Life Lessons in "Everyday Use" Research Paper

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While she away, she changes her name to "Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo" (1425) because she will not endure "being named after the people who oppress me" (1425). She is concerned with herself and she seems to only come home to take things back with her, including things like a butter dish and dasher. When she decides she wants the quilts, she sees no reason why she should not have them, noting "Maggie can't appreciate these quilts!" (1427). Mama suddenly realizes how selfish Dee is when she thinks she deserves certain things because she thinks she can appreciate them more than anyone else can. She moved away to become enlightened and returned a snob. She wants to use every experience, past and present, to enhance her feigned future. She does not care about her family in the least and Maggie's handing over the quilts demonstrates this to the fullest.

"Everyday Use" should remain in the literary cannon because of Walker's unique style. Walker presents realistic characters and embellishes her stories with symbols that help drive her points home. The quilts are an important symbol because they represent heritage and how each girl responds to that notion. Maggie's "defects" are also a symbol of her seeming lack. Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton writes, "Maggie's own scarred body resembles the faded patches of the quilt, where stitching resembles healing. She is literally making something of herself everyday, just like she and her mother make things everyday" (Piedmont). Maggie is likened to "a lame animal, perhaps a dog run over by some careless person" (Walker 1423) and she hangs her head as she walks. She is "not bright" (1423) while Dee is outgoing and lovely. Maggie appears to be the weakest person in the story but she emerges strong.

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We might be drawn to Dee initially but we soon learn that the old adage of judging a book by its cover is true. Each daughter's view regarding the quilts cause mama to see them in a new and honest light. Mama realizes this as she places the quilts in Maggie's arms. She is respecting heritage by keeping the quilts where they rightfully belong.

"Everyday Use" tells the story of how people can become so distracted about who they want to become that they forget who they are. Walker examines family ties that grow stretched and strained after neglect. Dee secretly despises where she came from but also loves the fact that she overcame her oppressed life. Her shame is a stark contrast to Mama and Maggie's desire to stay right where they are. Heritage, too, is one of those things that Dee can be proud of as long as she does not have to be mired in the thick of it. She wants to be on the outside looking in as demonstrated with her desire to hang the quilts on the wall as opposed to using them for that which they were made. These issues will always be relevant in our society because we are human. Dee was not wrong for wanting a better life; however, she was wrong for harboring such a resentful attitude toward those she left behind. Sometimes the desire to be better and achieve destroys humanity. Maggie is one of those types of people that society will overlook because she is not lovely or outgoing but she demonstrates that being lovely or outgoing are worthless if one does not have the humanity to respect others.

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