Essay on The Importance of Heritage in "Everyday Use"

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.

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 story, she introduces two sisters with almost opposite personalities and different views on heritage: Maggie and Dee. She uses the contrast between the two sisters to show how one should accept and preserve one's heritage. Beyond the contrast between two sisters there exist the judge figure mom, the narrator and the Dee's irony. The irony on Dee's opinion is the key to understand the story and why the mother let Maggie keep the quilts, which symbolize the heritage.

     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

Because, the quilts had been made by the grandmother’s hands, the work that went into the quilts is the reason for importance of saving or preserving them as a family heirloom. “Maggie”, knows the true value of the quilts, “Dee” seems to view them as any other common blanket. Alice Walker stated in the story that Maggie felt like the world never learned to tell Dee no. That is a direct reference to the mother never standing up to Dee and asserting her rightful place.

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.

These quilts have a deep attachment to Mama, as she had helped in the creation of these quilts. They symbolize the past and the memories that come with the past. Before Mama decides who gets the quilts she asks Dee “What would you do with them?” (496). Dee responds with “Hang them…” (Walker 496). This shows how Dee views the quilts and the other items as a fashion statement that should be put on display for others to see instead of memories of her heritage. When Mama realizes that Dee cannot appreciate the quilts like Maggie would “[She] did something [she] never had before: hugged Maggie to [her], the dragged her on into the room, snatched the quilts out of Miss Wangero’s hands and dumped them into Maggie’s lap.” (Walker 496). Mama would rather risk the quilts potentially being ruined by Maggie than to let them go

She lacks all the qualities her sister has. She’s not bold, and she walks with her head down on the floor, showing she has no self-confidence. She has scars all over her body, from the time the house burned down. She’s more of a quiet person who would stand in the corner and not talk to you. You can tell she’s always been kind of jealous of her sister, but I guess also a bit proud of her, and despite everything she does love her. If she didn’t, she would have never raised money with her mom and the church for her sister to go away to college. She also always looks at her sister with a mixture of envy and awe. She’s used to getting everything she wants and loves taken away from her, right in front of her eyes. When Dee finds these quilts that Maggie is supposed to have once she gets married, she’s in the kitchen. When she hears her mom and sister talking about the quilts, she comes out of the kitchen and tells her mom "She can have them mama", and she says it as if she’s used to never wining anything "I can remember Grandma Dee without the quilts." And she smiles, but you can tell it’s not a smile of happiness; it’s more of a forced smile she is used to giving

In “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, this short story characterizes not only the symbolism of heritage but also shows a difference in human character. The story reveals an African American family who lives in a small home and struggles financially, while it consists of a mother and her two daughters that are treated very differently from their mom. One of the daughter’s name is Dee, a well-educated woman, who struggles to understand her family’s heritage and is embarrassed by her family’s background. Maggie is the other sister who is kind, obedient and manages to appreciate her family. To represent the appreciation she provided for her family, the quilt is described as a powerful symbol to them. The quilts play an important role in depicting symbolism of heritage because they signify mama family origins. For instance, Dee's significant family members all have pieces of their fabric gown on to the quilts as a remembrance of who they were and their importance in the family. However, Dee does not see the quilts her ancestors made as valuable, handmade quilts should be passed down and taken care to keep their history alive. As for Maggie, Dee believes she can’t appreciate the quilt in the same way she can. “Maggie can’t appreciate these quilts,” Dee responded. She thinks Maggie will use these quilts, so she can turn them into rags. Despite what Maggie concludes, the quilts for Maggie and mama are meaningful to them, because they were made by members of the Johnson family and have

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

Unlike Dee, Walker’s description of Maggie is seen as an unattractive and awkward girl. Her mother notes “good looks passed her by” (355). Furthermore, she carries herself with low self-esteem, “chin on chest, eyes on ground” (355). Besides her appearance, when Maggie is first introduced in the story, Mama points out that she is nervous about her sister’s visit and “will stand hopelessly in corners, homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs, eyeing her sister with a mixture of envy and awe” (355).

“Everyday Use” is a short story by Alice Walker, which emphasizes the importance of understanding and cherishing your heritage and the inheritance that may come along with it. Knowing who is truly entitled to the inheritance, and what their heritage meant was the central conflict in the story, when the two main characters Dee and Maggie, both wanted the two hand stitched quilts. Rather than looking at the physical aspect of the quilts the author wants the reader to know that the meaning is much deeper. The quilts are used to depict the struggle, triumphs, oppression, joy, pain, and love of each hand that helped to create the prized works of art. The quilts needed to be put to everyday use, rather than a mere decoration on the wall. Through the quilts Walker was able to show what each character valued: Dee valued the materials things, Maggie, valued things she could attach herself to, and Mama valued the acceptance of her daughter Dee.

Readers of Alice Walker's, "Everyday Use", discusses how the narrator realizes that Maggie understands her own heritage. What does the narrator mean when she says, "Just like when I'm in church and the spirit of God touches me and I get happy and shout?" Does the narrator do something amazing that she has not done before? Some readers opine that the narrator knows what it really feels like to have family. Others say that the narrator recognizes the importance of giving. However, both these readings are not with the point. The narrator realizes that Maggie should have the quilts because they embody her heritage.

When the climactic scene occurs and Dee asks “Can I have these quilts?” (145), Maggie’s first implied reaction is one of surprise and anger; “I heard something fall in the kitchen, and a minute later the kitchen door slammed” (145). But as someone “never used to winning anything, or having anything reserved for her” (146), Maggie succumbs and offers to let Dee have them. Although “Maggie knows how to quilt” (146), she is able to comprehend the deeper personal value of the quilts, and states that she “can ‘member Grandma Dee without the quilts”(146). Despite their value as an item of everyday use, the quilts are meaningful to Maggie, much in the way they are to her mother who remembers having quilted them with Big Dee. The scraps, the bits and pieces and “one teeny faded blue piece, about the size of a penny matchbox, that was from Great Grandpa Ezra’s uniform that he wore in the Civil War.” (145) hold deep significance to Maggie.

The narrator described herself as large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working hands. She said she can kill and clean a hog as mercilessly as a man, and her fat keeps her hot in zero weather (444). She seemed to be a hard working woman, who differently from Dee is proud of her heritage and where she came from. It is understood she knew she may not have had the best life possible, but made the best of it. She knew Dee was the successful, popular child, but once Dee returned home with a changed name she saw her in a different light. She realized Dee’s doings were from throwing out the cultural heritage she belonged to into the new, hip black movement. She seemed to appreciate Maggie more after Dee tried to remove things from their house to show off. When Dee argued with her about giving the quilts to her instead of Maggie who was used to never winning, or having anything reserved for her the mother grabbed the quilts from Dee and handed them to Maggie. The mother is very grateful for her children, but is not going to let Dee, the daughter who has “made it”, take over the quilts meant for Maggie once she married.