Ceremony vs. There There
The Prologue of "There There" is an essay of non-fiction, while " Ceremony" is fiction, yet Silko refers to many similar motifs and historic instances and customs in her novel. In both works, one of the most frequent motifs is that of violence, especially violence that has been directed towards Native Americans. For example, in "There There" the narrator remarks, "Metacomet's head was sold to Plymouth Colony for thirty shillings - the going rate for an Indian head at the time. The head was put on a spike, carried through the streets of Plymouth, then displayed at Plymouth Fort for the next twenty-five years." This is representative of the time as many white Americans were colonizing and overtaking the Native's land and killing them in the process. In the fictitious "Ceremony," violence is displayed through the death of Tayo's Uncle Josiah, the death of Tayo's 'brother' Rocky, Tayo stabbing Emo, and, though it is...