Everyday Use in Alice Walker\'s

Everyday Use

In Alice Walker's short story "Everyday Use," the main characters express differing attitudes about the value of their past as represented by several family heirloom pieces. The difference of opinion arises between the character simply known as Mama and her two daughters, Maggie and Dee. Maggie has remained in her family's humble home with her mama, while Dee has gone out into the world and gained what she believes is a form of sophistication. Nothing shows the contrast between the now outsider, Dee, and the homebodies, Mama and Maggie, more than the dispute over some family possessions.

When Dee arrives at her mother's house for a visit, it is soon clear that her visit is an attempt to acquire certain items. Dee begins by admiring old pieces like the benches in the kitchen and the butter dish. However, it is when she sees the butter churn that her intentions become clear. Dee declares "This churn top is what I need'" (Walker 93). She also demands the dasher with the intention of doing "something artistic" (Walker 93) with it. Although her intention is to display these items in her home as representations of what is aesthetic, Mama and Maggie still use the butter churn and know the story behind its creators. They connect to the butter churn as part of their heritage and part of themselves. Dee is not interested in family history; she is interested in making an artistic statement.

The discussion of the butter churn is merely a prelude to the big event over the quilts. The quilts are sewn together of fabrics from ancestors' clothing. This association makes them important reminders of family to Maggie and Mama. However, these two see the practical or everyday value of the items as well. Mama intends to give them to Maggie upon her wedding. Dee is aghast at the suggestion. "But they're priceless!' she was saying now, furiously; for she has a temper. 'Maggie would put them on the bed and in five years they'd be in rags'" (Walker 94). Mama and Maggie see these heirlooms as items that should be used as well as important reminders of the past. Dee only sees their monetary and artistic value.