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Jan 9, 2024
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Demeturis Coleman
Steve McHugh
ENG 132
31 October 2023
Research Paper Proposal
I.
Thesis: As Susan Farrell asserts in the article, “Fight vs. Flight: a re-evaluation of Dee in Alice Walker’s ‘Everyday Use,’
"Dee inspires in Mama a type of awe and fear more suitable to the advent of a goddess than the loved one might expect a mother to feel for a returning daughter" (Farrell). The story of everyday use sets the tone that as children develop into adults’ parents must understand rebellion is a part of their growth. Instead of
parents attempting to fix this rebellion, it should instead be embraced and honor as Dee is
a hero for attempting to preserve her family legacy and artifacts A.
Everyday Use
sets the scene up as a young Black woman back in the late 60s and 70s who went off to college naïve and rebellious and returned during Thanksgiving break “woke”. The narrator, mama, has two daughters, and one returns home quite different and
more assertive than she left for school.
B.
Supporting Evidence: Dee has left, and it seems from evidence in the story now following that of a Muslim belief. 1.
Dee says that she no longer goes by her name she left with, and her greeting is different as well. Her mother explains to her the origin and history of Dee’s name and with no regard dismisses that valuable information for material artifacts of the
family.
2.
While Dee is an adult, she shows her immaturity and need to feel validated during
the visit via the treatment shown to Mama in the story. Dee first left home not wanting to be reminded or own items that reminded her of home. When Dee went to college she refused her mother’s offer for a worn blanket. Now in the present visit, Dee first concern is getting the blanket and keeping it for herself and preservation. Even though she told mama she would visit, she alluded that bringing friends was too embarrassing. The author, without direct implication, shows that Dee is now aware of the value of her upbringing as she tries to claim ownership of items that she deems “valuable and priceless” for her culture
Works Cited
Baker Houston A and Charlotte Pierce-Baker. “Patches : Quilts and Community in Alice Walker's
Everyday Use.”
Southern Review
21 (3) July 1985 Pages 706-720 1985.
Everyday Use.”
Southern Review
21 (3) July 1985 Pages 706-720 1985.
The authors explore the history and importance of quilts in the African culture. The authors believe that quilts are artwork and the way that quilts were for made even more historical and as such should be preserved. The authors exam the title of the story “Everyday Use” and states the mean means that while things can be tattered and torn, they are priceless and should be protected as such.
Farrell, Susan. "Fight vs. Flight: a re-evaluation of Dee in Alice Walker's 'Everyday Use'."
Studies in Short Fiction
,
vol. 35, no. 2, spring 1998, pp. 179+.
Gale Literature Resource Center
,
Web.
.
The article "Fight vs. Flight: A Re-Evaluation of Dee in Alice Walker's 'Everyday Use", discusses the antagonist of Ms. Walker's story by looking at Dee as someone honoring and respecting the family's heritage and attempting to protect the integrity of possessions that hold the family’s history. At first thought, one would presume that Dee is spoiled and
inconsiderate of the time and effort her sister and mother put into the visit, yet Susan Farrell offers a different view of Dee. When Dee arrives to her mother's home her demeanor is different and unlike Maggie and her mother, her fears are only focused on preserving and protecting the family's history.
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Walker, Alice. "Everyday Use." Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing, edited by X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia, 12th ed., Pearson, 2013, pp. 491-96.
In the short story “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker tells a story in which a mother prepares her home and heart to welcome her oldest daughter and significant over for dinner. Through such
preparation the mother realizes that while both her daughters have changed and grown in appearance their ideals are changing as well. Maggie and Dee are both polar opposites despite being brought up in the same home. During the visit, the oldest daughter seeks to protect and preserves the family’s tradition and history via items and materials. The family navigates through
the miscommunication of the purpose of the visit and the mother must ensure both daughters feel
loved and supported. The story depicts the family’s history and items that hold onto that history, such as the grandmother’s clothing now made into a quilt, which Dee feels is misvalued and must be taken with her so that the history can be preserved and protected. Walker, Alice. "Everyday Use." Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing, edited by X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia, 12th ed., Pearson, 2013, pp. 491-96.