Literary Analysis of

Everyday Use by Alice Walker

Short Story Analysis Course

Supervised by
Assist. Prof. Dr. Behbud Muhammedzade

Prepared by
Niwar A. Obaid

December 27, 2013

Introduction
Alice Walker as a novelist, poet, short story writer, activist and
feminist has built a well-known reputation worldwide. Her very
famous novel The Color Purple came out in 1982, won her a Pulitzer
Prize in 1983 and the American Book Award, the first African
American woman to win these two awards. Everyday Use is one of
her popular and wonderful short stories in which she addresses the
predicament of African and Americans who were struggling to define
their personal identities in cultural terms. The story goes around
some issues of heritage which construct a conflict between the
characters of the story, each with different point of views. Walker's
use of symbol of "quilt" and the difference of understanding the
legacy of family, between Mama and Maggi with Dee, creates an
outstanding tale.
We intend to analyze the story literary and discover all the
prominent explanations possible. The major characteristics of short
story are considered and we discuss about plot, symbolism, irony,
conflict, setting and historical context, themes, style and characters.
In each aspect, we develop and prove with good evidences. This
topic interests me since I have known the author from her great
novel The Color Purple which encouraged me to read more about
her works and carry out this small research. Since it needs a broad
academic research to analyze and discuss these all literary
characteristics, thus we shed light on the main points and reveal the
important issues which are significant to be mentioned.

Biography
Alice walker was born in Eatonton, Georgia on February 9, 1944, the
youngest of eight children of Minnie and Willie Lee Walker, black
sharecroppers (Paul Lauter: 1994: 2510). She spent a childhood
even more limited than her family's rural poverty dictated, for as a
little girl she was shot in the eye with a BB gun (by her brother in a
game of cowboys and Indians), the disfigurement plagued her until
it was corrected during college years, as declared by (Jerome
Klinkowitz and Patricia B. Wallace: 2007: 3009). Teased by her
classmates and misunderstood by her family, Walker became a shy,
reluctant youth. Furthermore, Qiana Whitted (2003) states that in
1961 Walker left Eatonton for Spelman College, a prominent school
for black women in Atlanta, on a state scholarship. During the two
years she attended Spelman she became active in the civil rights
movement. After transferring to Sarah Lawrence College in New
York, Walker continued her studies as well as her involvement in civil
rights. Two years after receiving her B.A. degree from Sarah
Lawrence in 1965, Walker married Melvyn Rosenman Leventhal, a
white civil rights attorney.
Walker's first book of poetry "Once" appeared in 1968. Later on, her
first novel The Third Life of Grange Copeland was published in 1970
which she draws on her observations to portray the customs,
natural features, and folk heritage of the South. Her admiration for
struggle of black women toward self-realization in a hostile
environment, a theme of much of her work, is expressed in this book
and some other works, remarked by (George Perkins & Barbara
Perkins: 2002: 2076).

When The Color Purple came out in 1982,

Walker became known to an even wider audience. For this book,

easily her most popular novel, Walker won a Pulitzer Prize in 1983

and the American Book Award. Later it became movie by Steven

Spielberg who brought both fame and controversy. She was widely
criticized for negative portrayals of men in The Color Purple, though
many critics admitted that the movie presented more simplistic
negative pictures than the book's more different portrayals (Jone
Jonson Lewis 2007).
Walker soon became more politically active in her writings. She has
been an activist all of her adult life, and believes that learning to
extend the range of our compassion is activity and work available to
all. She is a faithful defender not only of human rights, but of the
rights of all living beings. She is one of the worlds most prolific
writers, yet tirelessly continues to travel the world to literally stand
on the side of the poor, and the economically, spiritually and
politically oppressed. She also stands, however, on the side of the
revolutionaries, teachers and leaders who seek change and
transformation of the world (alicewalkersgardon.com). She is still
alive living in America.

Plot Summary
Everyday Use is narrated by a woman, Mama, who describes
herself as a large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working
hands. She has enjoyed a rugged farming life in the country and
now lives in a small, tin-roofed house surrounded by a clay yard in
the middle of a cow pasture. She anticipates that soon her daughter
Maggie will be married and she will be living peacefully alone.
Mama decides that she will wait in the yard for her daughter Dees
arrival. Mama knows that her other daughter, Maggie, will be
nervous throughout Dees stay, self-conscious of her scars and burn
marks and jealous of Dees much easier life. Mama fantasizes about
reunion scenes on television programs in which a successful
daughter embraces the parents who have made her success

possible. Sometimes Mama imagines reuniting with Dee in a similar

scenario, in a television studio where an amiable host brings out a
tearful Dee, who pins orchids on Mamas dress. Whereas Mama is
sheepish about the thought of looking a white man in the eye, Dee
is more assertive. Mamas musing is interrupted by Maggies
shuffling arrival in the yard. Mama remembers the house fire that
happened more than a decade ago, when she carried Maggie, badly
burned, out of the house. Dee watched the flames engulf the house
she despised.
To her mothers surprise, Dee arrives wearing an ankle-length, gold
and orange dress, jangling golden earrings and bracelets, and hair
that stands straight up like the wool on a sheep. She greets them
with an African salutation, while her boyfriend offers a Muslim
greeting and tries to give Maggie a ceremonial handshake that she
does not understand. Dee gets a camera from the car and takes a
few pictures of Mama and Maggie in front of their house. Dee tells
her mother that she has changed her name to Wangero to protest
being named after the people who have oppressed her. Mama tells
Dee that she was in fact named after her Aunt Dicie, who was
named after Grandma Dee, who bore the name of her mother as
well. Mama struggles with the pronunciation of Dees new African
name. Dee says she doesnt have to use the new name, but Mama
learns to say it, although she is unable to master Hakims name,
Dee's boyfriend. Mama says that he must be related to the Muslims
who live down the road and tend beef cattle and also greet people
by saying Asalamalakim. Hakim-a-barber says he accepts some of
.their doctrines but is not into farming or herding
Mama wonders whether Hakim-a-barber and Dee are married.
Sitting down to eat, Hakim-a-barber states that he does not eat
collard greens or pork. Dee approaches the butter churn in the
corner and asks Mama if she can have its top, which had been

carved by Uncle Buddy. Dee wants the dasher too, a device with
.blades used to make butter
Dee ransacks the trunk at the foot of Mamas bed, reappearing with
two quilts made by her mother, aunt, and grandmother. The quilts
contain small pieces of garments worn by relatives all the way back
to the Civil War. Dee asks her mother for the quilts. Mama suggests
that Dee take other quilts, but Dee insists, wanting the ones handstitched by her grandmother. Mama reveals that she had promised
Maggie the quilts. Dee gasps, arguing that Maggie wont appreciate
the quilts and isnt smart enough to preserve them. But Mama
hopes that Maggie does, indeed, designate the quilts for everyday
.use
Dee says that the priceless quilts will be destroyed. Mama says that
Maggie knows how to quilt and can make more. Maggie shuffles in
and, trying to make peace, offers Dee the quilts. When Mama looks
at Maggie, she is struck by a strange feeling, similar to the spirit she
feels sometimes in church. Impulsively, she hugs Maggie, pulls her
into the room, snatches the quilts out of Dees hands, and places
them in Maggies lap. She tells Dee to take one or two of the other
quilts. As Dee and Hakim-a-barber leave, Dee informs Mama that
Mama does not understand her own heritage. Kissing Maggie, Dee
tells her to try and improve herself and that its a new day for black
Americans. Mama and Maggie watch the car drive off, and then sit
.in the quiet of the yard until bedtime

Historical Context and Setting

The story addresses itself with "the dilemma of African and
Americans who, in striving to escape prejudice and poverty, risk a
terrible deracination, a surrendering from all that has sustained
.defined them" (David Cowart, 1996)

The storys setting takes place in 1960s during the AfricanAmerican Civil Rights Movement while analyzing the worlds of three
black women spirit worlds and symbols of significance in terms of
Feminine Consciousness to project the literature topic of the novel
(Stacy, 2012). This was a time when African-Americans were
struggling to define their personal identities in cultural terms. The
term Negro had been recently removed from the vocabulary, and
had been replaced with Black. There was Black Power, Black
Nationalism, and Black Pride. Many blacks wanted to rediscover
their African roots, and were ready to discard and deny their
American heritage, which was filled with stories of pain and
unfairness (David White, 2001). The setting of the story is probably
in southern

United States,

where

there were

many

African

Americans, which fit perfectly with the characters because it shows

the lifestyle they had then and there, also how they had family
.problems as well
As Cowart argues that Walker is, [satirizing] the heady rhetoric of
late 60s black consciousness, deconstructing its pieties (especially
the rediscovery of Africa) and asserting neglected values (Cowart,
1996). But Walkers main purpose in the story seems to be to
challenge the Black Power movement and black people in general,
to acknowledge and respect their American heritage. The history of
Africans in America is filled with stories of pain, injustice, and
humiliation. It is not as pleasing as a colorful African heritage that
can be fabricated, like a quilt, from bits and pieces that one finds
attractive. It is a real heritage that is comprised of real people:
.people who are deserving of respect and admiration (White, 2001)

Conflict

In Everyday Use, Alice walker tells the story of a mother and her
two daughters conflicting ideas about their identities and heritage.
She exemplifies the different sides of culture and heritage in the
characters of Dee, Maggie and the Mother, each with its different
qualities and philosophies in life (Les, 2011). Mamas children, Dee
and Maggie have their own set of paradoxical differences. There is
the conflict of light skinned versus darker skinned; well-spoken and
educated versus quiet and ignorant; a shapely body with perfect
feet versus a skinny and badly burned girl with no style. Brazen and
head strong versus trembling and confused (Memuff, 2011). Mama
and Maggie on one side, Dee on the other, each have opposing
views on the value and worth of the various items in their lives, and
the author uses this conflict to make the point that the substance of
an object, and of people, is more important than style (Matthew R.
.King)
Additionally, Dee's decision to change her name, not knowing how
to quilt, and failure to be interested in the actual people who made
these artifacts are all representative of Dee's lack of desire to carry
on her family's heritage. (Robins Elizabeth, 2010). As much as their
outlooks are different so are their views of heritage. Maggie and her
mother believe that the word heritage deals with their familys
tradition. Mama sees heritage in the practical things and as a string
of memories. When she gives the quilts to Maggie, she hopes that
Maggie will put it to everyday use. To Dee, heritage is the past,
something to frame or hang on the wall as decoration, a mere
.artistic reminder of her family history (Les, 2011)
Style
Walker's works are known for their portrayals of the AfricanAmerican woman's life. She depicts brightly the sexism, racism and
poverty that make that life often a struggle. But she also describes

as part of that life, the strengths of family, community, self-worth,

.and spirituality (Jone Johnson Lewis, 2007)
The story opens in the narrative point of view, and its language is
trendy, witty and colorful. Colorful language, specialized diction, and
Mamas unique phrases and observations give Everyday Use a
sense of realism. Giving voice to a member of a group that had
typically been silenced, Walker gives Mama the power to narrate
and control and use language to convey her story and thoughts in
her own way (sparknotes.com) The style of this story is unique in its
own right. The style brings more depth to the speaker's point of
view. It is as if the author makes the main character emulate a real
person's dialect. Even the diction is almost classifiable. "In real life I
am a large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working hands...My
fat keeps me hot in zero weather". A reader can clearly picture what
.kind of person is speaking (Ultimax, 2009)
Irony
The irony of the story comes out at the end when Dee explains to
her mother that she does not understand her own heritage. In the
beginning of "Everyday Use" Dee is described as lively and Maggie
as vague by their mother. Yet at the end of the story, the reader can
see that Maggie has an inner strength and a heart for the people in
her family; while Dee seems ignorant to the true meaning of
heritage and its value. (Robins Elizabeth, 2010). For Mama, the best
way to protect the spirit of the quilts is to risk destroying them while
in Maggies permanent care. The irony of this is not unpleasant
but emotive: preserving the objects and taking them out of
everyday use is disrespectful because it disregards the objects
intended, original uses. Keeping them in circulation in daily life
keeps the family history alive. (sparknotes.com)

The irony of the situation comes from the discrepancy Dees

understand. She is willing to give up her name given her by her
grandmother.

Yet, she wants the quilts that the grandmother

made. She does not really want them to use but to show off to
.other people that she owns real handmade quilts from another era
:Dee explains her point of view
You dont understand, she said, as Maggie and I came out to the
.car
.What dont I understand? I wanted to know
Your heritage, she said. And then she turned to Maggie, kissed
her, and said, You ought to try to make something of yourself,
too, Maggie. Its really a new day for us. But the way you and
.Mama still live youd never know it

Moreover, It is ironic how Dee wanted to change her name to

"Wangero" because she came back home to look for everyday items
that can be used to show her heritage back in the city , where she
lives, but then she changes traditional name to one that seems to
be from an Indian tribe. So she changes her name but still want to
show her heritage, one she seems to deny (Jose's Atmosphere,
2009)

Symbolism

Most obviously and most importantly, the quilts that Mama has
promised to give Maggie when she marries are highly symbolic,
representing the Mama's traditions and cultural heritage. These
quilts were pieced by Grandma Dee and then Big Dee , both
figures in family history who, unlike the present Dee, took charge in
teaching their culture and heritage to their offspring.

(Juan R.
Velazquez)

The quilt itself is a very meaningful item in the sense that it has
history on it; it includes clothes that Dee's great grandma used to
wear and pieces of uniforms that Dee's great grandpa wore during
the Civil

War.

However,

it

also

symbolizes

value

in Negro-

American experience. Because Walker includes the fact of the Civil

War gives a sense of history to the African American history. The
quilt additionally adds to the idea of creative activities women came
up with to pass down history from generation to generation.
(Wikipedia)

Yard is another symbol of the cultural something produced out of

nothing by people lacking everything "A yard like this is more
comfortable than most people know. It is not just a yard. It is like an
extended living room" The yard is a blissful escape, a place where
Mamas regrets can be sidestepped. For her and Maggie, the yard
evokes safety, a place where they can exert what little control they
have over their environment. (sparknotes.com)

Themes
The Meaning of Heritage
In the short story "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker, two sisters
portray their contrasting family views on what they perceive to be

heritage. The idea that a quilt is a part of a family's history is what

the narrator is trying to point out. They are not just parts of cloth
put together to make a blanket. The quilt represents their ancestors'
lives and tells a story with each individual stitch. (123helpme.com)
Dee built a new heritage and the real heritage she has was rejected
as she was very angry with the oppressive history in her family. She
chose a new name for herself, Wangero, and she failed to look over
the legacy of family which was attached with her name and was of
the belief that the name she has chosen is representing her African
heritage properly. She didn't had the proper understanding of
African heritage, that is the reason she is considering the new name
as representative of is false and empty. Dee also consider that real
heritage of hers is a past and dead, relative to the living creations.
(Researchomatic.com)
Mama understands that Maggie, not Dee, should have the quilts,
because Maggie will respect them by using them in the way they
were intended to be used. When Dee contends at the end of the
story that Mama and Maggie do not understand their heritage,
Walker intends the remark to be ironic: clearly, it is Dee herself who
does not understand her heritage (sparknotes.com). Maggie is
appreciating her heritage every time she uses quilts, with heritage
meaning the people she came from. Dee thinks that connecting with
a person's roots is a new thing. The Aunt Dee was named after
made these quilts by hand, and yet, that has nothing to do with the
reason why she wants them. In addition, Dee thinks her name is a
symbol of those who oppressed her, so she comes up with a new
name that has nothing to do with her family ties (Julie Moore, 2007).

Education

The time period of 60s and 70s African Americans were prevented
from engaging in many opportunities that people of other races
were given such as education.

Education is the real reason why

accumulated knowledge, skills, and values are transmitted from one

generation to another. Although education is the key to gaining this
power, the power that is asserted is not to be tarnished or missed
used to offend others. This is blatantly shown in Everyday Use on
several occasions by one of the main characters, Dee (Julius Jacobs,
2011).
Dee was displeased with her life until the church and Mama raised
the money for her to go to Augusta to school. Walker equals the
image of the burning of Maggie with the burning of knowledge into
Mama and Maggie. Worldly knowledge was what Dee searched for,
but not Mama and Maggie. After an unidentified time spent away
from the small farm where Mama and Maggie live, Dee returns in
search of her roots. Not for the emotional attachment, but because
of the desire to look at their simple way of living as a novelty one
would put on a shelf somewhere. Upon her return, she designates
that she has rejected the slave name of Dee for the name Wangero,
which she felt represented her African-American roots instead of her
slave roots. (Marijane Suttor, 2013)
Education has separated Dee from her family, but it has also
separated Dee from a true sense of self. With lofty ideals and
educational opportunity came a loss of a sense of heritage,
background, and identity, which only family can provide. Whats
problematic is that Dee has no respect for anything but her world,
leading her to alienate herself from her roots. Maggie, on the other
hand, knows no world but the one she came from. Uneducated, she
can read only haltingly. By doing what she is told and accepting the
conditions of her sheltered life without question, Maggie has
hampered her own self-fulfillment. Walker sets up this contrast to
reveal an ironic contradiction: Dees voracious quest for knowledge

has led to her alienation from her family, while the lack of education
has harmed and stifled Maggie. Both education and the lack of it
have proven to be dangerous for the sisters. (sparknotes.com)

Characters
Mama
Mama is an uneducated, yet practical character. As David White
demonstrates, Mama "takes pride in the practical aspects of her
nature and that she has not spent a great deal of time
contemplating abstract concepts such as heritage... [but her lack of
education]

does

not

prevent

her

from

having

an

inherent

understanding of heritage". The quilts are important to Mama as a

direct connection between herself and those before her. As White
explains, "When Mama takes the dasher handle in her hands, she is
symbolically touching the hands of all those who used it before her."
Her practical nature and appreciation for heritage distinguishes her
from her two daughters, and represents the complex, historical
importance of the African-American culture. (Rachel Powell, 2007)
Dee
Dee, however, is virtually Maggies opposite. She is characterized by
good looks, ambition, and education. Dees education has been
extremely important in forging her character, but at the same time
it has split her off from her family. Dee, in other words, has moved
towards other traditions that go against the traditions and heritage
of her own family: she is on a quest to link herself to her African
roots and has changed her name to Wangero. In doing so, in
attempting to recover her ancient roots, she has at the same time
denied, or at least refused to accept, her more immediate heritage,
the heritage that her mother and sister share (R. Velazquez). Also,
Dee is described as being very bright, determined and worldly. She
can be compared to those that are described as never taking NO

for an answer.

Although Dee is blessed with a high level of

intellect, she makes sure everyone around her knows that she is
highly educated (Jacobs, 2011).
Dee is a selfish and egotistical character with a superficial
understanding of her inheritance. She characterizes the confusion
and misguidance of young African Americans in the late 60s and
70s. This is apparent in her interactions with her mother and sister.
She makes her feelings clear when she attempts to "take" the quilts
Mama had promised to Maggie: "Maggie can't appreciate these
quilts... she'd probably be backward enough to put them to
everyday use". Not only is she conforming to the worst of American
ideals, but she is rejecting and disrespecting her own cultural
heritage-- all under the pretenses of preserving it. It is in this sense
that she is the "embodiment of the struggle for a unifying identity,"
because she has not yet come to understand her place in society as
both an African and an American. (Rachel Powell, 2007)
Maggie

Maggie is described as rather unattractive and shy: the scars she

bears on her body have also scarred her soul, and, as a result, she is
retiring, even frightened. Mama admits, in a loving manner, that
like good looks and money, quickness passed her by. She
stumbles as she reads, but clearly Mama thinks of her as a sweet
person, a daughter with whom she can sing songs at church. Most
importantly, however, Maggie is, like her mother, at home in her
traditions, and she honors the memory of her ancestors; for
example, she is the daughter in the family who has learned how to
quilt from her grandmother (R. Velazquez). Maggie is the daughter
who has stayed and lived with Mama in their small house that is
located in a pasture. She is described by Mama in her first

appearance as almost hidden by the door. This image symbolizes

how Maggie has spent her life nearly invisible. (Suttor, 2013)
Maggie

is

simplistic

and

good-hearted

person.

These

characteristics add dimension to the story, and make her a "more

likely bearer of sacredness, tradition, and true value than her
"brighter" sister". Maggie wants to maintain a lasting connection
with her heritage, and both Mama and the reader recognize this.
She represents those among the African-American community that
seek to pass on their heritage without diminution between
generations (Rachel Powell, 2007).

Conclusion
In this essay we analyzed all the literary important characteristics of
short story in Everyday Use by the famous American writer Alice
Walker. We gave a short biography of the author and then a
historical background of the time the story was written. It was
during 60s and 70s when African-Americans were fighting for their
rights and trying to define their personal identities in cultural
terms. Walkers main purpose in the story seems to be to challenge
the Black Power movement and black people in general, to
acknowledge and respect their American heritage. The story if
builds a conflict between two different views about the heritage
meaning for the family, two sisters portray their contrasting family
views on what they perceive to be heritage. The idea that a quilt is a
part of a family's history is what the narrator is trying to point out.
We also discussed the main elements such as plot, setting, conflict,
setting, style, symbols, irony, characters and themes with examples
and evidences from the story. All these features were very
interesting to discuss broadly and provide with more details, but in
our essay we were able only to focus on the main essential points
and analyze them literarily.

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