Day and Night through a Mother's Eyes Essay

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.

The moment Maggie opens her mouth around her sister, it 's as though Dee was there only to make her life more miserable, making harsh and snide comments at Maggie 's every word. " 'Maggie 's brain is like an elephant 's ', Wangero [said]" (77). After rummaging through Maggie 's trunk, Dee insisted that her mother let her take the quilts that were put away. Mama told Dee that she was saving them to give to her sister after she married but Maggie said, "She can have them, Mama, I can 'member Grandma Dee without the quilts" (78). Family to Mama and Maggie is not just made up of tangibles and

     Maggie is illustrated as Dee’s foil. Dee is everything that Maggie cannot be externally. Maggie is implemented into the story to provide a greater emphasis on

Alice Walker juxtaposes Maggie with her sister, Dee, to demonstrate how society denigrates not only African-American women but women in general in the 1970s. Early on in the story, Maggie is described as nervous, hopelessly standing in the corner. Later she is described as nearly hidden from view. On a metaphorical level, Maggie is the symbol of the lack of power women held in the 1970s. She is the epitome of the silent female homemaker. On the other hand, Dee is assertive, “will look you right in the eye.” She serves as a symbol of the free, successful modern woman. However, her assertiveness might come off as cockiness, and too much pride. By contrasting Maggie and Dee, Alice Walker is expressing both sides of the female role during that time.

Momma's point of view defines how she feels about her daughters and the degrees of separation that exist between the two girls. Momma describes Maggie as a partially educated child who does not look as appealing as her older sister. Maggie was burned in a house fire that left her scared all over her body. She does not wear revealing clothes, nor does she attract men as Dee does. Dee, on the other hand, is described as an educated young woman who is ready to take on any and every adventure. Momma says that Dee used to read to her and Maggie without pity (94). She describes Dee as the stylish child; she always prepared dresses out of momma's old suits and is always up on the current style. Momma likes the different qualities Dee possesses, but she is slightly threatened because they are unfamiliar to her. From the description that momma gives of her daughters the reader can feel the differences that exist in her thoughts about her daughters.

Dee's physical beauty can be defined as one of her biggest assets. The fact that Maggie sees Dee "with a mixture of envy and awe" (160) lets the reader know that Dee has the more favorable appearance. The simplistic way in which Walker states that “Dee is lighter than Maggie, with nicer hair and a fuller figure,” (161) gives the reader the idea that Dee's beauty has made it easier for her to be accepted outside her family in society, “…her sister has held life always in the palm of one hand, that ‘no’ is a word the world never learned to say to her,” (160). One is left with the impression that Dee's appearance is above average. Walker plays on Dee's physical beauty to contrast the homeliness of Maggie and her mother. Walker goes so far as to describe her feet as being more favorable as if God only wanted Dee to have pretty feet, “Her feet were always

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.

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

     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

Maggie and Dee have completely different physical appearances than each other. Maggie has a thin body figure, and her arms and legs are scarred from the house fire. Maggie is jealous of Dee’s beauty, and she seems to be ashamed of the way she looks. Mama says, “Maggie will be nervous until after her sister goes: she will stand hopelessly in corners, homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs, eyeing her

As the story advances however, Dee does get more complex and is demonstrated to be battling with her own particular personality and heritage. Concrete subtle elements are expressed about Dee that lead you to know she is beautiful, smart and certain. Dee is described as thin with a little waste. She is a light cleaned dark individuals with a decent review hair. She is also well educated. Dee is fashion conscience, continually needing more pleasant things that were not affordable to her family. First and foremost of the story, Dee’s mother and sister, Maggie are is getting ready for Dee’s entry for a visit. Here is the place you get the first flash of Dee’s obvious identity. Maggie is portrayed by her mother as being apprehensive until after Dee goes when Dee hasn’t arrived yet. This persuades that maybe Maggie is threatened by Dee and maybe feels inferior compared to Dee. Dee’s mother discuss dreaming a fantasy about being welcomed by Dee with a grasp and tears in her eyes. All things considered Dee’s mother and sister don’t appear to feel just as they truly measures up to what Dee expects or needs them will be Dee’s mother never had much of an education and Dee’s mother raised enough cash to send Dee off to school. Maggie is specified as having poor sight and not being brilliant. Dee the again is smart.

Maggie is the younger sister of the two. Parallel to Mama, Maggie also suffer from insecurities. Dee is lighter than Maggie with nicer hair and a fuller figure. Maggie was burned in the house fire and she shuffles when she walks. She is described as being shy, unable to make eye contact, and does not like to be seen when other people are around. The story tells how “she stand hopelessly in the corners, homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arm and legs, eyeing her sister with a mixture of envy and awe” (p.315). Maggie’s thought of her sister is that she has always held life in the palm of one hand, that’s “no” is a word the world never learned to

For example, “Dee is lighter than Maggie, with nicer hair and a fuller figure…She was determined to stare down any disaster in her efforts… She burned us with a lot of knowledge we didn’t necessarily need to know”(492 ). In this quote, Mama, who is the narrator, describes Dee as being good looking, ambitious, and educated. All of those characteristics play a part in the way Dee interprets the African- American culture. According to Nancy Tuten, Dee uses language to abuse her mother and sister, leading Mama to form an alliance with Maggie, which will eventually lead to the exclusion of Dee (128). Furthermore, “Most critics see Dee’s education and her insistence on reading to Mama and Maggie as further evidence of her separation from and lack of understanding for her family identity and heritage” (Farrell 182). Alice White uses a completely opposite characterization for the younger sister, Maggie. “[Maggie] has been like this, chin on chest, eyes on the ground, feet in the shuffle, ever since the fire that burned the other house to the ground… She knows she is not bright. Like good looks and money, quickness passed her by”(492 ). Maggie is being described as a shy, unattractive, uneducated person by her mama; however, one can infer that Maggie and her mother have the same interpretation of the African- American culture because of their same educational level. For example, “ [Dee] used to read to [maggie and mama] without pity; forcing words, lies, other folks' habits, whole lives upon us two, sitting trapped and ignorant underneath her voice” (cite page number). In this quote, Mama states that Dee would use her ability to read to put them down leading me to believe that Mama would have to be on the same educational level as Maggie to be put down by Dee.

One could believe that this emotional poverty in both stories stemmed from both their settings and heritage alike. In Walker’s “Everyday Use” there is a sort of reunion; however, this reunion was not one that was “…not a mutually pleasant occasion for family members” (Piacentino 171). Dee had not been happy about with her mother and believed she was deprived from who she really should have been because of her mother. This caused to experience heavy emotional strains from all ends of the table. Alike this same scenario occurred with Maggie just in a different context. From Maggie’s point of view as told from the story she had admired her sister. This is because Maggie is described as being “chin on chest, eyes on ground, feet in shuffle, ever since the fire that burned the other house to the ground” (Walker 487). While Dee was the beautiful one with the superficial understanding and the bad attitude. Ed Piacentino, author of "Reconciliation with Family in Alice Walker's Kindred Spirits”, stated that this coming home of Dee was a “cross-cultural confrontation” (Piacentino 171) focused on the uneventful return of Dee. In reference to the struggle of familial relationships due to emotional poverty as conveyed by Walker’s “Everyday Use” Dee was a “superior-minded child looking down on her mother’s simplicity, and in effect, the simplicity

Although the story "Everyday Use" is narrated from Mama's point of view, Alice Walker reveals Dee, Mama's eldest daughter, to be the central character. Dee remains essentially unchanged throughout the story. Even though Dee achieves her aim by overcoming complications such as poverty and racial discrimination, she is not admirable for her achievements and courage. Walker describes her to be selfish and self-centered, a woman who remains unchanged from her childhood to the current position after several years. The disregard for her sister's pain, ingratitude for the money raised for her education, and the desire for quilts indicates her static behavior.