1.What do you know about the mother of the story?
The mother in the story is a hard working woman who does not care much for her appearance and someone who loves both her daughters dearly.Considering the fact that she seems to do all the household work, including that which is traditionally relegated to a man, it also appears that she is single. “In real life I am a large, big.boned woman with rough, man.working hands (Walker par 5).”
2. When we have a first-person narrator, we have to decide if she is reliable or unreliable. Do you trust this narrator? Why or why not?
The narrator in this story is trustworthy because she is simple and quite forthcoming about her circumstances. She describes the house for what it is and is also insightful about others. Her description of the house is thus, “the last dingy gray board of the house fall in toward the red.hot brick chimney (Walker 10).”
3. What assumptions does the narrator have about her daughters? Do you agree? Why?
The narrator has two daughters, Dee and Maggie. She believes that maggie is shy because of her burns and Dee is the outlandish, vivacious daughter. Her assumptions about Maggie being pliable and shy is right as she gives in to her sister’s demand for the quilts even when she wants it for herself. Dee on the other hand is outlandish as well as a bit selfish as she wants all the family heirlooms for herself even though her mother had clearly kept aside those for her sister. When thinking about Dee she says, “Hesitation was no part of her nature, “ While about Maggie she says, “ She has been like this, chin on chest, eyes on ground, feet in shuffle (Walker 7,9).
4. How would the story be different if it were told from Dee/Wangero perspective?
The story would probably have more disparaging comments about Maggie and the mother if it were from Dee’s perspective. Although she respects her history, she chooses not to live with it but treat it as something that needs to be displayed. The reader would also not hear about the descriptions of the house or the character of Maggie. “She had hated the house that much (Walker 10).” The mother knows that Dee doesn't to be a part of the house.
5. Mama and Dee/Wangero have different ideas about personal development. What are they? What are the consequences of their differences?
Mama cannot understand why Dee had to change her name even if she has different views of their lives. She believes that her name has nothing to do with her personal development and that try hard as she might, her name is a reflection of who she is. Dee/Wangero on the other hand believes that getting out of the house, dressing different and embracing her African roots is a sign of her personal development. She does not want to be saddled with the history of her ancestors in the new land but rather want to be associated with those ancestors who had not set foot on America. “ "What happened to 'Dee'?" I wanted to know. "She's dead," Wangero said. "I couldn't bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me (Walker 27).”
6. Based on your answers to all of the above, offer your opinion of Mama’s decision to give the quilt to Maggie.
Mama gives the quilt to maggie because she believes that maggie will truly appreciate the significance of the quilt. For Dee the quit would be a mere trophy while Maggie could understand the stories woven into the quilt.
7. How does Walker define heritage?
Walker defines heritage as something that is part of you and something that is handed down through generations. It isn’t something that a person can choose or change.
8. What is Walker’s purpose? What is the central problem she is addressing?
Walker's Purpose in this story is to address the problem of history and heritage. If heritage is something to be lived with on an everyday basis like mAggie would do with her quilt or something that needs to be displayed when convenient like Dee would do by hanging up the quilt in her living room.
9. What is the theme of “Everyday Use?”
Heritage is the theme of Everyday Use. Dee wants to get out of it, the heritage of oppression as she calls it while Maggie and the mother accept it as having been a part of their history.
Works Cited
Walker, Alice. “Use”. xroads.virginia.edu. n.d. Web. 29 Feb 2016.
