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Everyday Use Literary Analysis

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We all come from different background. We all have a different story about our ancestors and heritage. In the short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, Dee felt the need to go on a quest to embrace her roots. Dee’s actions symbolize that she wants to embrace her African culture. Dee does several things in order to connect with her roots by changing her appearance, changing her name, and wanting a family quilt.
The short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker takes place around the 1970s. Mama is the mother of two girls named Maggie and Dee. The two daughter are expressed with two different personalities. Maggie is a shy girl that was of the burn mark she experienced when there caught on fire when she was 12 years-old. Dee was able to have …show more content…

This event takes place when Mama and Dee are having a conversation. Dee response to her mom by saying , “No, Mama”. “Not Dee,’ Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo!” “What happened to Dee’?” I wanted to know. “She dead,” Wangero said. “I couldn’t beat it any longer being named after the people who oppress me,” (363). Mama continues the conversation about how Dee got her name. The name was passed on from generation to generation. When Dee states “named after the people who oppress me” she is referring that her name most likely came from a white man slave owner. During the time of slavery, the white man owner would name their slaves. Since the name Dee was passed on from generation to generation she believes that the name brings her down. The article, “Analysis Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo Dee” the author stated the reason that Dee wanted to change her name is because, “The Nation of Islam encouraged Africans to abandon their 'slave names', their leader Elijah Muhammed writes "You must remember that slave-names will keep you a slave in the eyes of the civilized world today.” I don’t agree with the quote said by Elijah Muhammed, Dee is an educated young woman that has broken the chain of oppressed. Her name shows that she, not a slave and takes the honor of all the success she has now. Unfortunately, her passed generation didn’t have the same opportunity like she did. But she can honor her ancestors by keeping

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