everyday use

Mama Johnson

Mama Johnson is the main character in the short story entitled Everyday Use ' written by Alice Walker . She is the mother of the two other characters in the story : Maggie and Dee . Fat and big-boned , she is extra-ordinarily strong for a woman . In fact she can single-handedly slaughter a hog as easily as a man and had even once killed a bull calf with a single blow to the head using a sledgehammer . Owing to years of doing hard , manual labor usually out of doors even during harsh winters her

hands became as rough as those of a workingman , not the usual capable-looking hands of a mother of two . Looking at her , even a stranger would no doubt reckon that Mama Johnson is a hardworking woman .Perhaps because of her physical looks , Mama Johnson is a timid woman . In fact , she cannot muster enough courage even only to maintain eye contact with another person especially if that person is a stranger to her . Her inferiority complex is so great that whenever somebody unfamiliar would talk to her , she would respond warily , usually looking in the opposite direction , and ever ready to flee when necessary

A woman in spite of everything , Mama Johnson would sometimes dream the dream of a vain woman . In her dreams , she would usually be witty leaner , with hair that glistens in the bright light , and a skin like an uncooked barley pancake ' - a woman who is a source of pride for her daughters , especially Dee who , in her eyes , is the daughter who made it ' simply because she was able to finish high school while the other daughter , Maggie , just like herself , did not go to school

She is proud of her daughter Dee because Dee is everything that she and Maggie has never been or could never hope to be : she is confident enough to look anybody in the eye she never hesitates and most of all , she is educated . In fact , Mama Johnson is so proud of her daughter Dee that she would even imagine her as some sort of a celebrity and herself a proud mother of an accomplished star . She would often dream of being with Dee in a limousine on her way to an important television interview where she herself shares the limelight , being the mother of a popular , established woman . In the dream , Dee would usually hug her and tearfully thank her for being such a good mother

But of course , dreams are only dreams . The truth of the matter is , Dee has no affection for her mother and sister and Mama Johnson knows it only too well . As a matter of fact , she is fully aware that her daughter hated their being poor and even suspected that Dee was glad that their former , shabby house was gutted down by fire because she hated living their . She knew from way back that Dee wanted only the best : nice clothes , education . This was why she sought the help...