Human rights activist Alice Walker is one of the best-known authors of the twentieth century. His stories and poems inspire many people. “Everyday Use” is by far one of his most inspirational and controversial works. Many, since its publication in the early 1970s, have criticized and praised this work for its accuracy about the difficulties of being an African-American woman. However, this work takes both sides of the spectrum into account. On the one hand, a mother is faced with the obstacle of accepting her daughter's solution to her own identity crisis, and on the other, a daughter is overcoming the oppression that has held and continues to hold her race and gender in check. gender at the expense of losing the respect of his children. family. Through symbolism and characterization, Walker brings to light the importance of overcoming tyranny and identity crises. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Every character in “Everyday Use” is facing an internal struggle, however Dee seems to have the most problems. From an early age she was different from her mother and sister. It was noted that she was never satisfied with the house she lived in and was always trying to better herself in terms of education. His ideals are typical of the 60s and 70s. Many ridiculous laws and restrictions against African Americans had finally been abolished; black power was in full swing. Young people were inspired to take action and break free from what had held their families back since they arrived in this country hundreds of years earlier. An important idea, highlighted by Susan Farrell, is that the story is told through the eyes of the mother. All we know about Dee is her mother's opinion of her. “ We must remember from the beginning that the story is told by the mother; the perceptions are filtered through his mind and his opinions about his two daughters are not to be accepted uncritically.” This leads the reader to wonder if Dee is really as terrible as Mom makes her out to be. Perhaps mom simply does not understand the new way of life and is against change, perhaps this scares her. This would definitely affect Dee's portrayal. Dee is clearly a product of her time, a woman determined to overcome the depression of her people and become something better. This is conveyed through the clothes he wears, the language he has adopted, as well as the new name he has taken on. He is trying to free himself from the shackles of society. However, Dee is not right in the way she treats her family. She is completely selfish and quite harsh at times. He continually pushes his mother and sister aside and makes them feel ignorant and worthless. This is conveyed several times throughout the story: “She once wrote to me that no matter where we “choose” to live, she will manage to come visit us. But he will never bring his friends. and “It washed us in a river of fiction, burned us with a lot of knowledge that we didn't necessarily need to know. She pushed us towards her with the serious way she read, only to turn away just at the moment when, like fools, we seemed on the verge of understanding. Dee hasn't been very kind to her family in this regard, and it's easy to understand her mother's judgment of her. For a moment, in the second half of the story, the reader believes that Dee might not be so bad after all. He is interested in objects in the house (especially quilts), it is thought that he may have embraced part of his history, however he has brought to light that he wants them as decoration. Understandably, from a mom's perspective, this is upsetting. Traditionally, thisit's not something black people would do. Quilts are designed for everyday use. However, this is Dee's way of dealing with the turbulent world around her and her efforts to better herself while maintaining her legacy, in a way that reminds her of where she came from (Walker, Farrell). Just like Dee, Maggie is also portrayed somewhat incorrectly. It's true that her sister seems to step all over her, but that's entirely due to Maggie's passive personality. She was burned in a house fire as a child and seems ashamed of her scars and withdrawn because of everything that happened. This is a simple explanation of why he gives the impression of being afraid of his sister and even runs away from her when she comes to visit "Maggie tries to run towards the house, in her shuffling way, but I hold her back with my hand." This quote highlights the fact that Mom always seems to be checking on Maggie. Perhaps, Mom is overly controlling and protective of Maggie due to her scars and her lack of control (from Mom) over Dee. It also seems that the mother is "projecting her own anger and frustration onto her younger daughter..." Maggie doesn't once express her opinion on Dee: she makes small actions such as making a noise or dropping an object. Walker gives the impression that Maggie is more of a plot device or object rather than an actual character. Maggie is like a tool that Mom uses to project her own trials and tribulations (Tuten 179, Walker). Mom is probably in her forties and lived in a very different time than Maggie and Dee. When she was young, she had very few freedoms as an African American woman. While Dee and Maggie's generation still has a long way to go, Mom's generation has been through a lot more. His parents and their parents were probably sharecroppers, and although they were not slaves, they had virtually no rights. The 1960s completely transformed the world for African Americans. Mom hasn't begun to understand this yet, she still thinks the way she was taught to think. Wouldn't look a white man in the eye “Who can imagine me looking a strange white man in the eye? It seems to me that I always spoke to them with one foot raised in the air, with my head turned in the direction furthest from them." Just like Dee, Mom is a product of her generation, which explains why she treats her children the way she does. Dee's behavior is shocking to her mother, just as it is in every parent/child relationship in every culture. She's the epitome of the typical "rebel teenager," or teenager, except she's actually starting a revolution. Dee had to choose her family or a life “… coping, for Dee, and no doubt for many others, came at a price. The strength necessary to stare at the white world was equaled by the intensity of a gaze, which burned her ties with her past” and therefore the mother must try to deal with this fact as best she can, which is very difficult for her. Maggie, on the other hand, never disappoints her mother. He is simple and will lead a simple life; he's not threatening mom. Mom also has great sympathy for Maggie because of how she was burned and is still affected by it in everyday life. He tries to protect her as best he can (Walker, Whitsitt 448). While the personalities of these three characters are important to the story, they are not the most important part. The symbolism throughout this story is extremely significant. The first essential element of symbolism is the courtyard “A courtyard like this is more comfortable than most people realize. It's not just a construction site. It's like an extended stay." This yard is representative of Mom and Maggie's simple life. Most people think of the yard as an accent. 2014.