Literary Analysis Of Everyday Use By Alice Walker

Words: 682
Pages: 3
Open Document
Literary Analysis on “Everyday Use” A daughter who uses her mother's gifts in contrast to a daughter who preserves them is far more valuable just like in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker because values can be preserved. From here on, Walker utilizes a confused tone which later shifts into an authoritative tone by illustrating a mother who defends her weakest daughter because of her eldest daughter’s opposing views. The confused tone began with Mama watched Dee come out of the “side of the car” with “a short, stocky man” and Mama was muddled (759r). The car represents wealth and the built man represents strength. Here the mother becomes confused because her daughter was getting off of a car, which was not common back then, with a short yet muscular man. Furthermore, Mamas confusion continued when she saw her daughter in a long dress full of “yellows and oranges enough to throw back the light of the sun” (759). The yellow represents intellect, and the orange represents happiness. Dee was happy to be an educated woman, but Mama only saw a suffocating dress in the middle of the heat, which in the end only confused the protagonist even …show more content…
The comforters symbolize family heritage. In this story, the two quilts were made from aged clothing and Dee did not seem to care. She did not want the other blankets because they were “stitched around the borders by machine” (762). Wangero or Dee wanted something handmade and original, but Mama wanted her to understand the true meaning of the two quilts. The fight continued and the most important thing Mama said was how she “promised to give them [to] Maggie” (762). Mama was a little aggravated at this point and understood Dee was taking advantage of her younger sister. The quilts were meant to be used not “hung” like Dee mentioned later on (762). Although Dee’s intentions were not bad, Mama knew she would never take pride in the two
Show More

Related Documents: Literary Analysis Of Everyday Use By Alice Walker

Everyday Use By Alice Walker Literary Analysis

In Alice Walker’s short story, “Everyday Use”, each woman’s particular connection to the quilts suggest that the females are instrumental in preserving and handing down the family’s history. Each of the family members have their own definition of preservation. Despite the differences, the goal remains essentially the same. Mama knows the story behind each piece of cloth used to make the quilts. She wants the history handed down in the manner she has been passing it, through oral and visual means…

Words 468 - Pages 2

Family: American Dream and Mother Essay example

Literary Analysis Living in Families- Mother’s Love Li Wang In the society today, many of daughters stay away from their mothers when they have to go into a better environment, and get higher education status as well in order to fulfill the social status. Most of the mothers always give their children what they were unable to have in their childhood. Being a mother is a great experience in a woman’s life. However, being a mother is also faced with lots difficult choices when it comes to raising…

Words 1699 - Pages 7

Literature and Class Writing Exercises Essay

notebook, folder, or binder to keep approximately 10-12 journal entries (1-2 pages each); access to word processing and the internet. Attendance: Attending all class sessions is a key element to your success in this course especially because I use a workshop format. During weeks of writing workshops you will not be required to attend all class sessions which means attending your assigned workshop time is essential. After eight (8) absences you will earn an F in this class. Arriving late and…

Words 2303 - Pages 10

American Dream in a Raisin in the Sun Essay

The women characters of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun (1959) are not absent of this double form of discrimination; however, as the racial issue is more at stake than gender in the play, the last one is usually forgotten in the analysis of the most part of the critics. As race can never be let apart of gender, since they are two intermingled issues in the plight of black women, we intend to analyze the implications of the two terms in the lives of the women characters of Hansberry’s…

Words 4312 - Pages 18