Heritage and deracination in walker's everyday use

Everyday Use by Alice Walker

Alice Walker, born on 9 February 1944 in Georgia was the youngest in a family of 10. The family valued education in spite of their dire economic poverty. Her mother raised Walker’s college fees by working as a maid. Unfortunately, her brother shot her accidentally at eight years old making her blinded of one eye. Continual teasing by her classmates over her scars prompted her to turn to writing poetry and reading. She wrote different stories and participated in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Everyday Use depicts the movements and events of her life. It portrays the livelihoods of an American family residing in the rural areas of the South as well as the family’s commitment to education despite their simple and humble lives. The rural setting of the short story is in a house in most likely Georgia. The residents of the house are a Black family comprising of Mama and her two daughters Dee and Maggie. The character Maggie who is withdrawn from the world around her after losing her real appearance in a fire incident resembles Walker who was also a victim on an injury in her childhood. Dee and Hakim-a-barber represent the social movement of African Americans striving to reclaim their African Heritage.

The main narrator in the story is Mama. The story portrays her as an individual who is struggling to accept the ideas of Dee pertaining to culture. Her daughter Dee received her tertiary education in Augusta, Georgia before relocating to an urban area for work. On the other hand, Maggie, portrayed as the less privileged one did not go to school. She stayed at home with her mother as Dee was attending school. The writer adopted the scenario to depict the challenges that Black Americans encountered in the quest for education. It is possible to deduce some similarities and differences between families in the ancient and the present world. Even though the times are several years apart, the problems the family faced are common in modern families. Most families still value and cherish specific sacred things, such as culture. They show utmost interest in knowing their traditions and backgrounds.

The depiction of family background as a central theme in Everyday Use makes the short story exceptional and worthwhile. The integration of the story of the African culture and its significance in the lives of family members is unique because the writer succeeds in portraying it contrastingly through the eyes of Dee and Maggie. The girls embody opposite traits and hold different perspectives pertaining to the quilts. The writer depicts mama as an individual with a central role of linking the two daughters. However, she seems inclined to Maggie’s side due to their common behavioral traits. Mama and Maggie consider culture as an aspect based on thinking methods and objects of inheritance. However, Dee considers culture irrelevant in the current world because history eradicated it.

It is vital to note that the culture the writer adopts centers on education and learning. The realization is evident in the thoughts that the various characters portray. The thoughts played a crucial role in shaping the culture that they all depend on (Taufique 99). The diverse perspectives regarding the Black American culture lead to tension portrayed in the entire story. The approach of comparing characters and their perspectives enables the author to demonstrate the relevance of understanding peoples’ present lives in relation to the culture that their people embraced in the past. The author depends on attitudes and premeditated descriptions in illustrating factors that have implications on the cultural heritage of the people. The author affirms the impossibility of symbolizing an individual’s culture and heritage through merely appearances and object possession.

Walker personifies the diverse aspects of culture and heritage in the portrayal of the contrast between the perspectives between mama and Dee. Maggie and Mama signify the connection between culture and generations through ideals, that can be passed to others. The reason behind the realization is that the actions base on traditions learnt from past generations. Furthermore, the author depicts Maggie as an individual who embraces her mother’s culture through traditions that she passed to her through teachings. This is evident in the statement that Mama makes regarding the capability of Maggie to make quilts. The comment, “She can always make some more; Maggie knows how to quilt” (Baym 3015),” affirms that Maggie is conversant with her cultural heritage.

On the other hand, Dee fails to show interest in the art that has been passed from one generation to the other. She does not see the need of making quilts. This is evident in the fact that Dee does not take an initiative of learning how to make quilts. Maggie demonstrates vulnerability traits evident in the extreme discomfort with her appearance. Her actions demonstrate an extreme sense of self-preservation and self-consciousness. This is evident when Mama says, “she will stand hopelessly in corners, homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs” (Baym 3010). Furthermore, Maggie concentrated most of the time on keeping herself and following instructions.

The author notes that both Maggie and Mama in the short story reside in a run-down home and have never received school education. They both claim that they received their teachings by means of traditions through the help of their ancestors. The teachings that both of them received from the surroundings are out of reach for people in the modern society. There is a common aspect between Mama and her daughter. The author makes it clear that Mrs. Johnson intended to pursue her tertiary education like Dee but managed to reach second grade (Coward 176). However, she does not complain about her education. She seems comfortable with the extent of her education as well as the teachings she acquired from her ancestors. Maggie adhered to the teachings she received since her time of birth. She made a choice to stay where she was and receive education from her parents. By residing with Mama, Maggie learnt life skills from the experiences of her ancestors. Furthermore, her mother played a role in teaching her some of the traditions.

The author strove to show that the perspective of culture for Dee is different from the ideologies of Mama and Maggie. The differences in the ideas of culture manifest in the characters of the individuals under consideration. Dee personifies culture in the complex and materialistic context that needs scrutiny and consideration but not experienced. The manner in which Dee carries herself around reveals many things about her perspective of culture and heritage. The differences are evident from the beginning of the story where the author takes time to inform the readers of the differences between the two sisters in diverse aspects of their lives.

The narrator describes Dee as being “lighter than Maggie, with nice hair and a fuller figure” (Baym 3011), making it clear of her beauty and self-assurance. The description plays a crucial role in differentiating Dee from Mama and Maggie who seem rough and scared at the same time. The narrator further says, “She wanted nice things. At sixteen she had a style of her own: and knew what style was” (Baym 3011). Dee chose to pursue education away from her motherland. This illustration portrays her as a person striving to reach higher society levels for popularity purposes. Mama affirms that she knew her daughter’s ambitions when she says, “She was determined to stare down any disaster in her efforts. Her eyelids would not flicker for minutes at a time” (Baym 3011).

Dee undertakes her planned visit home as an endeavor of reconnecting with her traditional roots. However, the visit ends up revealing her misconceptions regarding heritage and culture. The visit takes place at a time when most people were showing utmost awareness of Black traditions. Because she has taken long before visiting home, she decides to take on a new language and style demonstrated by modernized African American women. Dee goes home in the company of a partner who has an Islamic name. She goes further to make it clear that her preferred name is Wangero as opposed to Dee, a name that she believes is inappropriate. The scene exposes her disappointing behavior towards people she has close relations with. It is confusing for her to talk of her value and appreciation for cultural heritage but still going ahead to denounce a name that her relatives have used for ages. The scene justifies Mama’s doubts regarding Dee’s understanding of cultural traditions.

Mama prepared different delicacies to welcome Dee home. Upon arrival, Dee avoided collard and termed pork as unclean. However, all the other people ate everything. The conduct affirms that she took most of her ideas and behaviors from her social circle during her quest for education. The fact that people who value culture ate everything and she did the opposite affirms the uniqueness of her ideas in comparison to the others. After eating, Dee started troubling her mother with a series of questions regarding the furnishings of the house, their value, and their age. She inquires about the household cherished photos taken some time back in front of the home.

The churn top created by Dee’s late uncle has a historical significance in the household. Dee comes out shocking her mum that she values the items as her culture. However, it is a perspective that she never held while growing up. Dee makes the statement to depict her devotion to the roots of her culture. She goes further to elaborate to the family members about the understanding she and her friends have over the items by saying, “I can use the churn top as a centerpiece for the alcove table, and I’ll think of something artistic to do with the dasher” (Baym 3014). Mrs. Johnson allows Dee to take the item because she does not see it as of value as the quilts.

Dee’s request for the quilts from her mother makes the story more interesting. Dee says she prefers the old handmade quilts to the others stitched by machines. Mama tries to persuade Dee to take the newer quilts because she promised to give them to Maggie after her marriage to John Thomas. At the end of the arguments, Dee becomes childish and angry and rants about her sister’s incapability to appreciate the old quits. She states that Maggie would perhaps be “backward enough to put them to everyday use!” (Baym 3015). The statement brings out the tittle of the story, which goes by the name Everyday Use. The author uses the statement to present an exceptional argument regarding the need to safeguard and display culture or incorporate it in people’s daily lives. Readers are likely to presume that the phrase, “everyday use” only applies to the quilt argument.

However, delving deep into the story reveals that the phrase concerns the culture and heritage that people embrace and their ways of making decisions to either preserve the cultures or not. Walker develops a critique of postmodern ideals in the course of the story. She also demonstrates the detachable state of symbols. Wangero’s proposition to hang the quilts represents a move that seeks to detach them from their everyday use. The choice would lead to the loss of the embedded contextual meaning of the quilts.

Dee and her fiancée leave when Mama remains adamant with her decision regarding the ownership of the quilts. This scene reveals another vital theme in the short story of the need to maintain support for the truth regardless of the consequences. People should stand up for not just themselves but also for other people. The theme manifests in Mama’s decision to deny Wangero the handmade quilts following her understanding of the value Maggie tagged on the quilts. It was also clear that the reason as to why Wangero wanted the family belongings were to keep up with the modern African fashion.

In addition, Dee was seeking popularity. The intention is evident in her decision to change her name, even though she never did it while growing up. While leaving her home, Dee laments of Mama’s lack of understanding of her culture. She also makes a proposition to her sister to make something meaningful out of herself. Maggie and Mama then gaze at the leaving car before spending time together and realizing that they are the true bearers of happiness who are enjoying life and rejoicing in their cherished heritage. The contest between Maggie and Dee regarding the appropriate person to own the quilt helped in depicting the intended thematic expression. Walker used the misunderstanding between the two sisters to show that it is not just the duty of Black Power Movements to define the African American heritage. The author sought to argue that African Americans must take responsibility for the good and the bad of their heritage. They should not be choosy in regards to what to adopt and what to discard.

Mrs. Johnson personifies Black Americans who were unaware of ways of matching their experiences with the movements of the 1960s that sought to advance civil rights agendas (Hoel 13). Most African Americans at the time did not see the Black Power movements as solutions to their issues. Walker adopted the technique to challenge Black Americans to value and respect their cultural heritage. The goal justifies the portrayal of work as an important piece of literature.

Everyday Use presents an exact depiction of the culture of most African Americans in the current world. Some of the people look down upon their history while others neglect their poor peers. They have also adopted capitalist ideas in their quest for popularity and wealth. The ideals are evident in their opportunism and assertiveness. However, the rural south treasures the relevance of family and culture. The conservative forks in the rural areas have not embraced the extremes of modernism. Individuals who have abandoned the conventional African American culture show their loyalty by displaying cultural antiques, artifacts, and souvenirs.

Walker in Everyday Use uses different scenes to depict the identity crisis among African Americans and the place of their cultural values in the current society. The author shows that it is not possible for people to forget their culture. The reason behind the realization is that cultural heritages are passed on from generation to generation. Walker also shows that it is not possible to denounce or acquire culture and heritage in an instant. The author succeeded in making her point clear that people who value their heritage and culture ought to apply it in their daily lives.

Works Cited

Baym, Nina. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. New York, W.W. Norton & Company, 1945.

Coward, David. “Heritage & Deracination in walker’s Everyday Use.” Studies in short fiction, 1996, pp. 171-184.

Hoel, Helga. “Personal Names & Heritage: Alice Walker Everyday Use.” America studies in Scandinavia, 1999.

Taufique, Ahmed. “Thematic analysis of ‘Everyday Use’ short story by Alice Walker.” International Journal of English Research, vol. 5, no. 1, 2019, pp. 98-100.