¶ … Alice Walker
There are different expressions and types of culture, and culture can mean different things to various people who are a part of the same culture. This truth is demonstrated poignantly in Alice Walker's short story entitled "Everyday Things." In this tale, there is a generation and culture clash between the worldly aspirations and ambitions of Dee, and the normal, everyday ambitions of her mother and her sister Maggie. At the heart of the issue explored within this story is what the proper usage of culture actually is. For some people, culture is something that is a reminder of the past and which is not readily interacted with everyday. For other people, culture is simply a way of life and how individuals and collectives go about pursuing their lives. A close examination of "Everyday Use" reveals that this tale examines a generation clash within a family related to culture, in which the author implies the everyday usage of culture is the most applicable version of it.
The principle way that Walker conveys to the reader that the most applicable means of regarding culture is to interact with it on an everyday basis is in settling a dispute between the family over the fate of valued quilts. Dee, who is a college student and is attuned to a modern appreciation of culture which views it as something quaint and historic but decidedly old-fashioned, wants to take some quilts...
Dee believes that the quilts should be given to her so that she can hang them up and enjoy the sight of them -- yet not regularly interact with them. Maggie, however, represents the traditional view of culture in which people regularly interact with it as a means of living their lives. The following quotation, however, reveals that Walker ultimately advocates Maggie's view of culture. In this passage the mother (who narrates the tale) suddenly decides to give the quilts to Maggie. "I did something I never done before: hugged Maggie to me, then dragged her on into the room, snatched the quilts out of Miss Wangero's hands and dumped them into Maggie's lap" (Walker). This passage is of particular important because it illustrates Mama's judgment. The quilts are ultimately hers to give to her two daughters; she unequivocally decides to give them to Maggie and not to Dee (who is referred to as Wangero here). The reason she does so is because for a large part of the story she has seen Dee and witnessed her conception of culture, which is dissimilar from hers and Maggie's. The latter prefer to interact with culture regularly and use quilts, instead of merely admiring them. Thus, Walker implies this view of culture is better than Dee's.
Even before Mama issues her judgment of the fate of the quilts, Walker provides plenty of evidence to indicate…
Instead, Wangero continues to only see that her name is a reminder that African-Americans were denied their authentic names. "I couldn't bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me" (53). Walker is not by any means condemning the Black Power movement when she challenges Wangero's viewpoint. Instead, she is questioning that part of this movement that does not acknowledge and, more importantly, respect the scores of
Everyday Use by Alice Walker The thematic richness of "Everyday Use" is made possible by the perceptive, and flexible voice of the first-person narrator. It is the mother's viewpoint that permits the reader to understand both Dee and Maggie. Seen from a distance, both young women seem stereotypical - one a smart but rather ruthless college girl, the other a sweet but ineffectual homebody. The close scrutiny of the mother redeems
Alice Walker The Image of the Quilt: Alice Walker's the Color Purple and "Everyday Use" What makes us who we are? A large part of our current lives are derived from the lives of those who came before us. Our family traditions and heritages are an important part of ourselves. In Alice Walker's The Color Purple and "Everyday Use," cloth, quilts, and the act of sewing are highlighted as a way
Mamma has always given Dee anything she wanted, and allowed Maggie to step back into the shadows. Maggie has the knowledge of a promised and very scant dowry. Mama has promised her the quilts that have been handed down in the family and those which they had themselves made. The promise was genuine and meaningful as quilts are important to a new bride as they can protect and keep one
By simply concentrating on connecting with their African heritage many failed to understand that their parents and their ancestors who lived on the American continent in general created a culture of their own that entailed elements belonging both to the African continent and to the American one. Most of the short story is about how Dee struggles to find her personal identity by turning to cultural values. While Dee is
'" (Walker, 236) The making of the quilts is another symbol for the way in which the daughter and the mother differ in their views of tradition. The quilt is also strongly associated with the African-American tradition and therefore all the more significant. While the mother and Maggie are capable of actually making the quilts, Dee or Wangero is obsessed with having them and possessing them as a symbol of her