Identity In Alice Walker's 'Everyday Use'

In the story “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker deals with a young woman who is trying to find her place in her own heritage. “Everyday Use,” is narrated by the mother or Mama, an African-American woman living in the deep South of Rural Georgia with one of her two daughters. The family is living in very poor conditions, they do not have fancy things, and the mother does all the work herself. The story begins with Mama and Maggie awaiting on Dee, a college student, to arrive at home from college. When Dee went off to college she thought that her heritage was old and out of style, but when she came back home for a visit she insists on taking many things from home. Dee also changed her name to Wangero, so she would not have the same name as someone else in her family. She wants these different artifacts of her heritage because she wants to show them off for fashion and use them for decorations. Dee points out the things that she thinks will stand out the most, such as the quilt, dashers, and the benches. Mama or Mrs. Johnson, does not allow Dee to take anything but the dashers. She knows that Dee will not respect the things that their ancestors made. Mama and Maggie respect their heritage very much and does not want anyone to use the artifacts in the wrong way. In the short story “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker applies the literary technique of irony to emphasize heritage as part of one daily life.

“Everyday Use”, by Alice Walker, is a story of Mrs. Johnson and her two daughters, Dee and Maggie, whose personalities are totally different. In this story, Walker uses two hand-stitched quilts to symbolize the inheritance. Walker explain her characters as someone who accept African-American heritage and appreciate its values. The mom is a dynamic character because of the change in her way of judging her two daughters and finally acknowledging the beauty of Maggie. Maggie, too, is a dynamic character compared to Dee because Dee’s character remains the same throughout the story. Walker has written "Everyday Use" with a historical touch, especially when Mrs. Johnson speaks about Maggie receiving the quilts her ancestors made. However, Dee, Maggie’s

Throughout an individual’s childhood, it is evident that they model what they see and hear. Children are taught lessons at a young age that pertain to their family’s values, heritage, and what is important to them. Although one is taught at a young age it is not guaranteed that those lessons will stick with them throughout life. Individuals often encounter a period of change within themselves. They begin to develop their own identity from what they experience and encounter in life. Within this development, it is common for one to stray away from what has been taught to them because they want to grow and see life for themselves. This period of change permits an individual to either gain an understanding or experience confusion. In Alice Walker’s short story, “Everyday Use,” readers are shown two characters who have different views on heritage. The plot of the story displays how the characters either accept or deny where they come from which leads to a searching of one’s identity. With the use of characterization, and Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality, this paper will showcase the character’s ideas on heritage which lead to the central event and realizations that are made within the story.

“Everyday Use” is a short story by Alice Walker that discusses two sisters finally seeing each other after a long time. Walker describes the two sisters who are quite different, and have contrasting views. The oldest, and more worldly educated sister, Dee, is described as a selfish girl who allows her negative traits and educationally influenced views to tamper with her outlook on heritage. On the other hand, her younger sister, Maggie, is seen as a kind and selfless character who has stayed at home. Through her kind and selfless acts and memories she has made from home, she is seen to truly understand her heritage. These characters have many opposing traits, and the reader can quickly perceive that their characteristics affect their views on heritage. This is one lesson

Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use” involves the matriarch of an African American family having heritable issues with her daughter on the true essence of their familial history. Mama, Dee (Wangero), and Maggie personalities and characteristics each symbolize different aspects of heritage. Heritage is important to the characters because it gives them a culture, however, an issue arises when Dee has a different view of heritage from Mama and Maggie. Wangero adopts an idealistic heritage and simultaneously rejects her family’s culture. Maggie is a recluse burn victim who envies her older sister and craves for her approval.

In Alice Walker's story "Everyday Use" Mama is the storyteller. She talks about her two little girls Maggie and Dee. Through the eyes of the two daughters, Dee and Maggie, who have experienced their lives in a real different way, the reader can pick which character to project himself most with by judging what has a real meaning in one's life. All through the story three topics reliably appear. These subjects demonstrate that the family is isolated by disgrace, pride, and knowledge.

Alice Walker is an American writer. She was born in Putnam County, Georgia on February 9, 1944. She married Melvyn Rosenman Leventhal, a lawyer. He is a white man, together they moved to Jackson, Mississippi, becoming the first interracial couple in Mississippi. Walker and Leventhal had a child named Rebecca. They later divorced after nine years of marriage. Her literary works are wonderful, especially her short story, “Everyday Use”. “Everyday Use” features three main characters, Mama, Maggie, and Dee (Wangero). This mother-daughter trio is unique with many differences between them.

The short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker demonstrates how often individuals intentions may be misconstrued which, can lead to conflict and controversy. Walker uses the plot to illustrate the theme. Dee believes that the best way to preserve her families heritage and history while continuing to evolve would be to place items from her childhood home on display such as, the churn top and the quilts. As well as changing her name to Wangero in order to no longer “ [be] named after the people who oppress [her]” ().Unfortunately, for her her mother believes that she continues traditions by keeping the all of the items in use and that her name is another part of their history. Walker also uses dialogue express the two conflicting sides of the

Alice Walker portrays opposing ideas about one’s heritage in the story “Everyday Use”. Through the perspective of the two daughters, Maggie and Dee, live their lives very differently. The readers can identify what is important in one life’s. in Dee situation, you can see that she leaves her past behind and goes out making all she can of herself. In contrast to Maggie, who valuables her roots. Through the use of symbolism, the family quilt brings out these issues relating to heritage. Maggie and Dee convey a new light on the meaning of heritage through their lifestyle, personality traits and relationships with certain family members.

One’s identity is composed of multiple aspects of physical appearance to intelligence to experiences to ancestry. Many of these features can be manipulated or altered to please the individual. One can dye their hair to look different or use big words to appear more intelligent. What can not truly change, however, is one’s heritage. In the short story “Everyday Use (for your grandmama)” by Alice Walker, Dee simultaneously rejects her family history and identity while also fabricating an artificial African heritage, disconnecting Dee from her roots.

In “Everyday Use” the author, Alice Walker uses an indirect presentation of Dee’s character to contribute to the emerging theme that family members can have contradicting views regarding their heritage. Walker utilizes Dee and Maggie’s juxtaposing characters to show this idea; “Dee (Wangero) moved back just enough so that I couldn’t reach the quilts. They already belonged to her” (Walker 172). Walker’s use of indirect characterization accurately depicts Dee’s character. Through her judgmental and personal feelings of superiority, the audience is able to see the conflict arising within the family.

When Walker introduces Dee her outer appearance give an idea about her personality. “The dress is so loud it hurts my eyes…I feel my whole face warming from the heat waves it throws out (Walker 473). Walker’s use of imagery describing Dee’s looks indicates what the reader should expect about the personality. When Dee’s see the simple life her mother and sister are living she shows off her wealthy and modern life. But mama accepts her appearance, she accepts because of her success and for the values education she upheld. Maggie feels jealous and envy seeing her sister live a wealthy life but she does not accept it Walker shows that in her expression “Uhnnh. As mama interacts with dee throughout her visit, she learns that her daughter has changes

In Alice Walker's "Everyday Use” she creates a conflict between characters. Walker describes a family as they anxiously await the arrival of, Dee, the older sister of the family. When Dee (Wangero) comes home to visit Mrs. Johnson and Maggie, right away the readers see the differences in the family by how they talk, act, and dress. Dee has changed her name to an "African" name and is collecting the objects and materials of her past. Dee thinks that since she is in college she knows mores then the rest of her uneducated family. She is more educated and looks down on the simple life of her mother and sister. When Dee asks for a beautiful family heirloom quilt to hang on her wall, Mrs. Johnson finally denies her of this task. Mrs. Johnson finally sees that Dee does not want the quilt for the same purpose as Maggie does. Instead, Mrs. Johnson will give Maggie the quilt to keep her and her husband warm. The theme of the importance of heritage becomes clear at this point of the story. This theme is shown by Walker's use of conflict, irony, and symbolism. All throughout her short story she incorporates heritage. She describes it as a background feeling between family members, and African heritage to heirlooms that have been in the family line for generations. Dee the older sister takes her heritage for granted by only wanting her heirlooms for her educational purposes.

It has been said that “One of the greatest regrets in life is being what others would want you to be, rather than being yourself.” What should matter is being true to oneself and loving the person that you have become. This short story is narrated by Mama who is telling her story of her two daughters, Dee and Maggie. Both daughters live their lives in very different ways. In Dee's case, she goes out to make all that she can of herself while leaving her mother and sister behind. Maggie stays at home with their Mama and makes the most out of what surrounds her. All three ladies have different perspectives of their own heritage and identity. The conflict in “Everyday Use” is that Mama has these two daughters fighting over a quilt. In the end, readers will find that what matters most is not forgetting where you come from and who you are as a person. In “Everyday Use” Alice Walker emphasizes to her readers the importance of self-identities and family through her use of conflict, setting, and characterization, suggesting that sometimes people are so motivated in pleasing others while neglecting the things that matter to them the most.

When reading short stories people are always able to find some character they can relate to in one way or another. “Everyday Use”’ is no exception. The relationship between Maggie, Dee, and their mother is expressed throughout the story. In the short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, Dee is a materialistic girl who believes she is exceptionally better than everyone around her.