Everyday Use By Alice Walker Analysis

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 mostly saying "Uhnnnh" if anything at all throughout the whole story. Mama portrays Maggie as a girl who “will stand hopelessly... homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs” from the fire, and who feels inferior to Dee (Walker 86). These burns and scars that Maggie has may be the reason of her lack of knowledge simply because she was ashamed to be in the learning atmosphere. Dee, unlike Maggie, is very brilliant. There seems to be some tension and or jealousy of how smart Dee is. Mama and Maggie used to listen to Dee read to them while they where trapped sitting there ignorantly. Mama said it was knowledge they didn't need to know. She also said that she often fought off the urge to shake her. Since Mama didn't get a chance to go to school, she feels inferior to Dee's skill of knowledge. Mama's tension is because she didn't get a chance to learn as much as Dee has (Walker 87-88).

The character of Mama in the short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker endures through intense times and takes advantage of what she has. She is a lady that tells things how they are, only plain truth. She can be entertaining now and again and intense at others. She is self-portrayed as “a large, huge boned, women with rough, man-working

In short stories we have indirect characterization and direct characterization. Direct characterization is given to the reader when the author tells us about a character trait, while indirect characterization is when the reader reads between the lines. This short story speaks to the reader by using indirect characterization and direct characterization with insight to three women & how they perceive their heritage. "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker is a short story that reveals the perspective of humanity and the differences between two generations. Mama the older generation, and Dee, Maggie the younger generation. This story is a type of family drama that is surrounded by three characters with three different views of what heritage is to each. The story centers an African American family living in a house that is in a pasture after their first home burns down. After this events Mama became very cynical of Dees actions. In retrospect Dee has changed but Mama isn't able to see past old judgment. An Maggie may seem to live under her older sister shadow or so, we thought. "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker is a work of indirect and direct characterization that gives the reader insight of how the author characterizes the characters way of thought. In this story it is centered on how Mama, Dee, Maggie perceive heritage. Mama sees heritage as the skills that a passed down from one generation to next. Dee finds heritage throw preserving artifacts. While Maggie distinguishes heritage through memories.

Second, there were some cultural differences, Maggie and Mama lived in a house located in a pasture with animals, and you could tell through Mama's description of Dee that she was more modernized probably a city Girl. When Dee/Wangero came to visit she wore a bright dress with loud colors, bangles and gold earrings. Mama said Dee's dress had so many yellows and oranges it was enough to throw back the sun (109). Maggie wore a pink skirt and red blouse that enveloped her body (107). Dee was an educated woman having graduated from High School. Mama on the other hand never made it past the second grade because the school she attended was closed down in 1927. Mama said that, "Colored asked fewer questions than they do now" referring to why the school closed (109). Circumstances such as age, education, and living arrangements dictated their

Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday use” tells the story of a mother and her daughter’s conflicting ideas about their identities and heritage. Mrs. Johnson an uneducated woman narrates the story of the day one daughter, Dee, visits from college. Mrs. Johnson auto-describes herself as a “big-boned woman with rough, man-working hands.”(180,Walker). Contrasting her auto-description, she describes Dee as a young lady with light complexion, nice hair and full figure that “wanted nice things.”(181,Walker). The arrival of Dee to Mrs. Johnson’s house causes mixed emotions on Mrs. Johnson. Dee Johnson and Mrs. Johnson have differing viewpoints on heritage and each value possessions for different reasons. Dee’s superficiality and materialist ways

Mama, the narrator, waits with her youngest, feeble daughter Maggie, to reunite with her eldest Dee. When they meet, Mama finds that Dee has changed, the things she used to arrogantly shrug off are now things that she identifies as being important to her heritage. Mama realizes that the quilts that Dee wants hold a different meaning to Dee than it does to Mama and Maggie, so she sends Dee away, and gives the quilts to Maggie.

She shows that you can value things like the quilts in different ways. Maggie and Dee are very different characters. Each one has characteristics in areas that the other doesn’t. The two sisters did not share a bond throughout any part of their life. In fact they did not even say anything to each other until Dee was leaving. There is a constant communication barrier that is put in front of the two of them. Dee intimidates Maggie with her fierce ways of getting her point across. Maggie being the shyer of the two does not have a whole lot to say in order to defend her. She depends on her mom to fight her battles. Throughout this whole piece, Walker uses contrasting characters to highlight

Critic David Cowart believes that "Maggie represents black women who must suffer while the occasional lucky sister escapes the ghetto", comparing her modest lifestyle to Dee's more outgoing one (172). Mama portrays Maggie as a girl who "will stand hopelessly... homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs" from the fire, and who feels inferior to Dee (Walker 408). Even though she is never in competition with Dee, Maggie knows that Dee always gets her way, so Maggie does not anticipate receiving the quilts. She does not need them to recognize her heritage.

Through contrasting family members and views in "Everyday Use", Alice Walker illustrates the importance of understanding our present life in relation to the traditions of our own people and culture. Using careful descriptions and attitudes, Walker demonstrates which factors contribute to the values of one's heritage and culture; she illustrates that these are represented not by the possession of objects or mere appearances, but by one's lifestyle and attitude.

To begin with, Dee moved away after the fire, she wanted to make a better life for herself. When Dee came home to visit, she acted superior to her mother and sister. One thing Dee wanted to take back home with her was the quilts that her grandmother had quilted when she was still alive, but Mama had already promised the quilts to Maggie. The moment she found out about this Dee grew angry. In the story Dee said, “Maggie can't appreciate these quilts!”

First off, Maggie is the youngest daughter of Mama. She has a meek and timid way about her. Actions such a the way she walks and talks truly reveals her lack of low self-confidence. There is a reason Maggie acts like that, and the reason being she was caught in a house fire. Burns cover her body making her feel ugly, this lowering her self-esteem. The life Maggie is choosing to live is a simple one, marry a average boy, who’s not too bright, who will take care of her. Her ideas about

“She can have them Mama,’ she said, like somebody used to never winning anything, or having anything reserved for her. ‘I can ‘member Grandma Dee without the quilts” (2381). These lines are referring to Dee wanting to have the quilts, which are a family heirloom. Maggie has a deep connection to them but easily gives them up, because she will not stand up for herself. She speaks to her mother and sister very timid and apathetic

The theme of Everyday Use is not immediately apparent, although Alice Walker begins the story by creating a familiar setting in the comfort of home that lead to the spirit of heritage and its importance in our lives. The protagonist, a single mother of two daughters, sees herself as ."..large...rough... slow-witted" and not fitting into the social strata of her oldest daughter, Dee, who ."..has held life always in the palm of her hand." The story begins with the mother preparing the yard to be ."..more comfortable than most people know....like an extended living room" for Dee's homecoming. This line early in the story also shows the mother placing a high value on comfort.

“Everyday Use” is a short story written by a 1940’s black writer, Alice Walker. She did a fantastic job illustrating her characters. There are different types of character in her story from round to static. Her use of clear-cut symbolism prompts the reader to be able to take a deeper look into the characters of the story. When reading this story I felt anger for Dee, while for the narrator and Maggie I felt sympathy.