whether or not being who they are was good enough to survive the colonization and industrialization of their homeland.
Dene’s description of the title and stating “there is no there there” exemplifies the loss of a place and an area that was once so well known by the people who lived there. The changes made to Oakland make it so unidentifiable, just like what happened when the Europeans came to the Americans and changed it to match their needs. Everything that was once known, is “buried… [in] grass and concrete wire and steel, unreturnable covered memory” (Orange 33). The beginning of the novel sets up the rest of the story with a sense of loss and a memory of the past that is unavoidable.
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The prologue is perhaps one of the most important pieces in the novel because it lays the foundation for all of the characters’ challenges that they face throughout their lives. Without a setting for their suffering, their tribulations would feel less whole. Since the first Europeans came to the New World, the natives had been there for hundreds of years before and hundreds of years after. To minimize their suffering to just the present is fully unjust and an is diminutive to their culture, history, and current members. Tommy Orange does a great job making the reader empathize with the natives during the prologue, but then contrasting that with the “normal” lives of some of the characters. The Stein quote that is said to Dene is the perfect summation of all the natives’ suffering since their land was taken from them. “There is no there there,” means that the place you call home, or “there” does not exist. It leads perfectly into the story because the reason for the natives’ suffering is that there hasn’t been a “there” for years and years. Where do they go? They fit in nowhere, and their “there” hasn’t existed in years. This influences the narrative as a whole because, again, it’s the perfect summation of their suffering.
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