Alice Walker Everyday Use Summary

Tuten shows her readers that what Dee wants is superficial and that Maggie has a better understanding of heritage. Susan Farrell states in her article that in the story, Mama’s views of Maggie are not accurate. She makes the point that perhaps Mama’s views of Dee are not accurate either, because the story is told from Mama point of view and we never hear Dee’s side of the story (179). Farrell believes that Mama views Dee as a sort of goddess, she may even envy her. Susan states that, “Dee inspires in Mama a type of awe and fear more suitable to the advent of a goddess that the love one might expect a mother to feel for a returning daughter” (180). Later in the article, Farrell makes the point that what Mama’s thinks Dee wants may not actually be what she wants. This could just be a perception of what Dee wants. Farrell also points out other instances in the story that shows Dees actions contradicting Mama’s thoughts.

Walker’s unique structural choice to open the story up with Mama describing herself and then describe how Dee would like her to be is indicative of the inability of these two cultures to accept one another. Mama starts by saying “In real life I am a large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working hands. In the winter I wear flannel nightgowns to bed and overalls during the day. I can kill and clean a hog as mercilessly as a man. My fat keeps me hot in zero weather. I can work outside all day, breaking ice to get water for washing. I can eat pork liver cooked over the open fire minutes after it comes steaming from the hog” (315). This excerpt is a clear example of how black southerners must do hard labor, sometimes not the labor that is accepted by most of society, in order to get by. She sounds proud

     Pride is the theme that seems to separate this family the most. It's having pride versus not having it. Maggie doesn't have it. She does not speak for herself when Dee wants the quilts. She lets mama speak for her. Like a scalded dog, she hides behind Mama when Dee arrives. Mama compares Maggie to a "Lame animal…run over by a car…"(Walker 88). Pride mostly comes from respect and she doesn't get much. Dee maybe has too much pride. This probably comes from "the world not knowing how to say no to her." She has looks and she's what one would describe as

Unlike Maggie, Mama resents Dee. Dee is educated, complex, and the object of jealousy in her family. Her judgmental nature has deeply affected Mama and Maggie, and they yearn for Dee’s approval. This need for Dee’s approval becomes apparent in Mama’s daydreams of their televised reunion. The term character arc can defined as

Dee is the afro-centric, ego- centric and eccentric pseudo-intellect. She values her culture in a more materialistic aspect. She respects the artifacts of her history rather than the usefulness. Dee’s earthly-mindedness sets the stage for conflict throughout the entire story, from her arrival until the central conflict when there is a battle amongst the other two main characters Mama and Maggie, about who is truly entitled to the hand-stitched quilts. The quilts were works of art that have been passed down throughout

Dee’s selfishness is also portrayed by her cultured verbal skills. Dee can talk her way through anything. Dee often manipulates others with her verbal skills. This is shown when she reads to her mother and sister “without pity; forcing words, lies, other folks’ habits, whole lives upon us, sitting trapped and ignorant underneath her voice” (Walker 289). This statement further demonstrates the fact that Dee’s family feels inferior to her. Mama describes the situation as if Dee has some kind of power over her family because she is scholarly and her family is not. Dee uses her education to make Mama and Maggie feel less important without, necessarily meaning to.

In the beginning of the story Dee would never bring anyone over her house. She hated her house so much. In the story Dee was described in the story as, “She Used To Read Without Pity; Forcing Words , Lies , Other Folks’ Habits , Whole Lives Upon Us Two, Sitting Trapped And

Dee seems to think she is superior to her family members. She makes it pretty clear when she says “you just don’t understand” or “you ought to try to make something of yourself, too, Maggie”. Statements like these make it possible for us readers to see Walker’s characterization of

That Dee comes off as so distasteful, is mostly due to her attitude. As for the rest of her character, she was a product of her generation. She was also fortunate enough to be educated. Her mother obviously had very little, but with the help of the church, was able to send her off to school. This opened doors for her, but it was door after door after door. Behind none of which were gratitude or anything substantial, but rather, misguided and confused attempts to find her

Dee had asked for two quilts which Mama explained were “Done by me and Big Dee from some tops of your grandma pieced before she died” (114). Dee’s only purpose with the quilts were to “hang them” (115). For the first time, Mama says no to Dee because she has “promised to give them quilts to Maggie” (114). At this point in time, Mama realizes how important Maggie is to her and draws near to her. After Dee’s vanishment, Mama and Maggie “sat there just enjoying, until it was time to go in the house and go to bed”

When Dee is about to leave, she tells her mother, 'you just don't understand... your heritage' (Walker 79). This statement suggests a summation of how Dee feels, that she is almost better than her family and better than her true heritage. 'You ought to try and make something of yourself, too, Maggie. Its really a new day for us. But from the way you and Mama still live you'd never know it' (Walker 81). Dee seems to almost mock her mother and sister for embracing their identity and continuing to live a simple life. Dee seems to turn her nose up to their way of life as she turns and leaves towards her new life that she has made for

Prior to the beginning of the story, context clues show that Dee and her family already had a broken relationship. She is the oldest child between Maggie and her, but not the humblest between the two. In my opinion Dee’s personality comes off as arrogant, uneducated, unappreciative of her family heritage which causes her to carry herself in a ridiculous way.

Dee is a controlling person who always wanted everything to herself only and don't want anybody to take something more than her. And that appeared when mama said that the quilts which were handmade by their grandma Dee, that she would give it to Maggie, Dee was very angry for that and she wanted to take the quilts herself not because she wanted, just because she don't like anybody to take something more than her and wants everything for herself only. Dee was well educated and didn't liked her mother's and sister's way of living so she traveled and when

     In this story, Dee is completely unappreciative. One can get the feeling that the mother in the story had worked long and hard rearing her daughters, and has even gotten Dee into college somehow. Dee returns with her college education and new personality trying to preach to her mother and sister about what they are doing wrong. Plenty of times Dee spoke down to her mother and little sister, Maggie.

The behavior of overlooking her sister's, Maggie, and Mama's feelings since her childhood to the present indicates Dee's character as a person who disregards others. Mama ponders that while the house where they used to live burned to the ground; Maggie was burning, her "hair smoking and dress falling off her in little black papery flakes." Although she saw that Maggie needed her sister's aid, Dee stood "off under the sweet gum tree" at a distance (87). Walker reveals that Mama still finds Dee carrying her self-centeredness when she excludes herself from the pictures and "never [took] a shot without making sure the house is included" (89). Dee wants to capture the signs of poverty from her past so that she can show how much success she has gained in spite of being poor to her friends. Dee is so egotistical that she declares her sister is "backward enough to put [the quilts] to everyday use" (91) whereas she considers herself smart and would appreciate the quilts by hanging them. Her coldness and lack of concern make