Everyday Use

Who is the narrator of "Everyday Use"?

• Dee

• Maggie

• the mother

• Unidentified

"Everyday Use" is set in

• Old South Alabama

• Old South Georgia

• Old South Mississippi

• Old South Florida

What do the "quilts" represent in this story?

• They are meant to cover the marriage bed.

• They are art objects.

• They are no use to anyone but Maggie.

• They represent family and the continuity of women's relationships.

When Ms. Johnson snatches the quilts from Wangero's hands, who sits on the bed with in shock?

• Dee's friend

• Maggie

• Dee

• Aunt Dee

Which is NOT the theme of "Everyday Use"?

• Family members sometimes grow apart

• Change and transitions can cause conflicts

• People honor the past in different ways

• Integration can fix society's problems

Based on the following description of Dee, which inference can you make about her? “She used to read to us without pity; forcing words, lies, other folks’ habits, whole lives upon us two, sitting trapped and ignorant underneath her voice.”

• She knew how important it was to educate her mother and sister.

• The stories she told were meant to frighten her family and keep them awake at night.

• Dee found many ways to show her mother and sister that she was smarter than they were.

• Because she could read so well, Dee probably would make a fine teacher.

Why does Dee change her name?

• Her boyfriend decided.

• She doesn't want a "white oppressor" name.

• She doesn't like her aunt Dee.

• To make her mother angry.

What is the central conflict of Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”?

• the cultural and personal struggle between Maggie and her mom vs. Dee

• the inner conflict between Dee vs. herself on whether she should claim what is rightfully hers

• the political and racial struggle of Maggie, her mom, and Dee vs. white society

• the socioeconomic clash between the poor and the rich

What do the churn, the quilt, and the Polaroids that Dee takes best symbolize to her?

• the Black Pride movement and empowerment popular in the 1960s and the AfricanAmerican voice over those who attempt to stifle it

• her family’s hard work and support of Dee, her education, and her upbringing

• relics from her family’s past and African-American culture that should be remembered but not used

• slavery and all of the atrocities that African-Americans endured over the years

Why does Mama still refer to Dee by her preferred name (Wangero) when referencing her?

• Mama agrees with her daughter that African-Americans shouldn’t use their slave names and should all invent new names for each other

• Mama doesn’t respect her daughter’s choices and teases her by using her new name

• Mama  still respects her wishes and will call her daughter what she prefers.

• Mama uses the name to mock her daughter and criticize how different she is now.