Everyday Use by Alice Walker

Everyday Use ' by Alice Walker creates a conflict between characters When Dee (Wangero ) comes home to visit Mama and Maggie , right away the readers see the differences . Dee has changed her name to an African name and is collecting the objects of her past . She is more educated and very much looks down on the simplicity of her mother and sister When Dee asks for a beautiful family heirloom quilt to hang on her wall Mama finally denies her something . Instead , Mama will give Maggie the quilt to keep her and her husband

warm . The theme of the importance of heritage becomes clear . This theme is shown by Walker 's use of conflict , irony , and symbol

The chief conflict is between Mama , Maggie and Dee . Dee arrives home to photograph her dirt-poor beginnings never stopping to think how Maggie and Mama feel . The butter churn to Dee is an object of art to Mama it is a way to live and make butter . Dee has always been pampered and spoiled by her Mama , who has been afraid to stand up to her . She does not understand how her mother and Maggie can continue to live in such a backwards way . By giving the quilt to Maggie , Mama shows that she understands the importance of heritage . To appreciate and use objects passed on in families is completely different than to hang them on display while they are popular and worth money , then throw them away Dee has become educated and much too sophisticated for her humble beginnings

Alice Walker shows the importance of heritage through her extensive use of irony . For example , Dee changes her name to Wangero to reflect the new fad of getting in touch with African heritage ' However , the name Dee already has comes from her heritage . As Mama says , You know as well as me you was named after your aunt Dicie . Dicie is my sister She named you Dee (Walker ) Dee has the education to understand the history of her people , but the irony is that she is missing the people standing right in front of her . She just doesn 't get it that Mama and Maggie are the most important parts of her heritage . This is at least a little ironic . Even Hakim-a-barber has converted to Islam but chooses only to accept certain doctrines of this religion and the black power movement when he refuses to eat collard greens and pork . As he says , I accept some of their doctrines , but farming and raising cattle is not my style (Walker ) The irony is that it may not be the style ' of Mama and Maggie either it is their way of life and livelihood . They would never even think about this in terms of style

Finally , the theme is shown in the symbolism used . This story not only contains symbolism but is about symbolism itself . The quilts are the chief symbols , and they stand for the ties of heritage /family . What would Dee do with the quilts ? 'Hang them ' she said . As if that was the only thing you could do with them (Walker ) Dee says that Maggie cannot understand her heritage and cannot appreciate these quilts , but she does when she can `member Grandma Dee with the quilts (Walker ) Magnanimously , Maggie agrees that Dee can have them so as not to start a conflict . She says , I can `member Grandma Dee without the quilts (Walker ) Maggie is appreciating her heritage every time she uses them , 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

Obviously the theme of the importance of heritage is shown in Alice Walker 's Everyday Use ' While Maggie and Mama may be uneducated and backwards ' they do understand the meaning of family heritage . Dee has all the education and sophistication of the world , and she just plain doesn 't get it ...