Tommy Orange Character Analysis

Native Americans are displaced throughout the states of America and died from diseases the colonizers brought to them. They were killed wrongfully by Europeans through slavery and war. All the characters in this book are attempting to escape the pain they have inherited from their ancestors while also understanding it. The novel There There was published on June,5th, 2018. It's a book by Tommy Orange for urban Native Americans, his purpose is to publicize Native Americans living in new urban societies. How did Tommy Orange use multiple perspectives in the novel, There There to convey the effects of generational trauma on urban Native American households? Through the use of diverse characters, and their past and present stories, Tommy Orange

“ reached behind it and unplugged it. She slid the fridge out …., then using all of her strength, she walked the thing to the door. The bottles clanged as if in protest.”(Orange, 2019, p115) Jacquie is a strong Native American woman who has been and is going through too much for one person to handle. Jacquie was raped and through her self-respect gave up the child to have a better life. She never stopped moving through the pain as a result she went through substance abuse. She continues to work on herself and is trying to use strength and courage to get her life back in order. “She doesn't like the color, which makes it easier for her to spot. Before she acknowledges to herself that it's him, before she can feel or think or decide anything, she's already moving toward her grandson. ” (Orange, 2019, p279) Wounded Native Americans lying on the ground in full regalia attire have Jacquie looking at the massacre at the powwow and remembering the stories of the massacres of their

She puts her hand on his neck, he has a pulse. Through the character Jacquie Red Feather her past problems in her present lessons on life. Tommy Orange displays generational trauma with her struggle with substance abuse affecting her life and the family members around her. Opal viola bear shield, Jacques's sister, has hidden from her culture due to traumatic experiences. While her grandson, Orvil Red Feather, is very serious about learning and connecting to ancestral ways. “Secrets lie through omission just like shame lies through secrecy. She could have told Jacquie about either the legs or the bleeding. But Jacquie was pregnant,” (Orange, 2019, p165) Opal is nervous about disturbing her grandsons with the trauma and pain she and her sister Jacquie struggled with all their lives. Through all that fear, she denied them the knowledge of their ancestors. When Opal kept things from them, it took out the feeling of solidarity and togetherness. Left feeling alone in the world of so many people around them. This type of isolation has resulted in her grandson Orvil taking his cultural education into his own hands. "Life doesn't work out the way stories