There There Questions

 As I mentioned in my other blog post, something I do not understand is the meaning of the title. What does There There mean? Am I missing some grammatical play on words? Another question I had was about page 56 where the mom is described as sleeping weird. At first I thought she was dead. But then it turns out she’s not dead? I am wondering what was wrong with her. (Maybe it was just indicating drunkenness). I also was confused about the Alcatraz reference. I thought that was a top security prison for criminals, so how were they able to walk in? Also, how did some kids commandeer a boat and drive around if it was so top security? I probably just need to do more research on Alcatraz and what it is. Some things that were surprising to me were the instances of violence. I did not know there were social groups where violence is so common (though that sounds very tone-deaf). Also, the amount of death present in the book is sad (death in the book and mentions of people who have passed away). I wonder if that is indicative of low health rates for Native Americans or just telling of the Oakland area. P.S.: Upon reading more about Alcatraz, I am even more confused. It just details a maximum security prison filled with scary people. How did the family live there? Or is there a difference between the island they were living on and Alcatraz. I do not know. Maybe Alcatraz was just a rhetorical term. 


Comments

  1. Avery PiersonNovember 14, 2021 at 9:57 PM

    I had not thought about the connection between the low health rates of Native Americans and all of the death in the novel, but that would make a lot of sense. It is dark to think about, but the correlation seems very possible.

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  2. Jenna ChinnNovember 15, 2021 at 2:49 PM

    Alcatraz used to be a maximum-security prison, but it's no longer in use. I learned about it briefly in a high school history class, but I believe the Native American presence in Alcatraz was a protest of sorts and involved the then-empty prison. I think it's definitely worth it to research the topic a bit.

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  3. Abby MatsonNovember 15, 2021 at 11:34 PM

    I feel like There There's meaning as a title comes from all of the references throughout the book to "there," like the Radiohead song, and the hipster misusing the quote

    ReplyDelete
  4. Michelle BNovember 18, 2021 at 12:12 PM

    There was a major American Indian movement civil rights protest that occupied the island of Alcatraz (which by then was no longer a prison) for a period of time to bring attention to land rights of indigenous peoples. If you ever get a chance to visit Alcatraz (they have tours) you will see murals left behind from this protest and time period, in addition to the prison itself. We can discuss more in class.

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