Symbolism Of The Dog In Everyday Use

342 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Literary essays mother daughter relationship

The yard in the short story “Everyday Use” is a symbol for the mother and Dee. The story opens and closes in the yard. The yard is a place of freedom for the mother. In preparing for Dee’s arrival the mother and Maggie have made sure the yard has been cared for. The mother does not view the yard as just a yard but as an “extended living room”. The confrontation with Dee regarding the quilts takes place in the house that seems to confine the women, however when Dee leaves the mother and Maggie sit outside in the yard where they seem to let go the events of the day and enjoy themselves. Dee changing her name to Wangero is also a symbol in this story. Dee changes her name as her attempt to connect with her heritage. The changing of her names seems

Show More
Related

  • 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

  • The Character of Dee in Everyday Use

    636 Words  | 2 Pages

    Another reason I had feelings of anger for the character Dee, was that she was uneducated. Not the usual education, such as in college, because she had that, but the education of her heritage, or past. The second statement to her mother was when her mother says "Dee", Dee replied saying her new name Wangero, followed by the statement that Dee is dead and that she could no longer bear the name of the people that oppress her. At no point during the story was Dee oppressed or even mentioned being oppressed in the past. Then she tries to track back where her name came from, to show her mother it was a slave name or something along those lines. Her mother tracked it back as far as she could remember and no such thing was pointed out. To move on to another situation where Dee made herself look foolish and uneducated is, when they are leaving, she tells her mother that she just doesn't understand.

    Read More

  • Mama In Everyday Use

    878 Words  | 2 Pages

    So much so, that she had gone home from college to try to get some old family belongings to put on “display” to try to keep the history alive. Unlike Maggie, Dee didn’t care much of the future, she just cared about the past and taking all sentimental family heirlooms. Dee being so caught up in the past, even changes her name to Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo. When Dee first mentions the name change Mama is caught off guard. Mama was confused by this statement and asked, "What happened to ‘Dee’ "(Walker 5). Dee was trying to be polite but she came off extremely blunt by saying "She's dead, I couldn't bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me" (Walker 5). Dee’s Name had been passed down from generation to generation, if that doesn’t scream family heritage I don’t know what would. Maggie wasn’t the smartest but she sure knew what she had to do to keep the family tradition going. Maggie was in love and had her whole life ahead of her. Therefore, thinking about the future, she knew having kids one day, would keep the tradition alive. After Mama figured out which child really did value the family heritage, everything started to change for the

    Read More

  • Literary Analysis: "Everyday Use"

    692 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mama is hoping that Maggie will use the quilt as a practical everyday item. She sees the quilts for their functional use that they were made to use in everyday life. Meanwhile, Dee finds this absurd. She thinks they are too valuable and priceless to be using as everyday necessities. Instead she will hang them. These two ideas of how to use the quilts are in complete contrast of one another. Mama finds them practical, Dee finds them fashiona...

    Read More

  • Dee Character Analysis

    729 Words  | 2 Pages

    When people think of the American Dream they think of it as a beautiful country with plenty of money. In Dees case coming from a home where there is poverty and a lack of education, she was embarrassed to show her family and house to Hakim-a-barber. The house isn’t very nice according to Mama description stating, “There are no real windows, just some holes cut in the sides, like the portholes in a ship” (Walker). When Dee came back from college to visit, she was back to realizing how her family lives, rather than the American lifestyle. This is why Dees new identity had no idea about her families heritage. Wangero is

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Heritage In Everyday Use By Alice Walker

    876 Words  | 2 Pages

    One example of a different interpretation of one’s heritage is when Dee discusses the reason why she changed her name from Dee to Wangero. In the story, it states, “‘What happened to “Dee”?’ I

    Read More

  • Symbolism in the Short Story "Everyday Use"

    571 Words  | 2 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • Everyday Use Dee

    1243 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dee can be characterized as a snobby, superficial, conceited girl. She grows up in a family of hard workers that suffer though many hurdles that have been overcome through much labor. Dee thinks she was always high and mighty because of her education. Everyone at one point in Dee`s neighborhood said she had the most potential; so she went off to school for a better education. She created a life that is fake and unreal to her family. Dee`s false character shows that she doesn’t know herself and what her true feelings are never really show. In the recreation process of Dee; this was a big step for her family to see her again at a big reunion after Dee had finished school. As I read in the book Dee was wearing “a dress down to the ground, in this hot weather. A dress so loud it hurts my eyes. There are yellows and oranges enough to throw back the light of the sun. I feel my whole face warming from the heat waves it throws out. Her earrings that are too gold and hanging on to her shoulders and bracelets dangling and making too much noise when she moves her arms”, (Walker, p.72). The name of Wangero known as Dee gets out of the car wearing a unique outfit like such to be distinctive. Dee’s attempts being normal by making every item back at home seem as if it’s a museum. However, to Mama and Maggie that wasn’t

    Read More

  • Everyday Use by Alice Walker

    907 Words  | 2 Pages

    Dee is fascinated by their bucolic reality, taking photographs as though they are being studied, and in doing so successfully removes herself from her family. Upon greeting one another, Mama initially addresses her as ‘Dee,’ which prompts the response, “‘Not ‘Dee,’ Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo!...

    Read More

  • Life as Dee

    688 Words  | 2 Pages

    Dee was named after her aunt Dicie and before that it was her grandma and her grandmother’s mother. The name was a name that stuck to their families heritage. Dee did not understand the value of having that name. when her mother approached her and said “Dee (313).” Dee quickly corrected her mother and said “No mama, not Dee, Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo (313)!” Dee told her mother “I couldn’t bear it any longer being named after the people who oppress me(313).” D...

    Read More

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

    988 Words  | 2 Pages

    The narrator of "Everyday Use" is the mother, and the story opens with Maggie and her mother waiting for Dee to arrive. The mother?s description of her family?s yard, "a yard like this is more comfortable than most people know" (Walker 1149), shows that she is happy and content with her current surroundings. This land is a part of their family?s heritage, and the mother is comfortable l...

    Read More

  • Everyday use by Alice Walker

    1141 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dees’ misconstruction of her heritage was a source of conflict. Dee Johnson changes her name believing that it would affirm her heritage. Dee informs her mother she has changed her name, she states, “I couldn’t bear it any longer, being named after the people that oppress me.”(184,Walker). Dee discards the name in favor of an African name, Wangero, that, although, is African, is not directly related to her heritage. Mrs. Johnson does not understand why would Dee want to change a name that has been passed down through generations. Mrs. Johnson points out to her daughter that she was not named after the oppressor, but named after her aunt, who was named after her grandmother. Dee does not pay much attention to her mother’s clarification of why the name Dee is significant to the generations of the Johnson’s women. Unlike Dee, Mrs. Johnson grasps and understands the significance of the name. Dee has taken on an African name; however, it does not symbolize anything related to her family’s heritage. The name Wangero has the purpose to display her African roots. Yet it is meaningless to her ancestors. Dee may not be an African name but it has a personal significance. Walker is trying to convey that the name is not important but what matters is the significance of the name.

    Read More

  • Use Of Double Consciousness In Alice Walker's Everyday Use

    195 Words  | 1 Pages

    In “Everyday Use” one of the main characters Dee has constructed a new heritage for herself and rejected her actual heritage. Dee fail to realize why she is named Dee which leads her unable to see her family’s legacy of her given name, therefore, she changes her name to Wangero which she believes is more accurate for her African heritage. Double Consciousness occurs when Dee could not figure out her true identity and also when she could not understand her heritage. Being that Dee had a challenging time trying to understand her heritage she instead adopts a new heritage. Dee double consciousness occurs when she believes that she has been living her life with “the oppressors name” which is also Dee. However, Dee’s mother tries to explain to her

    Read More

  • Comparison Of Everyday Use By August Wilson's Fences And Alice Walker

    1744 Words  | 4 Pages

    Cultural capitalism is having assets that give an individual social mobility (Szeman & Kaposy 88). Such as, with knowledge and/or education, embody speech and personality and objectified: one’s belongings and/or clothing. Through the rise of the Civil Rights Era, Dee becomes more aware of the culture she came from through her surroundings and begins to “embrace” it. She visits Mama’s house to collect some the ancestral quilts in which she denied before. Dee attempts to get more in touch with her African roots by going as far as changing her name to Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo. When arriving at her mother’s house she shared the news of the name change. When Mama quickly questions her, “what happened to Dee?”, Wangero exclaims, “she is dead” (Walker 924). Wangero (Dee) goes the extra mile to her name to make a statement to those around her and becomes noticeable becomes Afrocentric. Mama explains to Wangero the deep family meaning to her name, Dee she nullifies her mother’s answer and explains to her that the name “Dee” originates from slaves given by white slave owners. In the process of Dee Wangero’s transformation to her “deep roots”, she dating an African American Muslim named Hakim-a-barber. With Dee Wangero changing her name and reclaiming her culture she offends her mother through the process but little does she know she is hurting her

    Read More

  • Everyday Use Heritage Analysis

    582 Words  | 2 Pages

    Maggie feels less worthy than Dee. This is why she rejects taking the quit and offers it to her sister. Maggie should be excited about her sister arrival. Instead, Maggie is nervous about her sister coming into town. “Maggie will 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.” (Walker 380) Mama is under the impression Maggie is jealous of Dee. Maggie just is not seem comfortable being in her sister presence. Their mother favoritism may has impacted Maggie feeling embarrassed around her sister. If Dee is given a chance to tell her side of the story; she will feel misunderstood. Dee feels collecting items from her hometown and changing her name to Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo is embracing tradition. She will explain the quilt is memorabilia, she does not want to be ruined. Understanding Wanergo point of view will take away from her seeming unappreciative, rude, and bossy. Wanergo defines heritage as collecting material items, but she does not respect her family traditions. “You know as well as me you was named after your aunt Dicie.” Wangero goes on to say, “But who was she name after?” (Walker 383) Since leaving the south, she has forgotten where she comes from. So much so that she has changed her name to Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo. Mama

    Read More

More about Symbolism Of The Dog In Everyday Use

Open Document