Dee's Superficiality and Heritage Conflict

In Alice Walker's story, "Everyday Use," there is a continual conflict between the narrator and her daughter Dee. Dee and the narrator, her mother, are very different people. Dee's mother and younger sister, Maggie, for that matter, are rather old-fashioned. They live their lives humbly, never wanting more then they have. Dee on the other hand is very superficial and materialistic and wants much bigger and better things then those she has. This is demonstrated many times throughout the story. As the events of the story transpire, Dee's contempt for her family and heritage become very clear.

When Dee was younger, she was always ashamed of her home and her mother and sister. She never brought any of her friends over her house because she didn't want them to see where she lived. Then, when her house burns down one night, she stands under a tree smiling. She showed no signs of sorrow at the loss of her own home. She doesn't even care that her family now has no place to live.

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She is glad that it happened because it would mean that they would have to get another home and it might be better then the one that they were currently living in. This shows how she is superficial and only cares about what others think of her.

Dee is also very concerned with her physical appearance. She is prettier then her mother and sister and knows it. She always had to dress fashionably. Dee had the right outfit for every occasion.

She always looked good and cared what others were thinking of her. She was smart as well. She graduated from high school and went on to college, something that Maggie would probably never do. This boosted Dee's self-confidence and made her feel superior to her mother and sister.

When Dee leaves for college, she meets a man. When she returns on afternoon, she gets out of a car dressed in a long, bright dress. She and the man walk toward the house. Dee proceeds to take many pictures of her mother and sister sitting on the porch. With each picture she makes sure that the house is in the background. At this time she seems to be happy to be around her mother and sister and she actually brought someone to her home, something that she never would have done in the past. Dee actually seems glad to be at her house. When her mother addresses her as Dee she informs her that her name is no longer Dee. She changed it to Wangero. The change to an African name was made to show her pride in her heritage. This name change doesn't make sense to her mother though. If Dee were going to have pride in where she came from, she would have kept her name, as it was a family name that had been passed down through generations of women. Her grandmother, aunt, and many other relatives dating back had the name. If Dee truly was proud of who she was then she would have kept the name and been proud to say that she was named after her ancestors.

After the conversation about her name, Dee (Wangero) proceeds into the house. When she goes in she starts to find objects that she wants to take home with her so she can display them. She sees a churn and a dasher in the kitchen that she wants to take home. She says that she can "use the churn top as a centerpiece for the alcove table and think of something artistic to do with the dasher" (Walker 387). Dee only wants these items to show them and her newfound pride off. They don't really mean anything to her, even though they were made by family members.

Not only does Dee want the churn and dasher, but she wants some quilts that were hand-sewn by her grandmother and aunt. Once again, Dee wants these items so she can show them off and make people think that she has an incredible amount of pride in her African heritage. When she takes the quilts, her mother tells her that she can't have them. She had promised to give them to Maggie when she gets married. Besides, Dee had been offered a quilt in the past and turned it down. Why would she all of a sudden change her mind? Maggie would appreciate the quilts much more then Dee because when her grandmother was making the quilts, she taught Maggie how to do it. Maggie knows the hard work and effort that was put into the making of the quilts. Dee has no idea what it took to make them. She just wants to show them off. She is so worried about what she wants that she doesn't even consider what others might want.

When she doesn't get the quilts, she says to her mother, "You just don't understand.....your heritage" (Walker 389). Dee has the audacity to say that to her mother. If anyone doesn't understand, it's Dee. She went through her whole life not appreciating where she came from. Dee never once showed any sign of being proud of her background. If anything she seemed ashamed of it, never exposing to anyone just where she was from. Then, all of a sudden, she had this terrific amount of respect and pride in her heritage. Pride is not something that just appears. One either has a respect for where they come from or not. They don't just wake up and feel glad to be whatever it is that they are.

Dee is not concerned with her heritage, but rather the material possessions that go along with it. All throughout the story, Dee is concerned with her physical appearance and what others think of her. She doesn't show any concern for her family and the struggles that they have. All that is important to Dee is Dee. Her superficial attitude never changes, even with her supposed respect for her background. All Dee is concerned with is what others are thinking about her. She likes to fit into society. She tries to conform to what everyone else is doing, so she dresses fashionably and hides her home with her less then up-to-date family.

This story, "Everyday Use," was written in 1973. At this time, African Americans were gaining status in society. There were many movements and uprisings to advance African's social position. Also, people with this heritage were changing their names and showing a tremendous amount of pride in their heritage. Dee's character fit into this perfectly. She wanted to fit in with what everyone else was doing and by going along with this group of people, she would fit in. She didn't really care about her past as much as she made people think that she did.

Dee's pride led to much tension with her family. She was unable to communicate with her mother and sister because she was being sucked into society's idea of what she should be like, while her mother and sister were more traditional. They were content with living their lives how they were, even if there were better things out in the world. They were happy and that was all that mattered to them. Dee on the other hand was very insecure in herself and used society's ideals to form herself. Her mother and sister were happy with who they were, even if they didn't have a lot of money or expensive possessions. The things that they had were of more value to them then any new items, which showed that they had a greater sense of pride and security in who they were then Dee ever would.