Everyday Use By Alice Walker

“Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, is a story of a black family composed of a mother and her two daughters: Maggie and Dee. Walker does an excellent job illustrating her characters. There are all types of characters in this short story from round to static. Dee is a flat character, yet Walker uses Dee’s character to warn people of what might happen if they do not live properly. Walker describes Dee’s character as arrogant and selfish, and through Dee’s character one is allowed to perceive the wicked effect of an egotistical world.

Alice Walker is a well-known African- American writer known for published fiction, poetry, and biography. She received a number of awards for many of her publications. One of Walker's best short stories titled "Everyday Use," tells the story of a mother and her two daughters' conflicting ideas about their heritage. The mother narrates the story of the visit by her daughter, Dee. She is an educated woman who now lives in the city, visiting from college. She starts a conflict with the other daughter, Maggie over the possession of the heirloom quilts. Maggie still lives the lifestyle of her ancestors; she deserves the right of the quilts. This story explores heritage by using symbolism of the daughters' actions, family items, and tradition.

In Alice Walker's short story "Everyday Use" Mama is the narrator. She speaks of her family of two daughters Maggie and Dee. Through the eyes of two daughters, Dee and Maggie, who have chosen to live their lives in very different manners, the reader can choose which character to identify most with by judging what is really important in one’s life. Throughout the story three themes consistently show. These themes show that the family is separated by shame, knowledge, and pride.

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

Heritage is defined as something that comes or belongs to one by reason of birth. In “Everyday Use”, by Alice Walker, the theme of the story can be considered as the meaning of heritage or even the power of education. Alice Walker uses many symbols and motifs such as the following: quilts, education, knowledge, Asalamalakim, and the renaming of Dee. In the story, African heritage and knowledge takes a major role.

The short story “Everyday Use” was written by Alice Walker and published in 1973. The story is told in first-person by “Mama,” an African-American woman residing in Georgia. Mama lives in a small but comfortable house with her physically scarred younger daughter, Maggie. Mama is preparing for the visit back home of her eldest daughter, Dee. Dee is educated and driven; however, we come to learn that most of her accomplishments come at the cost of her mother and her sister Maggie. Mama’s relationship with Dee is strained, and this creates conflict later in the story. “Everyday Use” depicts the complications between a mother and daughter’s relationship. The story examines the feelings a mother has when she believes she is not needed anymore or respected. Mama’s feelings towards both daughters are illustrated through two of Mama’s character traits, her low-self-esteem and lack of worldliness. However, because Mama has such a strong character and understanding of her family, she undergoes a significant change in her life, which then makes her into a dynamic character.

In the words of Karl Marx, the founding father of Marxism, Marxism principally believes that “the history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.” In essence, Marx asserts that every day is a tale of conflict between society’s upper and lower class. While controversial in the real world, this notion is not far-fetched in the realm of literature. For example, Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use” shows prominent signs of tension between classes. When examined from a Marxist perspective, Walker’s characters in “Everyday Use” highlight how each class values items and how survival needs and societal expectations differ among classes.

In the short story “Everyday Use”, Alice Walker portrays a mother and her two daughters struggling to unite with one another after overcoming many hardships in life. Mysteriously, Walker never reveals a husband and says very little about the girls’ father. Perhaps she intends for the reader to draw their own conclusions as to the reason he was only slightly revealed. The story is narrated in first person by the mother, she never reveals her first name, just her last, Johnson. One of her daughters is named Dee and the other is named Maggie. Dee is quite different from her sister and mother. She is physically blessed with an attractive physique, she is confident, outspoken and very well educated. Although Dee is a product of poverty, she seems to have broken loose from the constraint of poverty and appears to have “made it” (1126). Overtime, with new experiences and higher education, some people change perceptions and beliefs, however, sometimes the best learning opportunities are found at home.

In the short story Everyday Use, by Alice Walker, the short story is narrated by a black woman in the South who is faced with the decision to give away two quilts to one of her two daughters. Dee, her oldest daughter who is visiting from college, perceives the quilts as popular fashion and believes they should undoubtedly be given to her. Maggie, her youngest daughter, who still lives at home and understands the family heritage, has been promised the quilts. Dee is insistent to possess these heirlooms of family heritage, while Maggie is forbearing in allowing Mama to make her own decision as to who should receive the quilts. Dee shows a lack of appreciation, disrespect, and a distancing behavior towards her mother and sister. Mama

People hold on to pieces of jewelry, furniture, and other symbolic collectables that is passed through generations. These things can remind a person of a loved one that is seen as being priceless.

In her short story, “Everyday Use” Alice Walker attempts to address the struggles and conflict that are present in the African American culture. This short story is based on an encounter between the members of a rural African American family. Dee, who is the main character in the story has just returned home to visit her mother and younger sister Maggie. Notably, she is the only member of the family to receive a formal education. In the effort to describe the encounter, Alice Walker uses characterization on Dee who is one of the main characters in the short story.

It’s really a new day for us. But the way you and mama still live you’d never know it” (Walker, 1973/2011, pp. 1093). The first impression of the story was why did the author title the story “Everyday Use” and what was the meaning behind it. After reading the story for the second time, I understood the strategies Alice Walker use to help convey the readers comprehend the life lesson of valuing family and the heritage. Some portions of the reading stood out to me such as how the mother did not earn a full education, she work like a man, how Maggie hid behind her scars, and envy her sister, and the important facts of how Dee look down on her mother and sister. The portions stood out because it help me to understand the theme and meaning behind the story. I believe Alice Walker was writing to any, and everyone who may forget where they come from and who they are. The story makes a valuable point that lets individuals know it is not where you come from, but what you gain makes you the individual you are.

“Everyday Use” by Alice Walker and “Brownies” by ZZ Packer are two different short stories with different lessons but both talk about the topic of race. Both stories talks about the time in the 20th century when slavery just ended but racism are still active between African Americans and Caucasians. Walker described a story about a single African American mother who is waiting for her daughter to arrive from college. Packer described a story about these African American fourth graders who are in summer camp that plans to attack this group of white girls for calling them a nigger. While both Alice Walker “Everyday Use” and ZZ Packer “Brownies” mainly focus on the impact racism had on African Americans even after slavery was done, Alice Walker “Everyday Use” discusses about sibling rivalry and appreciating a parent 's efforts for their children and ZZ Packer “Brownies” wrote about the impact racism have towards African American children’s.

The story “Everyday Use,” written by Alice Walker, is told by “Mama” who in the beginning of the story is waiting for her daughter Dee to arrive home. Little did Dee’s mother know that she had so much hatred of the place that she had come from. Her other daughter Maggie was not as fond of her sister Dee like her mother was. Maggie was

The short story Everyday use written by Alice walker is about a mother and her two daughters. The story is written in a first person point of view and it starts with the narrator which is the mama waiting in the yard with Maggie her youngest daughter. Mama waits in the yard with Maggie who is scared from the fire that destroyed their old house. We learned that Dee always wanted more than what mama offered and that she hated the old house. As mama hesitantly wait dee in the yard she fantasies about what it would be like reuniting with Dee on a T.V. talk show. Through Mama’s description of Dee, we learn that she is intelligent and headstrong. Finally a car pulls up in the driveway: Dee arrives with a young man by the name of Hakim a barber. Dee is dressed in long dress and she announces that her name is no longer Dee but Wangero which is an African name. Mama argues with her about why would she want to change her name which is her aunts name. They all then head inside to eat. As they are eating Dee starts to request things that were in the house: she requested a butter churn that was made by her uncle along with other things. After eating Dee went and start rifling through mama’s trunk. She found some quilts which was made from bits and pieces of her grandmother cloths. Dee ask Mama if she can have them, mama was surprised at first because those were the same quilts Dee refused sometime in the past. Mama refuse to give Dee the quilts as they were reserved for Maggie. Dee