"Everyday Use" by Alice Walker
"Have you ever seen a lame animal, perhaps a dog run over by some careless person rich enough to own a car, sidle up to someone who is ignorant enough to be kind to him" (Walker, page 174-175).
The immediate reaction to the short story was specifically displayed in this quote on the second page of the story. Immediately, the narrator, the mom, points out the flaws she sees in her own family and the culture she feels excluded from. The entire short story wraps around the theme that the narrator is resisting the urge to conform to the society that her own daughter has fell victim to. The mother discusses how her eldest daughter decides to change her name to a cultural name to reflect her stance of the importance of her culture. Furthermore, Maggie seems reluctant to the culture that she was brought up in as her mother displays in the quote as the image of Maggie sliding up to a person who is rich is implied. Likewise, Maggie seems to be a foil character to her sister. Maggie embraces the culture of the new world they are living and trying to fit into it. Wangero seems to be reaching back into her roots and embrace the world and culture they all came from. The symbol of the quilts seem to display the direct contrast of the characters as Maggie is envisioned to not appreciate the quilt and let it ruin under use. Wangero states that she will hang the quilt in order to cherish her culture and pay hommage to her grandmother.
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