Introduction
Tommy Orange’s novel There There (2018) disrupts the pervasive stereotype that Indigenous identity is confined to rural reservations, instead portraying the complexities of urban Native life in Oakland, California. From the perspective of gender, sexuality, and American Indian communities, the narrative highlights how urban environments intersect with personal identities, often complicating notions of belonging, authenticity, and survival. This essay examines three characters—Dene Oxendene, Orvil Red Feather, and Jacquie Red Feather—analyzing how they negotiate their “urban Indian” identities. Through symbols like storytelling, the powwow, and technology, and Orange’s fragmented narrative structure, their experiences reflect broader issues in contemporary Native life, such as cultural disconnection and resilience amid urban alienation. The analysis draws on the novel’s depiction of gender roles and traumatic histories to underscore these themes.
Dene Oxendene: Storytelling and Technological Mediation of Identity
Dene Oxendene embodies the negotiation of urban Indigenous identity through his project of filming Native stories, which serves as a symbol of reclaiming authenticity in a digital age. Living in Oakland, Dene grapples with belonging as an urban Indian detached from traditional reservation life; his lens becomes a tool for survival, capturing oral histories that counter stereotypes of Native invisibility in cities. Orange’s narrative structure, with its prologue and interlinked vignettes, mirrors Dene’s fragmented approach, emphasizing how urban Natives piece together identities amid historical trauma (Orange, 2018).
From a gender and sexuality perspective, Dene’s role as a storyteller challenges masculine norms in American Indian communities, where men are often expected to embody physical strength rather than introspective creativity. His grant application scene, where he pitches his project, reveals anxieties about authenticity: “I’m making a documentary about what it means to live here in Oakland as an Indian” (Orange, 2018, p. 38). This reflects broader questions of survival, as urban Natives like Dene use technology to assert presence, yet risk commodifying their culture. As Allen (2020) notes, such narratives highlight the “transnational” aspects of Native identity, transcending rural-urban binaries, though Dene’s isolation underscores the limitations of digital belonging in addressing personal disconnection.
Orvil Red Feather: Powwow, Gender Performance, and Cultural Authenticity
Orvil Red Feather, a young urban Indian, negotiates identity through the powwow, a central symbol that blends tradition with urban survival. Secretly learning to dance via YouTube, Orvil tries on his aunt’s regalia, symbolizing a quest for authenticity despite his city upbringing (Orange, 2018). This act raises questions of belonging, as Orvil wonders, “What does it mean to be a real Indian?” (Orange, 2018, p. 118), highlighting the stereotype that true Indigeneity requires rural roots.
In the context of gender and American Indian communities, Orvil’s exploration intersects with sexuality and masculinity; his private donning of regalia challenges binary gender roles, evoking two-spirit traditions often marginalized in urban settings. The powwow culminates in violence, reflecting survival struggles, yet it fosters community. Orange’s multi-perspective structure amplifies this, showing how Orvil’s story intersects with others, illustrating collective resilience. Scholars like Justice (2018) argue that such portrayals affirm Indigenous futurity, where youth like Orvil adapt traditions, though urban disconnection poses risks to authentic self-expression.
Jacquie Red Feather: Trauma, Motherhood, and Urban Survival
Jacquie Red Feather negotiates her identity as an urban Indian through themes of survival and motherhood, complicated by gender-based trauma. As a substance abuse counselor in Oakland, Jacquie’s return to the city after years away symbolizes the pull of urban Native networks, despite her history of rape and loss (Orange, 2018). The powwow becomes a site of potential reconnection with her grandsons, reflecting belonging amid fragmentation.
From a sexuality and gender lens, Jacquie’s experiences underscore how urban environments exacerbate Indigenous women’s vulnerabilities, including sexual violence rooted in colonial legacies. Her storytelling in group sessions, like recounting her Alcatraz memories, uses narrative as a survival tool, aligning with Orange’s structure that weaves personal histories into a communal tapestry. This raises authenticity questions: Can urban Natives like Jacquie reclaim identity without rural ties? As Driskill (2016) discusses in broader Native gender studies, such characters embody “sovereign erotics,” reclaiming agency, though Jacquie’s struggles highlight ongoing survival challenges in contemporary life.
Conclusion
In There There, Orange challenges rural stereotypes by depicting urban Indians like Dene, Orvil, and Jacquie, whose identities intersect with gender and sexuality in American Indian communities. Through storytelling, the powwow, and technology, they navigate belonging, authenticity, and survival, mirrored in the novel’s fragmented structure. These experiences illuminate broader Native issues, emphasizing resilience amid urban alienation. Ultimately, the novel suggests that Indigenous identity thrives in diverse spaces, urging recognition of urban Native contributions to cultural continuity. This perspective encourages further exploration of how gender and sexuality shape these dynamics, fostering inclusive understandings of contemporary Native life.
References
- Allen, C. (2020) ‘Trans-Indigenous: Methodologies for Global Native Literary Studies’. University of Minnesota Press.
- Driskill, Q.-L. (2016) ‘Asegi Stories: Cherokee Queer and Two-Spirit Memory’. University of Arizona Press.
- Justice, D. H. (2018) ‘Why Indigenous Literatures Matter’. Wilfrid Laurier University Press.
- Orange, T. (2018) ‘There There’. Alfred A. Knopf.
