Everyday Use By Alice Walker Analysis

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The devil is in everyone. However, the devil does not necessarily mean a red-skinned being with horns. No, the devil is just a figure of speech. It is a figure that can be used as a metaphor for the bad things in life. Saying everyone has a bit of the devil in them brings up the relationship between good and evil. The concept of evil represents things such as change, rebellion, and temptation; the will to be different. In Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use,” Dee symbolizes the devil. First off, Dee’s character is quite controversial. She comes into the story with a change of name; she wants to be called Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo instead of Dee. With the words of “I couldn’t bare it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me,” (Walker 300) Dee is denying her heritage. By changing her name, she disconnecting herself from her ancestors. However, later in story Dee wants the quilts. By wanting the quilts, she is talking back her heritage to which she previous denied. Those quilts were made by her ancestors of whom she is trying to take out of her life. Dee believes that her ancestors oppressed her; so why would she want the quilts if she was disowning herself from her ancestors? By going back on her…show more content…
It is said that the devil has the ability to seduce those around them; beauty symbolizes that malevolent aspect. The line “At sixteen she had a style of her own, and knew what style was,” (Walker 299) lets the readers know that Dee cared about her looks. She did not want to appear as how her family was. By having her own style, she was able to get away from the poverty that her family addressed. Mama even mentions that Dee was the one who got the genes for beauty. When Dee comes back home, her appearance could have been compared to that of a model with the flowing dress and vibrant colors. Also, unlike her sister Maggie, Dee was left unharmed by the house fire. Maggie was left with scars while Dee was pristine, her beauty left to
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