Alice Walker Everyday Use by Alice Walker

In the short story, “Everyday Use”, Alice Walker tells the story of a mother and her two daughters. The mother is a simple woman who lives in a small house with her daughters. She is content with her life and does not want anything more than what she has.

Her older daughter, Dee, is the opposite. Dee is educated and wants to live a better life than her mother. She is also very critical of her mother and sister.

The younger daughter, Maggie, is shy and uneducated. She is content with living a simple life like her mother.

Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use” is about a mother and her two daughters. The older daughter, Maggie, is disabled and the younger daughter, Dee, is successful. The mother is torn between her love for her two daughters and their different lifestyles.

The story highlights the importance of family and tradition. The mother wants her daughters to appreciate their heritage and be proud of their culture. However, Dee has assimilated into mainstream society and does not want anything to do with her African-American roots.

She views her culture as something to be ashamed of. Maggie, on the other hand, embraces her culture and even though she is disabled, she does not let that stop her from living life to the fullest. The author uses Maggie as an example of someone who appreciates the simple things in life and knows how to find happiness despite adversity.

The story ends with the mother giving Dee a quilt that was made by their ancestor. It is a symbol of their history and it represents everything that the family has been through. This act shows that despite Dee’s lack of appreciation for her culture, the mother still loves her unconditionally.

Alice Walker Everyday Use Pdf

Alice Walker is an American novelist, short story writer, poet, and activist. She wrote the novel “The Color Purple,” for which she won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. In her career, Walker has also written numerous other novels, short stories, and essays.

“Everyday Use” is one of her most famous short stories. In “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker tells the story of a mother and her two daughters who are living in rural poverty. The mother is content with her life, but her eldest daughter Dee is not.

Dee wants to leave the rural life behind and live in the city. When Dee comes home from college, she brings with her a new boyfriend named Hakim-a-barber. Hakim encourages Dee to change her name to Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo and to start using her African heritage as inspiration for her art.

Dee’s sister Maggie is shy and uneducated. She does not understand why Dee would want to change her name or use African artifacts as part of her art. Maggie is content with who she is and where she comes from.

The conflict between Dee and Maggie comes to a head when they argue over who should have possession of their mother’s quilts. To Maggie, the quilts are everyday items that should be used and enjoyed; but to Dee, they are valuable works of art that should be displayed in a museum. In the end, their mother gives the quilts to Maggie, saying that she knows they will be put to good use.

Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” is a classic tale about family conflict and self-discovery. It highlights the importance of staying true to oneself and appreciating one’s heritage.

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Why Does Dee Change Her Name to Alice Walker’S Everyday Use?

Alice Walker’s short story, “Everyday Use,” focuses on the conflict between a mother and her two daughters. The mother is trying to hold on to the past, while her eldest daughter Dee is trying to move forward. In order to do this, Dee changes her name from Diane to Alice Walker.

This change in name represents Dee’s attempts to distance herself from her family and their poverty-ridden lifestyle. By changing her name, she hopes to seem more like the educated person she has become. However, her mother does not see this as an act of self-improvement; instead, she views it as a betrayal of who they are and where they come from.

What Do You Think Alice Walker is Saying in Everyday Use?

Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” is a story about a mother and her two daughters. The older daughter, Dee, is a successful college student who is returning home for a visit. The younger daughter, Maggie, is shy and has been scarred by a fire that burned down their house.

The mother is torn between the two daughters – Dee, who she feels has been successful in life, and Maggie, who she feels has been failed by life. Walker appears to be saying that success is not necessarily measured by material possessions or achievements, but by how you live your life. The mother in the story chooses to give the quilts to Maggie because she feels that Maggie will appreciate them more and use them more than Dee would.

She also believes that Maggie will pass them down to her children, whereas Dee would likely sell them or put them on display somewhere. In this way, the quilts represent the continuity of family and tradition – something that the mother feels is more important than money or status.

"Everyday Use" by Alice Walker

Conclusion

In Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use,” the narrator tells the story of a mother and her two daughters, one of whom is physically disabled. The mother is forced to choose between her two daughters when they both want the same quilt. The quilt is a symbol of the family’s history and heritage, and the mother must decide which daughter will appreciate it more.

In the end, she chooses her disabled daughter because she knows that she will cherish the quilt as a reminder of their family’s past.