3/12/ · “Everyday Use” by Walker Topic: Literature Words: Pages: 1 Dec 3rd, The themes of family relations, sister rivalry, traditions, heritage, and the struggle for civil rights In the short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, the author describes different ideas about one’s heritage. Culture and heritage is at the main point of the story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker as symbolized by the quilt. The bond that Mother and Maggie share is brought by their common 12/01/ · Everyday Use Essay: A short story written by Alice Walker, Everyday Use revolves around the theme of culture, heritage and consciousness of the same. It was
"Everyday Use" by Walker | Free Essay Example
In the short story Everyday UseAlice Walker talks about the conflict that exists between Mama and Dee. This observation is shared by many. All the literary critic and commentator will agree that there is conflict between the mother and her eldest daughter. All of them will also agree that Mama chose to stand beside Maggie and supported her while she turned her back on Dee. However, there is no universal agreement when it comes to who is right and who is wrong. There are those who said that Mama recognized the superficiality of Dee while she favored the moral strength of Maggie. The reader must not take sides and instead find a way to reconcile the opposing worldviews of Mama and Dee.
Nancy Tuten echoes the sentiment of most readers and most commentators who said that Dee was a bad example of how a girl should behave. She said it with affection and pride:, essay on everyday use by alice walker. A yard like this is more comfortable than most people know. It is not just a yard. It is like an extended living room. When the hard clay is swept clean as a floor and the fine sand around the edges lined with tiny, irregular grooves, anyone can come and sit and look up into the elm tree and wait for the breezes that never come inside the house Walker,p.
The simple life is favored over the sophisticated life of the urban dwellers. Based on the world view essay on everyday use by alice walker Tuten someone has to preserve the best of yesteryears, when the world was all about the beauty of family and enjoying the slow-paced lifestyle. A world populated by people who are not pressured to buy the latest gadgets and be updated with the latest trend. Tuten condemned her using a strong word and she said that is superficial. In other words she implied that Dee is all about the outward appearance and yet unable to fathom and appreciate what is deep and real.
It is being overly romantic to keep on wishing that the old days will not pass away. Sooner or later change will overtake every country and every community. The well swept hard clay may be nice during summer but what will happen when there is heavy rain? Is it possible that Mama and Maggie will not be able to come out of the house because the place is all muddied and they can even walk to buy their food? On the other extreme Susan Farrell disagrees with the worldview of Mama and Maggie and instead favored the forward-thinking attitude of Dee. However, Farrell went to the extreme. It is difficult to understand why she turned a blind eye to the faults of Dee.
One has to question who had the correct worldview. It has to be said that perhaps Dee was not materialistic but simply wanted to improve her life. She simply wanted progress over backwardness and chose improvement over stagnation. However, Farrell just like Tuten went to the extreme in their praise and condemnation of the main characters, essay on everyday use by alice walker. Both Mama and Dee needed to see the big picture. Mama cannot keep on postponing her date with the present reality, essay on everyday use by alice walker.
It is time for her kids to experience what it feels like to be educated. There is nothing wrong with the fact that Dee decided to go to school and desire for a better life. It is wrong for her in not encouraging Maggie to reach for the stars. On the other hand Dee must learn to value family and traditions. She must value it the way Essay on everyday use by alice walker and Maggie values their family history and heritage. It seems that Dee can only manage to appreciate what they have on an intellectual level while Mama and Maggie were able to embrace what they went through and their past history from an emotional and spiritual level.
It can be argued that Alice Walker is suggesting that the qualities of Mama and Dee must be fused. This is perhaps the reason why she inserted Maggie in the story. But at the same time Maggie is sensitive enough to honor and respect her mother and their traditions. The only thing that Maggie needed to do is to get out of her shell and not use her injuries as an excuse to grow and mature as a person. It is not correct to take sides to choose between Mama and Dee. Both of them are correct and both of them are wrong when it comes to specific areas of their lives and their worldview. Mama cannot force her daughters to be like her — uneducated and living in a mud hut. On the other hand it is wrong for Dee to reduce everything into an intellectual treatise.
She knew the value of the quilts from a historical and analytical perspective but she is unable to show her mother and sister how much she respects the spiritual and emotional value of those quilts. Both mother and daughters must learn to live in the modern world without forgetting where they came from. Tuten, Nancy. Academic Search Premier. Walker, Alice. Need a custom Essay sample written from scratch by professional specifically for you? Learn More. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. Removal Request. If you are the copyright owner of this paper and no longer wish to have your work published on IvyPanda.
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Everyday Use
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Abstract Everyday Use by Alice Walker was written during the 60s and 70s when African-Americans were fighting for their rights and trying to define their personal identities in cultural 3/12/ · “Everyday Use” by Walker Topic: Literature Words: Pages: 1 Dec 3rd, The themes of family relations, sister rivalry, traditions, heritage, and the struggle for civil rights After reading the short story, “Everyday Use”, one can get the impression that educational backgrounds can affect the way an individual will grow up. The narrator’s education did not go
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