When Dee tells her mother, You just don t understand the statement shows the reader that

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Be Proud of the Heritage you were Born into!

Audience: Whoever has read “Everyday Use” and has an opinion on Dee’s view towards heritage
Subject: Dee’s perspective of her heritage
Purpose: To make a point on how Dee is embarrassed of her heritage

“You don’t understand,” she said, as Maggie and I came out to the car. “What don’t I understand?” I wanted to know. “Your heritage,” she said. And then she turned to Maggie, kissed her, and said, “You ought to try to make something of yourself, too, Maggie. It’s really a new day for us. But from the way you and Mama still live you’d never know it.” (Walker13)
These were the last words Dee spoke to her family before she walked away, got in the car, and drove. Throughout the discussion of the short story “Everyday Use” by Alice walker many topics are touched upon one including if Dee is embarrassed of her heritage, where she comes from, her roots. While reading Everyday Use, it could be said that Dee was embarrassed of her heritage; three main points prove her dislike of her culture: she left the place she was born, she changed her name, and she has a unique attitude towards the artifacts her family owns.
From the start of Everyday use, a reader realizes that Dee, the older daughter, is not really in the picture. Dee at this point is off somewhere in Augusta, Georgia obtaining an education. Mama, the narrator of the story, really doesn’t go into depth in explaining if Dee obtaining an education is good or not, but she does go into detail of how she feels Dee sees her family and background. “She had hated the house that much.” (Walker 7) Through these words Mama describes the burning of their past house, the family now lives in their 2nd house, and it seems that Mama believes that De...

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...round behind, when she decided to change her name she broke a pattern and a symbol that meant a lot to her family, and when she tried to define what exactly a quilt or any aftifact as a matter fact should be used she made it look like her mother and sister really didn’t know anything or at least not as much as she though. When she told her sister to make something of herself and that Maggie might not be something big at all because of the way she lived it showed that Dee was embarrassed or at least trying to not look but on how she was raised. Dee's decisions to move, to change her name, to not know how to quilt, an important task her whole family including Maggie knew how to do, and failure to be interested in the actual people who made these artifacts are all good points in proving Dee's lack of desire to carry on her family's heritage, to be proud of her roots.

The point of view in the story “Everyday Use,” by Alice Walker plays a big part. Throughout the story, one of Mama’s daughters came to visit. The way Mama and Maggie see her is not in a very pleasant way. In fact, they are scared to tell her no when it comes to anything. From Mama’s perspective Dee seems like this rude, stuck up, spoiled child because she had the opportunity to go out and expand her education, while Mama and Maggie continued to live their lives on the farm. On the other hand, if the point of view was switched to Dee, the way the reader views her, has a possibility of changing. Throughout the story, the speaker, which is Mama, is recalling when Dee came to visit. When the point of view of the story changes and is then told from Dee’s point of view, you are now able to have access to the thoughts she has throughout this visit. In an article about point of view, the author stated, “For example,…show more content…
When you look at it from Dee’s point of few she just seems to be pushing her family to expand their education and have a better life. Dee doesn’t want her family on a farm and raising cattle because that isn’t what she likes. She has an open mind about things and sees them as more than just what they are used for, hence the title, “Everyday Use.” Dee may seem like a rude, spoiled girl, but looking at it from her perspective, all she wants is for her family to live the way she does. Changing the point of view from Mama to Dee would make a major difference. Looking at the story with Dee telling it would allow access to her thoughts so that the reader can understand why she is the way she is. It would allow the reader to access the deeper meaning to certain actions she takes and why she says the things she says. The point of view in a story determines so much for the reader including their feelings towards a certain character, in this case,

How does Dee View her mother and sister?

Why does the mother finally decide to give the quilts to Maggie instead of Dee?

What is the best explanation provided in the story for Dee's having changed her name to Wangero?

What is ironic about Dee's connection to her heritage?