Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
About American cultures
Now and then character analysis
Now and then character analysis
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
At some point in our life’s we come across our parents judgments when we get married to a certain someone we chose or simply choosing to live a different life than what we were raised in. In the two short stories “Everyday use” and “Marriage is a private affair” we come across those similar situations where the grown child takes his or her decisions in life without their parent approval. I will compare and contrast those two short stories and show you the similarities between them. As we read in the story “Marriage is a private affair” a father has plan a surprise for his son named Nnaemeka to give him the best wife he could find, only to be at his likings and not Nnaemeka. What the father doesn’t know is that Nnaemeka already found a wife and believes to be perfect for him. The relationship between Nnaemeka’s and his father isn’t so good as his father have …show more content…
One of the daughters named Dee was a woman who went to college and found herself and what she wanted to become and live. She even changes her name to be more African-American as she was raised in a white family. Through the story we can see that this means she completely forgets the way she was raised who her family is and what her culture is about. Now on the other hand the second daughter, Maggie is more the shy one and always more close to her mom compare to Dee who knows what she wants. Maggie stayed home with her mother and lived this shelter lifestyle as she always believed her sister to be better than her in a matter of looks and knowledge. In the end we see the mom completely confused and doesn’t understand Dee anymore and why choose that different life to what she’s been though. We read that the mother chooses to give the quilts to Maggie as she knows that she’ll wear them as an honor of her culture and not for
...sents some discrepancies in how people value their family history. To some, family does not mean much at all but others are very much aware of their ancestors and the traits that they share in common. Some people use this self-awareness to better themselves while others find ways of exploiting it to satisfy their superficial needs. Dee is the type of individual that misuses her heritage. She is using it to fit in and attract the new religious group with which she has begun to associate. Maggie just seems oblivious, although the story does not allow the reader to know what she is thinking. The truth is that Maggie and her mother are living their heritage. This is the lesson that Dee's mother is trying to teach her; to accept and embrace who she is rather than continuously search for something she is not. She could search for her entire life and never be fulfilled.
...made for, she no longer offers much imagery to the reader. The story comes to an end as the mother reminds Dee that she was once offered the quilts and refused them because she thought they were "old fashioned and out of style" (880). She also turns the table on Dee by snatching the quilts out of Dee's hands and dumping them into Maggie's lap. She tells Dee to get a couple of the other quilts, and with that said, Dee storms out.
... attempts to change the way Mama and Maggie perceive tradition by using the quilts as a wall display. Mama refuses to allow it, Dee was offered the quilts when she was in college and didn’t want them at that time. Mama gives the quilts to Maggie as her wedding gift to be used every day as they were intended, knowing how much Maggie appreciates them. I agree with Mama and Maggie for keeping family memories and objects in daily use. It is important to maintain your family history in your everyday life to preserve those special memories.
Confessions of an Erstwhile Child is an essay which analyses the concept of the nuclear family. At first the author explains the ideas of Thomas More’s Utopia, but afterwards narrows his content by going into explaining his thoughts on children raised in dysfunctional families. He very cleverly shows the reader part family model’s with current ones, allowing his audience to make the decision for themselves. His tone is a logical philosophical. The reader is told of his depressing childhood growing up in a dysfunctional family, and how it had a profound effect upon his life. The author uses his own personal experience and knowledge to express his opinions on his topic, but really doesn’t use much inference to other cases or factual evidence to back up his argument. All and all, the author wrote an essay which would prove to be thought provoking and well organized.
Walker communicates through Dee that Maggie “ ‘probably be backward enough to put them [the quilt] to everyday use’ ” (82). This portrays Maggie as a rural character, who owns the minimal and uses all her belongings as an instrument to help in survival. For her, the quilt is a form of cover. Also, that fact that this dialogue is coming from Dee shows that Dee is very inconsiderate of other’s feelings and disrespectful to her sister, and rudely snatches the quilt for the purpose to “ ‘hang them’ ” (82). The reality that Dee wants to hang the quilt shows that Dee would want the quilt for the purpose of decoration. This shows her value of tradition, which she believes should be showcased, rather than lived. It also tells that audience, as stated earlier, that Dee prioritizes fashion and showcasing. Another example of Maggie being a foil is that Maggie is a character that “stand[s] helplessly in the corners, homely, and ashamed” (77). This uncovers the lack of confidence in Maggie, who is still not completely over the trauma of her house burning down. Maggie is a character who is defeated and ashamed of herself, clearly lacking self esteem. Because of this, the audience starts to sympathize for Maggie, who has lost herself somewhere in the fire that burned down their house. This is the exact opposite of Dee herself, who is “determined to stare down any disaster in her efforts” (79). This
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.
The quilts were pieced together by Mama, Grandma Dee, and Big Dee symbolizing a long line of relatives. The quilts made from scraps of dresses worn by Grandma Dee, Grandpa Jarrell’s Paisley shirts, and Great Grandpa Ezra’s Civil War uniform represented the family heritage and values, and had been promised to Mama to Maggie when she married. However, Dee does not understand the love put into the making of the quilts, neither does she understand the significance of the quilts as part of her family heritage. It is evident she does not understand the significance of the quilt, having been offered one when went away to college declaring them “as old-fashioned” and “out of style”. She does not care about the value of the quilts to her family, rather she sees it as a work of art, valuable as an African heritage but not as a family heirloom. She wants the quilts because they are handmade, not stitched with around the borders. She tells Mama, “Maggie can’t appreciate these quilts!... She’d probably be backward enough to put them to everyday use… But, they’re priceless!.. Maggie would put them on her the bed and in five years they’d be in rags. Less than that!” (317). The quilt signifies the family pride and history, which is important to Mama. She makes the decision to give the quilt to Maggie who will appreciate it more than Dee, to whom she says, “God knows I been saving ‘em for long enough with
The main objects of topic throughout the story are the quilts that symbolize the African American Woman’s history. Susan Farrell, a critic of many short stories, describes the everyday lives of African American Women by saying “weaving and sewing has often been mandatory labor, women have historically endowed their work with special meanings and significance” and have now embraced this as a part of their culture. The two quilts that Dee wanted “had been pieced together by Grandma Dee and then Big Dee and me [Mother] had hung them on the quilt frames on the front porch and quilted them” (par. 55) showing that these quilts were more valuable as memories than they were just blankets. The fabrics in the quilts “were scraps of dresses Grandma Dee had worn fifty and more years ago. Bits and pieces of Grandpa Jarrell’s paisley shirts. And one teeny faded blue piece, about the piece of a penny matchbox, that was from Great Grandpa Ezra’s uniform that he wore in the Civil War” (par. 55) putting forth more evidence that these are not just scraps, but have become pieces of family history. The q...
In the story, it states, “‘These are all pieces of dresses Grandma used to wear. She did all this stitching by hand. Imagine!’... ‘Maggie can’t appreciate these quilts!’ she said. ‘She’d probably be backward enough to put them to everyday use.’ ‘I reckon she would,’ I said. ‘God knows I been saving ‘em for long enough with nobody using ‘em. I hope she will!’ (Walker 320). This quote explains how Dee believes she should have the quilts made by her grandmother because her sister would put them to everyday use. Dee believes that the quilts are so valuable to her heritage that they needed to hang the quilts, treating them like foreign objects, in order to appreciate their value. Conversely, the narrator believes that their heritage would be appreciated by using how they were intended to be used, which is why she later decides to give the quilts to Maggie instead of Dee. This creates a very evident conflict between Dee and the narrator as a result of different interpretations of
Quilts symbolize a family’s heritage. Maggie adheres the tradition by learning how to quilt from her grandmother and by sewing her own quilts. Maggie also puts her grandmother’s quilts into everyday use. Therefore, when Dee covets the family’s heirloom, wanting to take her grandmother’s hand-stitched quilts away for decoration, Mama gives the quilts to Maggie. Mama believes that Maggie will continually engage with and build upon the family’s history by using the quilts daily rather than distance herself from
When Dee finds out that her mama promise to give the quilts to her sister, Dee gets very angry and says that she deserves the quilts more than Maggie because Maggie would not take care of them like she would. Dee feels that she can value and treasure heritage more than her sister Maggie. Dee does what she wants, whenever she wants and she will not accept the word no for any answer. “She thinks her sister has held life always in the palm of one hand, that "no" is a word the world never learned to say to her.” Maggie is used to never getting anything. Throughout the entire story, it says that Maggie gives up many things so Dee can have what she needs or
Characters both a young woman and man, Nene and Nnaemeka, plan on getting married to each other in “Marriage is a Private Affair.” Nene tells him to tell his father of their plans, but Nnaemeka believes he won’t approve since she is not from the same tribe, Ibo. Nene did not like that someone would care as much about tribal background and so continues telling him to write a letter. Nnaemeka wants to tell his father in person instead, because his father sent him a letter in regards to his arranged marriage and of the woman whom Nnaemeka has no interest. Later, Nnaemeka and his father talked, he sincerely told his father that he does not want to marry the woman he chose, but the women that he truly loves and wants to marry. Once her attributes
Three different Western marriage customs have influenced the characters in the story "Marriage is a Private Affair" by Chinua Achebe. It is about a Nnaemeke and Nene. Nnaemeke was an Igbo but Nene was from a different part of the country. They fell in love and Nnameke proposed. Then Nnaemeke got a letter from his father telling him about an arranged marriage that is being planned. Very disappointed, Nnaemeke comes home and tells his father that he will not get married to anybody, except Nene. Nnaemeke was kicked out from his father's house and wasn’t wanted there anymore. Happily married, Nnaemeke and Nene, had two sons. They wanted to see their grandpa and wouldn’t stop asking to visit him. When Nnaemeke's father read the letter about his grandsons he couldn’t stop himself from thinking about them. At last he was beginning to open his heart for his son, daughter-in-law, and his grandsons. The first custom was that the parents arranged marriages for their children. Nnaemeka's father had arranged a wedding for him with a girl from his culture. The second custom was that love was not part of the marriages. All that mattered was that she had to be a good Christian and had the potential to become a good wife. The third custom is that the woman had to be raised from the same culture. Women from other cultures were not welcomed in Igbo culture and families. These three customs had a huge affect on Nene's and Nnaemeka's lives.
Marriage a la Mode, by John Dryden, is an ode to the concept of marriage and love within the period of Restoration England. Dryden, presumably, presents two pairs of couples, Rhodophil and Doralice, as well as Melantha and Palamede, in a way that expresses an imperative tone towards marital relations. Throughout the playwright, he uses these couples and their mistresses to allocate the issue of broken, miserable, thorny marriages. Although marriage was common, there was a strong presence of moral emancipation, which Dryden presents through these relationships. These themes of dissatisfaction and obligation towards the concept of marriage are noted throughout the playwright, as Dryden uncovers how each character feels.
Getting married is the most important event in our life. From time to time, they always say, “Single life is a sweet dream and marriage is an alarm clock.” This proverb could make young people afraid when deciding whether or not they marry. However, there are differences that indicate pros and cons of both single life and married life. In general, single life can bring us freedom to experience life all by ourselves; at the same time, it also brings loneliness and detachment. In contrast, married life can fulfill us with love, care, and a sense of belonging; however, it also requires us a great deal of shared responsibilities. Understanding the differences between single life and married life especially on finance, emotion, and responsibility