Everyday Use
Everyday UseAlice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use” takes place in the southern part of the United States. She portrays Mama and Maggie as people having qualities admired by society, and Dee as a person who thinks that those qualities come from an uneducated and poor home. In her short story, she reminds us that patience is a great virtue and that it is an essential part of our culture and heritage.
At the start of the story, Alice Walker describes Mama as “a large, big-boned woman with rough, man working hands.” She is a person who is not ashamed of who she is. When Dee, her eldest daughter comes home to visit her, she finds out that Dee has changed her name to Wangero. When asked why she changed her name, Wangero (Dee) replies, “I couldn’t bear it any longer being named after the people who oppress me.” Mama is not happy about the name change because Wangero (Dee) was named after her sister Dicie. When Wangero (Dee) tells Mama that she doesn’t have to call her by that name if she doesn’t want to, Mama shows a great deal of patience for her daughter by saying “Why shouldn’t I? If that’s what you want us to call you, we’ll call you.”
As the story progresses, Mama continues to show her patience when the family sits down for dinner. Wangero (Dee) had brought a friend along with her. Her friend Hakim-a-barber insults Mama by saying that “he didn’t eat collards and pork was unclean.” Wangero (Dee), even after hearing what Hakim-a-barber says, does not do anything and just enjoys the meal. After dinner, Wangero (Dee) starts to examine the old objects in the house. She finds a butter churn and says “This churn top is what I need, Didn’t Uncle Buddy whittle it out of a tree you all used to have?” When...
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