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
Tony Loneman takes a train to the coliseum. He is dressed in his regalia, and tries to ignore the stares he gets from the other passengers. He is used to stares because of the Drome, but now people are staring at him for a different reason. When a white woman asks Tony for directions to the airport, he knows she just “wants to see if the Indian speaks.” He tells her that she should come to the powwow at the coliseum, then tunes out her reply and watches the tracks fly by underneath the train.
