Introduction
“Everyday Use” by Alice Walker is a story about two quilts which were also used to symbolize and show the meaning of true inheritance. This story shows the similarity of a quilt to a person’s view of the world and where it is made up of. Mama, who acted as the narrator, used two quilts to represent two different worlds in conflict which her two daughters embodied. In this story, Mama shows how the worlds of her two daughters, who grew up from the same rich inheritance of the family, as well as the history and community be so different. This essay will be written in a manner of identifying the characteristics of Mama and Maggie, as well as Dee.
Mama, who also acts as the narrator of the story, has a very strong willingness to show her two daughters the right path in life and treats them fairly, despite them, having their objectives very different from one another. Maggie, Mama's younger daughter, always stays at home. She has a quiet life and often contented of what is given to her, just as how a quilt was being made from scraps that has been gathered. This shows that Mama never had a hard time raising Maggie because of her contentment and appreciation in life.
Characterization of Dee
Dee, Mama’s eldest daughter, never been contented in the life she had, where she lived and grew up with Maggie and Mama. Dee was always dissatisfied on whatever she has in her life and always wants more than what her family has. Dee never sees the value of her family and doesn’t want to claim her inheritance. Dee’s main concern is that she has and knows what style means. Dee always makes sure that she gets what she wants and do whatever it takes to have it.
Discussion of conflict over quilts
The story of "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker focuses on the two quilts which represents the urban culture, which most of the children value their family's inheritance, and the modern culture, which changes some of the children's perspectives in life as they grow up in another place, a lot more different from their home. The conflict over quilts started when Dee comes home after quite a long time since she left for college, to get the quilts, which was her family's inheritance. Dee came to claim the two hand-stitched quilts because she decided she needed them to add decor to her modern style of clothing. These two quilts were the same quilts that have been promised to Maggie to be used on the day of her wedding.
Conclusion
The story, "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker ends, Maggie, the younger daughter gets to keep the hand stitched quilts which were made from Grandma Dee's clothes that she wore 50 years ago. Mama offered Dee some machine stitched quilts instead of the two which were hand stitched because, she knew that Dee doesn't really care about the importance of the hand stitched quilts and that adding style to her clothes and being beautiful in the outside is the only thing that matters to her. She even refused to take one with her when she left for college thinking they were "old fashioned and out of style." Unlike Maggie, who seems to appreciate everything not just about the two hand stitched quilts, and who also made them and how it was being made. It evidently shows how much she values quilts by inheriting it and making a quilt herself. By doing this, she was able to show Mama that she deserves to keep the hand stitched quilts. This will make Maggie remember the lessons she learned from the women who were part of the quilts and this will help her in preparing for her to begin her new life as a wife.
Source: http://voices.yahoo.com/a-literary-analysis-alice-walkers-short-story-everyday-1818229.html
