Thomas Frank

There There follows the lives of so many characters that, at some points, it’s nearly impossible to follow their storylines entirely. Towards the back-end of the novel, Tommy Orange, the author, introduces the readers to the final character of the story, Thomas Frank. His storyline, told entirely in second person, is extremely important in the novel as it is a reflection of both the history and the contemporary experience of the Native American people.

From the offset of his chapter it’s made apparent that Thomas’s story is more than just his own, “Before you were born… You were two halves of a thousand different kinds of possibilities, a million heads or tails, flip-shine on a spun coin” (Orange 208). The “two halves” refers specifically to his two parents but more broadly this section refers to the Native American people as a whole. They are different, all have different experiences, and all have different possibilities, but they all have this collective identity of being Native American. This collective identity is seen in Thomas’s affinity for drumming, “Once you were out in the world, running and jumping and climbing, you tapped your toes and fingers everywhere, all the time” (Morgan 209). Native American culture is rich and diverse but one thing it is commonly associated with is drumming. Tommy Orange showcases Native American culture through Thomas with his drumming, an obsession that continues his whole life. Beyond drumming, the specific history of the Native American experience can be seen in many ways in Tommy’s section. Some examples are his mother’s attempts at Christianity, the gentrification of his neighborhood, his limp (described as his abilities to “roll with the punches” (Morgan 214), after being “fucked over, knocked down” (Morgan 214)), and his tension with the group of white teenager.

All of Tommy Orange’s characters experience being Native American in different ways. Thomas being the last character comes almost as a culmination of all their experiences.  Alcoholism is a common issue in current Native American populations and a common theme throughout the novel. Thomas is an alcoholic because he suffers from an irritating skin condition. When he “drank enough [he] didn’t scratch at night” (Morgan 218). It becomes apparent, through Jacquie Red Feather and other characters, that many Native Americans drink to quell their feelings caused by generational trauma. This numbing is directly comparable to Thomas’s want to stop scratching. Beyond the alcoholism, he possesses many other themes seen throughout the novel. He comes from a broken family (a sister addicted to PCP, an alcoholic father, and parents in a loveless marriage), he is fired from his job, and he’s half-white. All of these are things Tommy Orange seems to argue are associated with the contemporary Indian.

In writing in second point of view, Orange isn’t just representing Native Americans through Thomas, but also projecting the Native American experience on the reader. These things are happening to the character Thomas, but they’re also happening to the metaphorical “you”. In these ways it fully encapsulates what the whole book does; relating Native American history to current Native experiences and opening perspectives to what it’s like to be Native America in contemporary America.