There There
There There by Tommy Orange follows urban Native American individuals as they explore their Native American identity. Tony Loneman and Orvil Red Feather are the main characters that exemplify the three steps in determining their identities and becoming comfortable with them.
Tony Loneman is a teenager who was born with fetal alcohol syndrome. He is perceived as a Native American and as a bad person. Because those are the main characteristics he thinks people perceive him as, he thinks of them as one: a bad Native American. He perceives himself as a bad person and an alcoholic. Although he is not actually an alcoholic, he translates his syndrome to fetal alcoholism. Tony has Cheyenne blood and grew up with his grandmother who practices Native American customs. Despite that, he says, “she tells me we’re Cheyenne people” (Orange 17) and “I saw an Indian” (Orange 24) when he looks at himself dressed in indigenous clothing. Tony tells people he is Indian, but he does not seem to identify with the term. He accepts what he is told about his lineage, but ultimately sees someone else when he looks at himself in indigenous regalia. This may be because he grew up in an urban setting and he never experienced cultural events. He likely internalized the master narrative of Native Americans, where they intentionally isolate themselves in their reservations to preserve their cultural heritage. Because he never experienced that, he hesitates to label himself as Native American.
Orvil Red Feather is a teenager who seeks to understand his Native American heritage, having grown up in a household where he was shunned from his heritage. Orvil is perceived as Native American, but he does not know if he should perceive himself the same way due to his lack of knowledge about his heritage. Ultimately, he finds himself resonating with Native American media and learning cultural dances. At the powwow, he proudly dances in his regalia and accepts his native identity. He becomes part of the “Indians dressed up as Indians” (Orange 233). In this situation, Orvil never feels negatively about his Native American heritage and he learns from the master narrative what he might be, but ultimately seeks out information from Native Americans themselves.
In the end, master narratives support the development of identity, but they also hinder it. They are a perspective and a narrative, but they are not the only perspectives and narratives. Native Americans, in comparison to other groups, deal with a unique case of master narratives because their identities are specific to their tribal nation, whereas other ethnic groups identify homogeneously. Therefore, their tribal identities are often “othered” and their culture is perceived incorrectly. It is important to remember that Native Americans and their cultures are diverse and not “pan-Indian.”