Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Critical introduction to the homecoming
Theory about magical realism
Essays for magical realism
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Maggie is a major character in Everyday Use. Because Maggie is quite and withdrawn, she is hardly recognized. “She has been like this, chin on chest, eyes on ground, feet in shuffle, ever since that house burned the other house to the ground”(316). While Maggie loved that house abundantly, Dee despised it. Although she became attached to her previous house, she portrays that materialism is not as important as remembering spiritual values. She has a true, un-superficial sense of family, or heritage, as she tells her mother that Dee may have the quilts because she "can 'member Grandma Dee without the quilts" (321). Maggie comprehends that she can recall her spiritual values without material possessions, unlike Dee. Dee becomes more concerned
about possessing the quilts and nice belongings rather than valuing her heritage. “Dee wants nice things. A yellow oragandy dress to wear to her graduation from high school; black pumps to match a green suit she’d made from an old suit somebody gave me” (316). Because heritage is not important to Dee, she does not cherish her name. Her namesake was her aunt, but she exchanged her name with Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo because she did not like being named after the people who oppress her. Maggie is not as worried about being presented with the quilts made from her grandmother’s clothes because she knows they are only materials. Although, since her heritage is important to her, she did want to be presented with the quilts. Their mother decided to present the quilts to Maggie instead of Dee because she knew Maggie deserved them more than Dee. Although Maggie may use the quilts and they may become rags, Maggie understands the true meaning of her heritage. She understands a quilt is just a quilt, but the quilt is still extremely valuable to her.
Have you ever seen the Disney movie Cinderella? Cinderella was always jealous of her step sisters always being up lifted, while she was always degraded by her step mother however, at the end everything changed for Cinderella just as it did for Maggie. There are a numerous of themes throughout the story “Everyday Use”. Race is showed when Dee leaves home and comes back embracing her African American cultural. Family also plays a major role in “Everyday Use”. In “Everyday Use” Maggie’s characterization presents her as ignorant; however, a closer look reveals Maggie ignorance is not a representative of her potential but, rather her mother’s bias.
In “Everyday Use”, the line between worth and value may tear two sisters apart. First, each character symbolizes something they are going through. Second, Dee does not understand the purpose of items passed down. Lastly, an argument breaks out about the quilts. Dee makes a visit to Mama and Maggie for many reasons.
Dee and maggie are sister in "Everyday Use". Dee is outgoing and ambitious, Maggie is shy and lazy. Maggie envies Dee, but also fears her. They act more like co-workers than siblings. In the story they don't appear to interact with each other often, which makes it difficult to develop a relationship.From the story it doesn't illustrate them ever having a close connection probably due to Maggie's shyness and envy. Alice Walker writes "Maggie will be be nervous until after her sister goes: she 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. She thinks her sister has held life always in the palm of one hand, that "no" is a word never learned to say to her." Dee(Wangero) is the most dominant one out of the two, which is no surprise since she tries take the quilts from Dee (Wangero). I found it I found it odd that she wanted those quilts because of her heritage, when she completely disgraced her heritage when she traded her own name in for Wangero. Alice writes :
Dee had lived a life where she always wanted nice things. She always wanted more and was never satisfied. Most of it usually included her style. She always wanted a new dress or new shoes for some occasion and wouldn’t give up until she got it. Dee learned how to make nice clothes out of old hand-me-downs and was very talented when it came to fashion. “…a green suit she made from an old suit somebody gave me” (Walker 2). Maggie did not have any skills in fashion or really any interest, but this was still a skill that Dee had over
As you can see, I strongly agree with the narrator of the story and her choice in giving Maggie the quilts. Dee (Wangero) has been given enough in her life. She has beauty, confidence and her education. Maggie has wonderful qualities too, but has been through hardships. All which make her more deserving of the family quilts.
Different environment makes people gradually different way of thinking and values, the roles have their own experience of background influence in the formation of their personality. Maggie and Dee has an opposite trait to generate their mother’s attitude toward different way. Alice has cleverly written by black people of generation complex attitude on the ideas and cultural heritage in Everyday Use. Mother-daughter relationship also is complicated in those two articles. In No Name Woman, the mother tells the daughter a story about her aunt and do not allow tell anyone else. The mother is traditional person and she hopes the daughter go with her. Both two articles shows conflict between traditional and new, mother and daughter’s relationship.
Maggie is a nervous wreck around other people, especially around her sister Dee: “Maggie will be nervous until after her sister goes: she will stand hopelessly in corners, homely and ashamed” (Walker 77). Maggie feels inadequate compared to her sister, always
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.
Alice Walker's "Everyday Use," explores Dee and Maggie's opposing views about their heritage by conveying symbolism through their actions. Maggie is reminded of her heritage throughout everyday life. Her daily chores consist of churning milk, helping mama skin hogs on the bench which is the same table her ancestors built, and working in the pasture. On the other hand, Dee moved to the city where she attends college. It is obvious throughout the story; Dee does not appreciate her heritage. When Dee comes back to visit Mama and Maggie she announces that she has changed her name to Wangero. Dee states "I couldn't bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me" (89). Her stopping the tradition of the name Dee, which goes back as far as mama can remember, tells the reader that Dee does not value her heritage. Another symbolism of her lack of appreciation for her heritage demonstrated through her actions is when Dee asks Mama if she can have the churn top to use it as a ce...
In this story, Maggie is a lot like her mother. They both are uneducated, loving, caring, and allow Dee to run over them. Maggie has been through more things than her mother has though, because of the incident that happened. Maggie has scars like Emily, except Maggie’s scars are from a house fire (319). The house fire has impacted Maggie’s life tremendously, since she is very self-conscious and shy. Walker stated that Maggie is “ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs (318). The mother is protective of Maggie and will be there for her whenever she needs her too. Even though her mother knows all her struggles, she still supports her and pushes her to be better. I think that is one reason she pushes her to marry John Thomas, because she wants her to become her own person and to be strong (319). The mother of “Everyday Use” is opposite from the mother in “I Stand Here Ironing”, because she is there for her children no matter what their financial status
The differences in attitude that Dee and Maggie portray about their heritage are seen early in the story. When the family's house burned down ten or twelve years ago, Maggie was deeply affected by the tragedy of losing her home where she grew up. As her mother describes, "She has been like this, chin on chest, eyes on ground, feet in shuffle, ever since the fire that burned the other house to the ground" (409). Dee, on the other hand, had hated the house. Her mother had wanted to ask her, "Why don't you dance around the ashes?" (409). Dee did not hold any significance in the home where she had grown up. In her confusion about her heritage, it was just a house to her.
As we go through life and learn, a story is never one sided. It always has two different sides and two different perspectives of what actually happened. This same concept can be applied to the stories we read. Just because someone is the narrator does not make the protagonist. They could be the antagonist, but they are trying to get you on their side. As you read Alice Walker’s Everyday use, we are taken through the mind of the mother. She takes us on an adventure through her thoughts as her daughter, who is different from her mother, visits.
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
Dee perceives her heritage as a rich African heritage, which can be noted by the bright flashy clothing she wears when visiting Mama and Maggie. Mama describes Dee's dress as "A dress so loud it hurts my eyes" and states that "There are yellows and oranges enough to throw back the light of the sun (Walker 478)." Dee's clothes have nothing to do with her heritage despite what she thinks. Furthermore, Dee treats the family heirlooms like old relics that should be put up for decoration or put in a museum, and fails to see the use in the objects. For example, Dee states "I can use the churn top as a center piece for the alcove table." Instead of putting the churner to practical use Dee wants to use it for show as if putting an artifact on display. Unlike Dee, Maggie is a lot more in touch with her family's true heritage. Maggie may not be as smart as Dee, but she knows more of the heritage passed down to them. Maggie has accepted her heritage, and has been taught a few things from her heritage. Mama has stated "It was Grandma Dee and Big Dee who taught her how to quilt herself (Walker 481)."
There are many different forms a lie can take on as it grows into a mass of tendrils with far too many loose ends to properly tie. The type of lie that affected my friend in the meatiest way were the lies she told herself and her family. Lying to herself was the easiest lie to pull off, because if she didn’t want to accept the truth the stronger the lie became. The lie she told herself was that she was perfectly fine going behind her parents’ backs to party, drink, and do drugs. It wasn’t until much later that she realized just how wrong she was and just how much she needed to change about herself all because of her lies. Maggie says that the lies she told her parents while she was young had and still has lasting effects in her life, such as lack of family support, drug problems, and a child.