Summary of Everyday Use

Alices go-carts, Everyday Use, tells a all selfry of a southern, Afri foot American family that consist of mommy, the storys narrator, and her two daughters, Dee, the oldest, and her sister, Maggie. Set during the back to Africa movement of the early 1970s, when African Americans outback(a) their surnames or names fully and adopted new names that represent their African heritage, Dee leaves home for college and returns to announce the change of her name from Dee to Wangero.She collects items that florists chrysanthemum and Maggie uses familiar to pull in with her, and finally tries to take a quilt that has been stitched unneurotic by her family for generations. Everyday Use by Alice baby-walker reveals the intra heathen class inside the Black community as African Americans struggle to piece unitedly the elements of their lives that ar both African and American into a cohesive whole. Alice Walker characterizes Dee as an aggressive, confident woman who normally gets what sh e wants.Mama recalls, Dee wanted prissy things. She was determined to stargon d protest any disaster in her featAt sixteen she had a style of her proclaim and knew what style was (paragraph 12). Dee has ambitions and goals and lets nix stop her from reaching them. She has her own course of going about things and is determined to get her way no matter what. Highly intelligent and ambitious, Dee goes to educate to further her education and to expand her horizon, and, while in college, Dee learns the flori ending of her mess.However, Dees intelligence and ambition are characteristics that lead to the conflict in the story because they also reveal Dees naivety and the static nature of Walkers character development. Because she always gets her way, Dee is single minded and does non down the clash she creates between herself and her family members. When she head start returns home, she snaps photos of Mama and Maggie sitting on the porch as if they are artifacts of an old wa y of life, illustrating their position in an old way of life, and her modern, Afro-centric world.She flaunts her education by reading to Mama and Maggie and gives unnecessary information as if they are dimwits further contrasting herself with her beget and sister, and does non realize the partitioning she is causing. Dee has gotten all that she has wanted however, her education does not indicate a can-do development in her character. The level of Dees greed and superiority are finally revealed as she tries to take a quilt Mama has promised to Maggie. Dee and Mama argue for a while then Dee claims, Maggie cant pry these quiltsTheyre ricelessYou just dont understandYour heritage (paragraph 66-81). Dee knows the objects are of valuable, so she wants to show them off, in her world, as an example of her coming from cryptograph to the college educated woman she has become. Walkers character development allows the setting to show in the contrast of Dees world, her stroking hand dec orate in bangles as part of her African grab, against the faded much employ quilt from Mama and Maggies world.Dee believes Mama doesnt understand her own heritage because the quilt is rare and valuable, and she doesnt see why Maggie, who doesnt know how valuable the quilts are and will put it to everyday use, should present them. Even though Dee is gifted and excels in school, she is completely unaware that her received cultural heritage, honor, survival, family and family history, make believe been sweep overed down through generations. Driven by ego and blinded to the truth, Dee thinks her culture is found in books rather than the stitches of the quilts, the fabric of her m opposites promise to her children.Mama wants to honor her promise to give the quilts to Maggie, and it was Mama who provided Dee with the opportunity to receive an education, But that was before we raised the money, the church and me, to get off her to Augusta to school (paragraph 11). Dee, however, does not realize the history of her culture is not just in the quilts, the items and pictures, but the throng that take the knowledge and abilities they intimate from their ancestors to provide for the current and next generation thats why culture heritage can not be learned in school.On the other hand, Maggie, the sister who does not go to school, is fully aware of her cultural heritage. Maggie, being very family-orientated, reveals the knowledge of her family. Dee asks for the dasher, her friend asks if Uncle Buddy had made it and they both look at Mama for confirmation, but it was Maggie who says, Aunt Dees first husband whittled the dashHis name was Henry, but they called him Stash (paragraph 52). In comprehension of Maggies expertise of the familys history Dee says Maggie has the brain of an elephant meaning she remembers a lot.Maggie comprehends the family history and can identify what responsibilities slew in the family possessed. Mamas brother-in-law, her sisters husband, he lped Mamas family by making them a dasher Walker uses this to illustrate how united their families are because they assist each other when needed. In addition, they gave Mamas brother-in-law a nickname nicknames are a sign of affection and Maggie calls him by his nickname which shows their closemouthed relationship. Maggie inherited her culture customs.Mama explains, She knows she is not brightShe will marry John doubting Thomas and then Ill be free to sit here and I guess just sing church songs to myself (paragraph 13). Maggie will become like her mom and keep the tradition of the southern black woman because she overly is uneducated, will marry, and raise kids. Walker reveals the cultural heritage of southern blacks that they are supposed to get married and raise children. Maggie tells Mama Dee can have the quilt, which was promised to her, and she can remember her grandmother without the quilt.Maggie says, She can have them, MamaI can member Grandma Dee without the quilts (par agraph 74). Then Mama explains, It was Grandma Dee and puff up-favored Dee who taught her how to quilt herself. She stood there with her scarred hands hidden in the folds oh her evade (paragraph 75). Maggie doesnt need the quilt to remember her grandmother because she has memories which are to a greater extent valuable to her than the quilt. The quilt is just a symbol of the memories Maggie had with her grandmother. Grandma Dee and macro Dee taught Maggie the skill of quilting which has been passed down through family generations.This shows the cultural heritage of the family that they are skilled quilt makers. Maggie is very family-orientated she learns the family skill of making quilts, has knowledge of the family tree and its history. Maggie is very close with her family because she calls them by their nicknames and has plenty of memories of the family. She will continue to pass on the culture heritage of the family by marrying, having children, teaching her children how to quilt, and keeping the family close together as did the people before her she is her family cultural heritage.What makes the story well written is because it reminds people that they are their cultural heritage and thats not something people can just get from a one dimensional textbook. It shows how two people can be raised by the aforementioned(prenominal) mother and have a different view of life, as in they are sisters by blood, grow up in the same house, and be so far apart. There is one sibling, Dee, she has a lot of text book knowledge of her peoples history, but loses touch with her own cultural heritage, and than there is the other sister, Maggie, she has no text book knowledge of her peoples history but is living proof of her peoples history.A great lesson people need to learn because people are losing touch with their family morals and becoming less family orientated, which is weakening a lot of families. United people stand together and divided people falls, which is the key lesson the story, teaches and makes it a well written story because it is able to take something that is happening in real life and reflects it to where an average person can relate.