Introduction
Alice walker’s “Everyday Use” article revolves around the aspect of Black American people’s heritage. It is a story that revolves around the African culture and its heritage as it describes the traditional African clothing as one of the themes. The story reflects on how an individual relates with their heritage, as seen through Dee’s mother, who is so attached to the family’s traditions even though she has an enlightened daughter who has traveled around the world and gained exposure. The traditional economic activity of quilting was a practice common among the African-American communities during the days of slavery. The symbolic meaning of quilting indicates how the African-American women had been silenced and became voiceless to the world. Their quilt was the only thing that could represent their black heritage in a world that they could not be heard. Alice Walker’s article unfolds the African culture and its heritage, as summarized in this essay.
The African-American women had their voices stitched into their quilts, which is used to symbolize their tradition. The women could only take control of their lives through quilting, as it was the only activity that they were allowed to undertake. Due to its communal nature, quilting allowed African American women to strengthen their bonds, and it moved them from voiceless beings to empowered women. The women gained control over the colonial rule that enslaved them through quilting. Black American women who were taken as slaves carried out the quilting activity together, which gave them a chance to strengthen their social bonds. The activity symbolized solidarity among the African American slaves, and it was as well a symbol of political and cultural change as it provided a platform for the slaves to debate about politics. Quilting was used as a source of activism by black women as they made quilts that had anti-slavery signs (Walker).
The elderly woman, “Mama Dee “waits outside her house for the return of her oldest daughter from abroad. Mama Dee’s thoughts are filled with the differences that lie between her two daughters, Dee and Maggie. Maggie is the youngest daughter who remained at home with her mother while her sister moved away in search of greener pastures. Their mother hopes that Dee has come back with redemption and knows that Maggie will be self-conscious around her elder sister. The fire incident that took place almost a decade ago at their home burned Maggie, and her mother, who ran to her rescue, managed to carry her out of the house as Dee watched the house burn down. The fire incident did not move Dee as she seemed happy to watch the house burn down because she hated the house. Maggie is helpless while Dee enjoys every aspect of her life.
Departure
The reason behind Dee’s departure to Augusta was to pursue further studies that were funded by her mother through the community’s contribution. The article outlines that Dee’s mother was not much educated as she could not go beyond grade two. Her younger sister could not read, and Dee was looked upon with a lot of hope by her mother as the person who would make a difference and redeem the family. Dee’s stylish way of dressing was different from her mother’s and her sister’s. Mama refers to the man accompanying Dee on her arrival at home as “Hakin-a-barber, and the two are astonished at how Dee looks and how she greets them. Her arrival is followed by her taking photos of her mother and her sister even before greeting them, and she later informs them that she has now changed her name to Wangero so that she can freely protest against the oppression that was faced by the Black Americans.
The fact that Mama Dee is a woman who embraced culture makes her reject Dee’s new name claiming that her original name was a generational name that could never be altered. Dee allows her mother not to use her new name, and Mama is of the thought that Dee’s friend is a Muslim who comes from a family that lives not far from them. Mama does not have an idea of whether the two are married, and she does not bother to ask. As Dee enjoys what her mother prepared, Hakim is a strict diet follower who does not just feed on anything. They enjoy the meal as Dee asks about a variety of things that happened while she was away. Among the things that Dee asks for are two quilts, and her persistence about the quilts frustrates the mother, and the two end up quarreling. Dee argues that the quilt should not be used daily to protect it from getting worn away as it was a symbol of the African heritage. Mama believes that she cannot let the quilt hang on the wall as it is meant to be used practically. Dee urges that her mother lacks an understanding of her heritage and that she needed to improve. Before they drive away and leaving Mama and Maggie watching them till bedtime, Dee tells her mother that there is a new path for Black Americans to follow.
