“But the city made us new, and we made it ours”: Reflections on Urban Space and Indigeneity in Tommy Orange’s There There

Authors

Meghanlata Gupta, Yale University
Nolan Arkansas, Yale University

Abstract

Native American writers in the United States have often used literature to celebrate their communities, defy stereotypes, and share their histories on their own terms. In the past few years, this movement has seen another wave, with artists and scholars engaging in literary storytelling to shed light on Indigenous resistance efforts in the United States. Tommy Orange is no exception, writing about urban Indigenous life in his 2018 novel There There. While There There positions the city as a product of settler colonialism, the book also illustrates the ways in which urban Indigenous peoples subvert colonial mechanisms by celebrating tribal histories, claiming space, and revitalizing cultural practices within the structure of the city. Together, these themes highlight Orange’s success in sharing how Native communities empower themselves and come together in urban spaces across the United States.

Recommended Citation

Gupta, Meghanlata and Arkansas, Nolan (2020) "“But the city made us new, and we made it ours”: Reflections on Urban Space and Indigeneity in Tommy Orange’s There There," The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal: Vol. 1: Iss. 1, Article 3.
Available at: https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/yurj/vol1/iss1/3