Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in There There, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Cultural Identity vs. Personal Identity
Storytelling
Interconnectedness, Coincidence, and Chance
Generational Trauma
Summary
Analysis
Bill is in the employee office when he hears shots being fired, and immediately thinks of Edwin. He stands up and leaves the room, moving towards the sound. He starts running down towards the field when his phone starts ringing in his pocket—it’s Karen. He picks it up and tells her not to come to the coliseum—he begs her to pull over, call the police, and tell them there’s been a shooting. Karen is asking questions about what’s going on, her voice frantic, but Bill feels a bullet hit him just above the eye. He falls to the ground, and his head throbs. He has a brief flashback to Vietnam, when a grenade landed near him and immobilized him, before losing consciousness.
Bill is desperate to save Edwin and prevent Karen from arriving—demonstrating that in spite of his contempt for Edwin, he does truly love the young man. Bill nonetheless is struck down, and his final moments are full of resurfacing trauma and pain.
Themes
