Alice Walkers “Everyday Use”, is a story about a family of African Americans that are faced with moral issues involving what true inheritance is and who deserves it. Two sisters and two hand stitched quilts become the center of focus for this short story. Walker paints for us the most vivid representation through a third person perspective of family values and how people from the same environment and upbringing can become different types of people. Like most peoples families there is a dynamic of people involved, although all from the same environment and teachings, it is ultimately an accumulation of personal experiences that shape us and defines how we perceive our existence. “Everyday Use” is a story of conflict of right and wrong and also family values. Walkers’ narrator, “Mama”, struggles with her disrespectful daughter ‘Dee”. Though “Mama” was quoted to have worked hard like a man to send her to school gratitude is never mentioned. “Clearly, Dee privileges language over silence, as she demonstrates in her determination to be educated and in the importance she places on her name” (Tuten). Since “Dee” had been out of the house and to school in the city she had lost touch with where she came from and had little respect for the family heritage. Maggie having been burned in a house fire had learned to love the shelter that only a family can provide. Being burned makes you like no one else, everywhere you go you feel eyes looking. Since she had not been out of the house and had the time to learn the value of family she regarded the quilts as a part of her heritage. Presenting the story from a third person perception and having the narration by the mother or “Mama” gives the story great relevance to real life situations that ha... ... middle of paper ... ...and how we perceive ideas about what writers are trying to get across. This story is a clear representation of family values and true inheritance. Works Cited DiYanni, , Robert . Walker, Alice. “Everyday Use.” Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and the Essay. 4th. New York: McGraw Hill, 1998. 408-413. Print. Hoel , Helga. ""Personal Names and Heritage: Alice Walker’s 'Everyday Use'." 2000." . Trondheim Cathedral School, 30 January 2000. Web. 1 march 2014. Cowart, David. “Heritage and Deracination in Walker’s ‘Everyday Use.’” Studies in Short Fiction 33 (1996): 171-84. Tate, Claudia C. "'Everyday Use' by Alice Walker." African American Review 30.2 (1996): 308+. Literature Resource Center. Web. 2 Feb. 2014. Gruesser, John. "Walker's Everyday Use." The Explicator 61.3 (2003): 183+. Literature Resource Center. Web. 2 Feb. 2014.
Walker, Alice. "Everyday Use." Literature for Composition. Ed. Sylvan Barnet, William Burto, and William E. Cain. 10th ed. New York: Pearson, 2014. 1125-1131. Print.
No matter where one is from or where one finds themselves today, we carry with us in some way or another a specific heritage. Certain events and circumstances can lead to someone trying to forget their heritage or doing everything in their power to preserve that heritage. Alice Walker’s “EveryDay Use” was published in 1973, not long after the civil rights movement, and reflects the struggles of dealing with a heritage that one might not want to remember (Shmoop). Alice Walker is well known as a civil rights and women’s rights activist. Like many of her other works she uses “Everyday Use” to express her feelings on a subject; in this case African American heritage. Through “Everyday Use” it can be seen that Alice Walker has negative feelings about how many African Americans were trying to remove themselves from parts of their African American culture during the time of the short story’s publishment. This idea that Walker was opposed to this “deracinating” of African Americans coming out of the civil rights
In her short story “Everyday Use”, Alice Walker portrays an African American family. In that family, there were the mother, her elder daughter who does
An interesting thing about Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” is the fact that it seems to be told from the Mama’s eyes, rather than from one of the, arguably, main characters. This only allows the reader to see Mama’s bias in the entire situation. Because of this bias between her children, the reader can see the stark contrast of the two sisters. Alice tries to portray the importance of embracing heritage and the vulgarity of disregarding the purpose of things for one’s own pleasure.
Alice Walker as a novelist, poet, short story writer, activist and feminist has built a well-known reputation worldwide. In her short story Everyday Use it is one of her popular and wonderful short stories in which she addresses the predicament of African and Americans who were struggling to define their personal identities in cultural terms. The story goes around some issues of heritage which construct a conflict between the characters of the story, each with different point of views. Walker's use of symbol of "quilt" and the difference of understanding the legacy of family, between Mama and Maggi with Dee, creates a
Walker, Alice. "Everyday Use." Literature: A Pocket Anthology. Ed. R. S. Gwynn. New York: Longman, 2002. 462-470.
In the story 'Everyday Use', by Alice Walker, the value of ones culture and heritage are defined as a part of life that should not be looked upon as history but as a living existence of the past. Walker writes of the conflict between two Black cultures. Dee and Maggie are sisters whom do not share the same ideals. Mama is torn between two children with different perspectives of what life truly means. In the story, Walker describes the trial and tribulations of one daughter whose whole life is tormented by fear, failure and weakness; while the other "has held life always in the palm of one hand"(61) and moves to a better lifestyle. The possessions of the past will ultimately change the relationships of the future.
“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, author of The Color Purple, wrote "Everyday Use," which tells a story of a rugged, independent mother of two girls who celebrate their African-American heritage in completely different ways. One daughter, Maggie, celebrates her heritage by enjoying and appreciating the use of family heirlooms whereas the other daughter, Dee, feels it is more honorable to display these heirlooms for artistic show. Walker's use of imagery illuminates the story's theme of family heritage and, quite possibly the most respectful way of celebrating such heritage.
5 June 2014 Walker, Alice. “Everyday Use.” Literature: Approaches to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Robert DiYanni. New York: McGraw Hill, 2008.
Alice Walker is a renowned African American novelist and poet who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1982. She is a Georgian, and graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in New York in 1965. Everyday Use is one of her most widely read popular short stories in which she addresses how African Americans were struggling with their cultural terms and identities in this country. The background of the story is around late 60s to early 70s shortly after the onset of African American Civil Right Movement; according to the clues in the plot of the story such as the Lone Star pattern (Texas) on the rags (from Great Grandfather’s uniform in Civil War) stitched on the quilts, the story should take place in the southern United States. I will discuss the racial
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.
Walker, Alice. “Everyday Use.” Robert DiYanni, ed. Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 6th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2007.
Schakel, Peter J., and Jack Ridl. The "Everyday Use." Approaching Literature: Writing, Reading, Thinking. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin, J.
However, journalist David White states that, “In ‘Everyday Use’, Alice Walker argues that an African-American is both African and American, and to deny the American side of one’s heritage is disrespectful of one’s ancestors and, consequently, harmful to one’s self”. He also goes on to state that “She uses the principal characters of Mama, Dee, and Maggie to clarify this theme”. One might simply assume that in “Everyday Use”, Walker gives an insightful look at the way people struggle with their heritage and how the story exemplifies how far some will go to shun their