Characters in Everyday Use Essay

Sisters with nothing in common, but mothers Love

In the short story of Everyday use the Author Alice Walker uses ther First-person approach to tell her story about her two daughters Maggie and Dee. The character of Dee Johnson in this short story was made very witty. Walker from the first paragraph, makes an image of Dee, who at first seems very shallow. Dee then becomes a more complex character as the story progresses. Born and blessed with both brains and beauty, she appears as someone who is still struggling with her identity and heritage.

Dee is a regular person, who is described as kind of conceited and selfish. Through the eyes of Dee, one can see her egotistical nature. Dee is portrayed as a light-skinned black girl who feels as though she is better than everyone else because she is beautiful and she has held life in the palm of her hand, that no is a word the wold would never leaned to say to her. she is also well educated, unlike her sister Maggie. Although she may be educated when it comes to college, she is not educated with her family heritage. For the most part, Dee believes that she is too good for her family. She wrote to her mother saying no matter where we choose to live, I will manage to come see us. From this quote, it is obvious that Dee is ashamed of her familys home. Dee is also ashamed of her named saying I couldnt bear it anymore, being named after the people who oppress me. So she changed her name to Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo.

Dee is completely to herself to much and unthankful for what her mother sacrificed for her. Her mother had worked long and hard to raise her daughters, and was able to get Dee into a college. However she returns home from college with an education and new personality by trying to preach to her mother and sister about what they are doing wrong and trying to take with her back home some items that were in the house without a care for her sister Maggie.