IndexIntroductionOpal and Jacquie Red Feather: Grappling with IdentityEmbracing Mixed Identities in There, ThereThe Complexities of BelongingConclusionWorks CitedIntroductionIdentity is not just a matter of race and ethnicity, nor can one's identity be limited to referring only to a singular personal attribute of one's character. Who you really are can best be defined as a multitude of factors and self-recognition of yourself. In There There by Tommy Orange, some characters in the novel believe that they are inferior to their native identity due to their “other” factors, such as trauma and addiction. However, many other characters, who do not struggle with addiction, also believe that they are not native enough due to their appearance in the public eye; the way they see themselves is not the way the public sees them. All of the characters, including Jacquie Red Feather, believe that they are not Native enough physically or mentally to be accepted within the Native community. When in reality the novel reveals that identity is not just an internal attribute of a person but, above all, a multitude of intersecting qualities. Being Native cannot be defined by a single addiction or skin color shade; being native is about heritage and adaptation. Even though all the characters are presented as vastly dissimilar individuals, they are all connected through their Native roots and have the right to identify as Native Americans. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Opal and Jacquie Red Feather: Grappling with Identity There is a common disconnect between the idea of ​​cultural identity, Native Americans, and personal identities. For example, Opal Bear Shield and Jacquie Red Feather both believe they are not native enough or native in the wrong way; they disconnect from their native culture and throughout the progression of the novel must reform their ideas about what it means to be part of the native community. They each struggle with their own personal traumas related to mental health issues and addictions, and they believe their traumas have become so disconnected from their Native roots that they no longer have the right to identify as Native. From an early age, Opal Bear Shield develops a strong connection to her native identity because her mother moves her and her sister to live on Alcatraz. In the 1960s, Alcatraz was a symbol of protest against the U.S. government's mistreatment of Native Americans. During her time on the island, Opal attends meetings with her mother where she listens to the different plans that the natives of the island discuss and debate. “I stayed by my mother's side. We went around talking to people, attending official meetings where everyone tried to agree on what to do” (50). By connecting Opal to Alcatraz and her childhood to an infamous protest in Native history, Orange illustrates that there is a strongly held connection between Opal and her Native identity. However, after Opal's mother dies and she has to leave the island, Opal goes through many traumatic experiences that distance her from her native roots. She is forced to live with and flee from her sister's attacker and as they flee Opal sees a test model of Indian Head on the TV: "As I walked through the living room, there on the TV was the test model of Indian Head... Opal guessed that the Indian would turn to her. He would say, go.” (167) Years later, Opal reflects on the moment she saw the Indian head test pattern on TV, remembering how the natives were, and still are, taken. targeted, because he no longer identifies with thehis Native roots and why he refuses to raise his grandchildren within the Native culture. Opal lives in fear of the trauma she and her family have suffered in the past, the trauma caused to them due to Native ties, so she denies the acceptance of her Native identity by herself and her grandchildren. Embracing mixed identities in There, There However, as the story progresses, Opal finds herself in Oakland. At first, she only goes there to take care of her grandchildren, but as she sits in the car and listens to the drum beat, Opal feels a connection: “Opal is listening to the drum. He hasn't heard a drum this big since he was young. (241). Despite all of her trauma, her Native identity is still a factor within her personal identity. Orange is showing that past traumas do not distance you from your ethnic roots. Identity can adapt and adapt over time. Opal isn't just one of her identities; she is a grandmother, she is a survivor of her past and she is Native. The conflicting relationship between acceptance of Native identity and personal identity can also be seen in the progression of Jacquie Red Feather. Jacquie distanced herself from her native identity and community due to her overbearing alcoholism: “Home was drinking. Drinking was the trap. (101). She constantly fights her urge to drink, and even though she finds herself at a conference on substance abuse, she is still consumed by the desire to drink. She believes her identity is only tied to her alcoholism and because she has moved so far away from her family and culture that she is no longer connected to her native roots. At the conference, he looks around the room and admits to a feeling of not belonging: “They were career people, more driven by the concern of keeping their jobs than by the need to help Indian families. Jacquie was no different. He knew it and he hated it. (103). Just like many other characters in the novel, Jacquie feels like a fraudulent member of her own community. As the chapter progresses and Jacquie finds herself at an AA meeting, the leader of the AA meeting states, “It's not the alcohol. There is no special relationship between Indians and alcohol.” as well as: “I stopped telling the story I was telling myself about how this was the only way, that [this] was my life, my bad luck, the story.” (112). This emphasizes Orange's message that personal attributions and cultural roots are both important indicators in the composition of one's identity. As Orange's characters try to make sense of who they are within and outside of their Native community, Orange argues that understanding who they are on a personal level can lead to recognition and acceptance of one's place in a more cultural identity. wide. Identity membership is a recognition of individuality and one's position in one's community, so each character defines identity differently. Although some characters in the story struggle to find the correlation between their personal identity and their cultural identity due to their past traumas, other characters experience an internal struggle to accept their identity due to how they are seen in public versus how they are seen in private. The struggle for one's identity within the Native community is not just a matter of dependency; identity is an issue faced by all Native characters due to Native history and the pressure to survive through adaptation. Being mixed race has a great correlation with the struggle between being seen and seeing one's identity throughout the novel. Edwin Black was raised by his white mother, and although he knows his father was Native, he never had any ties to him or thenative community. This disconnect between him and his native identity controls many aspects of his life. In college, he avidly studied Native American literature to find some connection to his ethnic roots. “I once dreamed of becoming a writer. I graduated with a master's degree in comparative literature with a focus on Native American literature.” (63). He even manages to contact his father and find out which tribe he belongs to in order to receive some sort of recognition from the public that he is truly native. Edwin's life is so plagued by the fear of not belonging that he is unable to pursue his career because he feels like an impostor working with Native American literature. As the story progresses, Edwin joins Oakland's powwow committee and ultimately establishes a true connection with his community and his father. Once he connects with his family and heritage, he can see himself authentically and pursue his passion for writing fiction. Edwin's newfound connection to the Native community allows him to expand his identity as an author and storyteller; he accepts his identity as both white and Native. Through Edwin's progression, Orange illustrates the idea that being part of one culture does not erase your connection to another culture. Instead, cultural identity has adapted to accept mixed identities as people within certain ethnic groups become more mixed. The struggle to accept one's identity when torn between two separate cultures can also be seen through the progression of Dene Oxendene. Dene is trying to honor the memory of his uncle Lucas by starting his own film project that would tell the stories of Native people within the Oakland community. He is faced with the arduous task of defending his art project in front of a jury, and his only concern is that he will not be given the art grant he needs because he is "ambiguously non-white." (28). Unfortunately, his fears come true when the only judge on the commission to reject Dene's idea is the native judge: “Dene knew he would be the native boy. He probably doesn't even think Dene is native. (41). This rejection is an indicator that Dene is not seen enough as Native by other members of his community. Dene is only half native, making it difficult for him to find a community to belong to. Not only is Dene seen as not native enough by members of the native community, but also by other mixed natives. After meeting Dene for the first time, Calvin recalls that he would have thought Dene was white if he hadn't been wearing a specific tribal symbol. Although Dene makes an active effort to connect to his Native community, he fails to see himself as authentically Native because of how the public views him. However, during interviews for his film project, Dene discovers that many other Native people within the community also don't feel Native enough to identify as Native. He feels a specific connection to Calvin, as Calvino states: “Sometimes I feel bad even saying I'm Native. Mostly I feel like I'm from Oakland. (148). Dene finds comfort in the fact that other Native people within the community feel like an impostor when they identify as Native. Rather than distance himself from his heritage, he continues to embrace his culture in Oakland and advance his project by giving voice to his native community. He is not alone in feeling in conflict with his native roots; Knowing that other Native Americans feel disconnected from their community helps him connect to his Native identity. There is self-recognition in understanding that people of the same ethnic origin go through the same, 2018.