A Family's Identity In Everyday Use By Alice Walker

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In “Everyday Use,” by Alice Walker, one of the characters, Dee, has changed her name and appearance to more traditional African ones. Dee says to her mother and sister, “You don’t understand your heritage!” This asks the question of whether a family's heritage should be up for display. Dee only knows a history of oppression in her family and rejects her own heritage. As for Mama, she understands that the family heirlooms, such as the family quilts, are ways to remember the people who used and made them. The story is ironic, because Dee has never been to Africa and has almost no knowledge about it. When Dee says she wants to hang the quilts (line 72), the story shows the reader that Dee has feelings for her heritage, but that the objects

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