Symbolism In Everyday Use

366 Words1 Page

Alice Walker uses a substantial amount of symbolism in her short story “Everyday Use”. Walker describes each characters personality and how it correlates with the way they view their heritage. She [Walker] also uses this story to show the difference between culture and heritage as the two are often mistaken to be one and the same. The most important symbol in “Everyday Use” would be the quilts. The quilts represent the heritage of the family. Each piece of cloth had a significant tie with a past family member which makes it valuable. They aren’t valuable in the sense of them being ancient artifacts, as Dee sees it, but as treasures that are protected to be passed down to the future generations of the family (i.e. Mama saving the quilts for

Show More
Related

  • Rejecting Heritage: Wangero's Greed Illustrated in Walker's, Everyday Use

    1603 Words  | 4 Pages

    It was a little girl’s second Christmas and, although she does not remember now, she was so excited to open the big red package from grandma. She ripped open the package and the soft, handmade brown bear went poof in her hands. She has kept the ratty, old bear not for its beauty but because it has sentimental value of a simpler time. Like this example, many people have memories of items they grew up with that have more than monetary value, most people forget the real value of these items, however, and commercialize them as art or sell them away as junk in garage sales. In Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use,” we are shown a vivid example of what can happen when people take these once treasured items for granted. Walker’s character Dee/Wangero is an estranged daughter and sister who has not seen her family for six years reappears at her mother’s home to take away her family’s most sentimentally valuable possessions. Because Wangero’s view of her own heritage has been skewed and distorted by her peers, Wangero forgets the value of her mother’s possessions in an attempt to impress her contemporaries. Through Wangero, Walker reveals how misunderstanding one’s heritage can lead him to search for his place in a fake legacy invented to help him reconcile his misunderstanding of his own origins, and can even cause him to cheapen his family heritage because of a desire to stand out among his peers.

    Read More

  • Everyday Use, by Alice Walker and The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson

    709 Words  | 2 Pages

    Symbols are displayed in both stories; the quilts in “Everyday Use” symbolize the memories of Mama’s family. The quilts are made of pieces of old clothing from Mama’s family. Each piece of the quilt represents that person and who they were. They are passed on to future generations along with stories of the ancestors’ past. The quilts represent pride of their ancestors’ struggles, where they came from and the fight to preserve their individuality. Unlike Dee, Mama and Maggie acknowledge their heritage from memories of their family members. Dee bases her heritage off ...

    Read More

  • literature

    472 Words  | 1 Pages

    In Alice Walker’s story “Everyday Use,” symbolism, allegory, and myth stand out when thinking about the characters, setting, and conflict in the story. The conflict is between the mother and her two daughters (Maggie and Dee). There is also the conflict between the family’s heritage (symbolized by the quilt, bench, and butter chum) and their different ways of life. Dee chose a new African name, moved to the city, and adopted a new way of life while Maggie and her mother have stay behind. The quilt (the most important symbol) represents the family’s heritage in that it is made of scraps of clothing worn by generations of family members. The quilt has been sewn by family hands and used on family beds. It has seen history and is history. Maggie and her mother see that that history is alive but Dee thinks it is as dead as her name. Dee does not see that name as part of her heritage. By analyzing these symbols, a number of possibilities for a theme can be seen. Walker could be suggesting that to understand the African-American heritage, readers have to include the present as well as the past. However, the theme could be that poverty and a lack of sophistication and education cannot be equated with ignorance. Lastly, she could be telling her readers that dignity or self-respect rise from and are virtually connected to one’s entire heritage- not just a selected part of it.

    Read More

  • Family Heirlooms In Everyday Use By Alice Walker

    1151 Words  | 3 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Symbolism in Alice Walker's Everyday Use

    1557 Words  | 4 Pages

    Symbolism such as certain objects, their front yard, and the different characters, are all used to represent the main theme that heritage is something to always be proud of. 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. 1). 55.

    Read More

  • Literary Analysis: "Everyday Use"

    692 Words  | 2 Pages

    Meanwhile, Dee finds this absurd. She thinks they are too valuable and priceless to be used as everyday necessities. Instead she will hang them. These two ideas of how to use the quilts are in complete contrast to one another. Mama finds them practical, Dee finds them fashionable....

    Read More

  • Symbolism in the Short Story "Everyday Use"

    571 Words  | 2 Pages

    Alice Walker used symbolism to convey the importance of heritage in her short story "Everyday Use," by using the sisters' actions, family items, and tradition. Dee does not appreciate her heritage like her sister and mother. She does not see the importance of family traditions. The churn top, the bench with her ancestor's rump prints, the butter dish, and the quilts are all symbols of their heritage. Dee is only interested in the items because they make great decorations. Heritage is very important factor in a person's life. Everyone should learn to appreciate their family history.

    Read More

  • Symbolism in Everyday Use by Alice Walker

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    In “Everyday Use” symbolism is use a lot times. Dee is one of the main characters. Dee is a symbol of misrepresentation of heritage. As studymode explain to us that “Dee has changed her name to ‘Wangero’ to get closer to her heritages.” Dee changed her name to “Wangero” (718) because she wants to feel closer to her heritage, but her name comes from “Aunt Dicie.”Dee likes to feel better that her mom and her sister. As Voice.Yahoo explains to us “Dee makes the strangers hairdo and tinkling jewelry complete her look.” When Dee was a little girl she likes to feel better the Maggie and Mama Johnson.Dee was symbol of the black power movement. As David white state “walker ...

    Read More

  • The Meaning of Heritage in Alice Walker's Everyday Use

    988 Words  | 2 Pages

    Alice Walker's "Everyday Use," is a story about a poor, African-American family and a conflict about the word "heritage." In this short story, the word "heritage" has two meanings. One meaning for the word "heritage" represents family items, thoughts, and traditions passed down through the years. The other meaning for the word "heritage" represents the African-American culture.

    Read More

  • Essay on the Setting of Everyday Use

    609 Words  | 2 Pages

    The objects that lead to the final confrontation between Dee and Mama are the old quilts. These quilts are described as being made from old material by family members, which enhances their value to Mama, and the detail with which they are described increases the sense of setting.

    Read More

  • Hand Sewn Quilts In Everyday Use By Alice Walker

    392 Words  | 1 Pages

    Most families have some piece of jewelry, furniture, or other symbolic collectible that is passed through many generations. These things often remind a person of a beloved grandparent or great-grandparent and are seen as priceless. In Alice Walker's "Everyday Use," the family heirloom, a couple of hand sewn quilts, represents the family members' emotions concerning their heritage. Dee, the older sister, wants to hang the quilts on a wall and view her culture from a distance. In fact she even seems ashamed of her family situation.

    Read More

  • Family Heritage In Everyday Use

    1197 Words  | 3 Pages

    Walker's view is very clear at the end of the story. By Dee wanting to hang the family heirloom on the wall to look at from a distance, she is alienating herself from her family heritage. That is exactly what Walker thinks is the wrong thing to do. Walker would prefer the quilts to be used and integrated into daily life, like Maggie and her mother prefer. The same idea applies to all of the other household items that Dee has her eye on: the churn top, the dasher, and the benches for the table that her daddy made. They all are a part of life for Maggie and her mother. Walker believes that the only value that they hold for Dee is that they would be good trinkets to show off in her house. By using the quilts in this symbolic way, Walker is making the point that family heirlooms can only have meaning if they remain connected to the culture they sprang from - in essence, to be put to "Everyday Use."

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Quilt In Everyday Use By Alice Walker

    1625 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the short story, “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, is written in manner to inspire the reader to show them how deep some family traditions can go. Walker, in her writings, tend to talk about issues that she had experienced in her life, and being an African American, she has learned the value of certain things in her life that her parents and grandparents had taught her. The quilt is so important to Dee because it is something that tells a story of the previous generation; the quilt actually consists of pieces of material that the family once used. The issue of the quilt also sets the mood for the story. It helps the reader to understand the deep rooted power simple things can have when it comes to family relations. All this helps explains

    Read More

  • Everyday Use by Alice Walker has a Great Moral

    569 Words  | 2 Pages

    Alice Walker’s story “Everyday Use” tells a great moral. It is narrated by Mama, and she has two daughters. Dee, the beautiful and educated daughter is visiting home. Mama says: “Maggie will be nervous until after her sister goes,” she is the shy and jealous daughter (Walker 166). Their house burned down ten or twelve years ago. Dee watched the house she hated engulf in flames, as Mama carried out a badly burned Maggie. Dee dislikes that she was raised in a poor family, and she went off to school to gain an education. She later changed her last name to Wangero. Mama and Maggie had very little education, but they were happy with their simple life. Walker’s extreme differences and few similarities between the two characters throughout the story clarified her theme: One’s heritage should be valued through everyday use.

    Read More

  • Heritage in Everyday Use, by Alice Walker

    1063 Words  | 3 Pages

    The quilts play an important role in depicting symbolism of heritage because they signify Dee’s family origins. For instance, Dees’ significant family members all have pieces of their fabric sown on to the quilts as a remembrance of who they were and their importance in the family. Nevertheless, Dee is overlooking important facets of her family history because she does not see the quilts her ancestors made as valuable, hand-made, pieces of fabric that should be passed down and taken care of to keep their history alive. As Mama stated, “In both of them were scraps of dresses Grandma Dee had worn fifty years and more years ago. Bits and pieces of Grandpa Jarrell’s paisley shirts. 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.” (1129). Despite her family’s history, Dee continues to misinterpret the...

    Read More

More about Symbolism In Everyday Use

Open Document