everyday use essay thesis

A Summary and Analysis of Alice Walker’s ‘Everyday Use’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Everyday Use’ is one of the most popular and widely studied short stories by Alice Walker. It was first published in Harper’s Magazine in 1973 before being collected in Walker’s short-story collection In Love and Trouble .

Walker uses ‘Everyday Use’ to explore different attitudes towards Black American culture and heritage.

‘Everyday Use’: plot summary

The story is narrated in the first person by Mrs Johnson, a largeAfrican-American woman who has two daughters, Dee (the older of the two) and Maggie (the younger). Whereas Maggie, who is somewhat weak and lacking in confidence, shares many of her mother’s views, Dee is rather different.

Mrs Johnson tells us how she and the local church put together the funds to send Dee away to school to get an education. When Dee returned, she would read stories to her mother and sister. Mrs Johnson tells us she never had much of an education as her school was shut down, and although Maggie can read, her eyesight is poor and, according to her mother, is not especially clever.

Mrs Johnson also tells us how their previous house recently burned down: a house, she tells us, which Dee had never liked. Dee hasn’t yet visited her mother and sister in the new house, but she has said that when she does come she will not bring her friends with her, implying she is ashamed of where her family lives.

However, Mrs Johnson then describes Dee’s first visit to the new house. She turns up with her new partner, a short and stocky Muslim man, whom Mrs Johnson refers to as ‘Asalamalakim’, after the Muslim greeting the man speaks when he arrives (a corruption of ‘salaam aleikum’ or ‘ As-salamu alaykum ’). He later tells Mrs Johnson to call him Hakim-a-barber.

Dee then tells her mother that she is no longer known as Dee, but prefers to be called Wangero Lee-wanika Kemanjo, because she no longer wishes to bear a name derived from the white people who oppressed her and other African Americans. Her mother points out that Dee was named after her aunt, Dicie, but Dee is convinced that the name originally came from their white oppressors.

Dee/Wangero now starts to examine the objects in the house which belonged to her grandmother (who was also known as Dee), saying which ones she intends to take for herself. When Mrs Johnson tells her she is keeping the quilts for when Maggie marries John Thomas, Dee responds that her sister is so ‘backward’ she’d probably put the special quilts to ‘everyday use’, thus wearing them out to ‘rags’ in a few years.

Although Maggie resignedly lets her older sister have the quilts, when Dee moves to take them for herself, Mrs Johnson is suddenly inspired to snatch them back from her and hold Maggie close to herself, refusing to give them up to Dee and telling her to take one of the other quilts instead.

Dee leaves with Hakim-a-barber, telling her mother and Maggie that they don’t understand their own heritage. She also tells Maggie to try to make something of herself rather than remaining home with their mother. After they’ve left, Maggie and her mother sit outside until it’s time to go indoors and retire to bed.

‘Everyday Use’: analysis

The central crux of Alice Walker’s story is the difference between Dee and her mother in their perspectives and attitudes. Where Mrs Johnson, the mother of the family, sees everything in terms of the immediate family and home, Dee (or Wangero, as she renames herself) is more interested in escaping this immediate environment.

She does this first by leaving the family home and becoming romantically involved with a man of African Muslim descent. She also looks deeper into her African roots in order to understand ‘where she comes from’, as the phrase has it: not just in terms of the family’s direct lineage of daughter, mother, grandmother, and so on (Mrs Johnson’s way of looking at it, as exemplified by their discussion over the origins of Dee’s name), but in a wider, and deeper sense of African-American history and belonging.

This departure from her mother’s set of values is most neatly embodied by her change of name, rejecting the family name Dee in favour of the African name Wangero Lee-wanika Kemanjo. Names, in fact, are very important in this story: Maggie is obviously known by a European name, and ‘Johnson’, the family name borne by ‘Mama’, and thus by her daughters, doubly reinforces (John and son) the stamp of male European power on their lives and history.

Dee, too, is very much a family name: not just because it is the name the family use for the elder daughter, but because it is a name borne by numerous female members of the family going back for generations. But Dee/Wangero suspects it is ultimately, or originally, of European extraction, and wants to distance herself from this. Dee’s rejection of the immediate family’s small and somewhat parochial attitude is also embodied by the fact that she reportedly hated their old house which had recently burned down.

‘Everyday Use’ was published in 1973, and Dee’s (or Wangero’s) search for her ancestral identity through African culture and language is something which was becoming more popular among African Americans in the wake of the US civil rights movement of the 1960s.

Indeed, a productive dialogue could be had between Dee’s outlook in ‘Everyday Use’ and the arguments put forward by prominent Black American writers and activists of the 1970s such as Audre Lorde, who often wrote – in her poem ‘ A Woman Speaks ’, for example – about the ancestral African power that Black American women carry, a link to their deeper roots which should be acknowledged and cultivated.

However, Walker does some interesting things in ‘Everyday Use’ which prevent the story from being wholly celebratory off Dee’s (Wangero’s) new-found sense of self. First, she had Mrs Johnson or ‘Mama’ narrate the story, so we only see Dee from her mother’s very different perspective: we only view Dee, or Wangero, from the outside, as it were.

Second, Dee/Wangero does not conduct herself in ways which are altogether commendable: she snatches the best quilts, determined to wrest them from her mother and sister and disregarding Maggie’s strong filial links to her aunt and grandmother who taught her how to quilt. The quilt thus becomes a symbol for Maggie’s link with the previous matriarchs of the family, which Dee is attempting to sever her from.

But she is not doing this out of kindness for Maggie, despite her speech to her younger sister at the end of the story. Instead, she seems to be motivated by more selfish reasons, and asserts her naturally dominant personality and ability to control her sister in order to get her way. The very title of Walker’s story, ‘Everyday Use’, can be analysed as a sign of Dee’s dismissive and patronising attitude towards her sister and mother: to her, they don’t even know how to use a good quilt properly and her sister would just put it out for everyday use.

We can also analyse Walker’s story in terms of its use of the epiphany : a literary whereby a character in a story has a sudden moment of consciousness, or a realisation. In ‘Everyday Use’, this occurs when Mrs Johnson, seeing Maggie prepared to give up her special bridal present to her sister, gathers the courage to stand her ground and to say no to Dee. She is clearly in awe of what Dee/Wangero has become, so this moment of self-assertion – though it is also done for Maggie, too – is even more significant.

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Literary Theory and Criticism

Home › Literature › Analysis of Alice Walker’s Everyday Use

Analysis of Alice Walker’s Everyday Use

By NASRULLAH MAMBROL on May 24, 2021

Probably Alice Walker ’s most frequently anthologized story, “Everyday Use” first appeared in Walker’s collection In Love and Trouble: Stories by Black Women. Walker explores in this story a divisive issue for African Americans, one that has concerned a number of writers, Lorraine Hansberry, for instance, in her play Raisin in the Sun (1959). The issue is generational as well as cultural: In leaving home and embracing their African heritage, must adults turn their backs on their African-American background and their more traditional family members? The issue, while specifically African-American, can also be viewed as a universal one in terms of modern youth who fail to understand the values of their ancestry and of their immediate family. Walker also raises the question of naming, a complicated one for African Americans, whose ancestors were named by slaveholders.

The first-person narrator of the story is Mrs. Johnson, mother of two daughters, Maggie and Dicie, nicknamed Dee. Addressing the readers as “you,” she draws us directly into the story while she and Maggie await a visit from Dee. With deft strokes, Walker has Mrs. Johnson reveal essential information about herself and her daughters. She realistically describes herself as a big-boned, slow-tongued woman with no education and a talent for hard work and outdoor chores. When their house burned down some 12 years previous, Maggie was severely burned. Comparing Maggie to a wounded animal, her mother explains that she thinks of herself as unattractive and slow-witted, yet she is good-natured too, and preparing to marry John Thomas, an honest local man. Dee, on the other hand, attractive, educated, and self-confident, has left her home (of which she was ashamed) to forge a new and successful life.

Alice Walker/Thoughtco

When she appears, garbed in African attire, along with her long-haired friend, Asalamalakim, Dee informs her family that her new name is Wangero Leewanika Kemanio . When she explains that she can no longer bear to use the name given to her by the whites who oppressed her, her mother tries to explain that she was named for her aunt, and that the name Dicie harkens back to pre–CIVIL WAR days. Dee’s failure to honor her own family history continues in her gentrified appropriation of her mother’s butter dish and churn, both of which have a history, but both of which Dee views as quaint artifacts that she can display in her home. When Dee asks for her grandmother’s quilts, however, Mrs. Johnson speaks up: Although Maggie is willing to let Dee have them because, with her goodness and fine memory, she needs no quilts to help her remember Grandma Dee, her mother announces firmly that she intends them as a wedding gift for Maggie. Mrs. Johnson approvingly tells Dee that Maggie will put them to “everyday use” rather than hanging them on a wall.

Dee leaves in a huff, telling Maggie she ought to make something of herself. With her departure, peace returns to the house, and Mrs. Johnson and Maggie sit comfortably together, enjoying each other’s company. Although readers can sympathize with Dee’s desire to improve her own situation and to feel pride in her African heritage, Walker also makes clear that in rejecting the African-American part of that heritage, she loses a great deal. Her mother and sister, despite the lack of the success that Dee enjoys, understand the significance of family. One hopes that the next child will not feel the need to choose one side or the other but will confidently embrace both.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Walker, Alice. “Everyday Use.” In Major Writers of Short Fiction: Stories and Commentary, edited by Ann Charters. Boston: St. Martin’s, 1993, 1,282–1,299.

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An Analysis of 'Everyday Use' by Alice Walker

Appreciation, Heritage, and the Generosity of Effort

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• Ph.D., English, State University of New York at Albany
• B.A., English, Brown University

American writer and activist Alice Walker is best known for her novel " The Color Purple ," which won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. But she has written numerous other novels, stories, poems, and essays.

Her short story "Everyday Use" originally appeared in her 1973 collection, "In Love & Trouble: Stories of Black Women," and it has been widely anthologized since.

The Plot of 'Everyday Use'

The story is narrated in the first-person point of view by a mother who lives with her shy and unattractive daughter Maggie, who was scarred in a house fire as a child. They are nervously waiting for a visit from Maggie's sister Dee, to whom life has always come easy.

Dee and her companion boyfriend arrive with bold, unfamiliar clothing and hairstyles, greeting Maggie and the narrator with Muslim and African phrases. Dee announces that she has changed her name to Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo, saying that she couldn't stand to use a name from oppressors. This decision hurts her mother, who named her after a lineage of family members.

Claims Family Heirlooms

During the visit, Dee lays claim to certain family heirlooms, such as the top and dasher of a butter churn, whittled by relatives. But unlike Maggie, who uses the butter churn to make butter, Dee wants to treat them like antiques or artwork.

Dee also tries to claim some handmade quilts, and she fully assumes she'll be able to have them because she's the only one who can "appreciate" them. The mother informs Dee that she has already promised the quilts to Maggie, and also intends for the quilts to be used, not simply admired. Maggie says Dee can have them, but the mother takes the quilts out of Dee's hands and gives them to Maggie.

Chides Mother

Dee then leaves, chiding the mother for not understanding her own heritage and encouraging Maggie to "make something of yourself." After Dee is gone, Maggie and the narrator relax contentedly in the backyard.

The Heritage of Lived Experience

Dee insists that Maggie is incapable of appreciating the quilts. She exclaims, horrified, "She'd probably be backward enough to put them to everyday use." For Dee, heritage is a curiosity to be looked at—something to put on display for others to observe, as well: She plans to use the churn top and dasher as decorative items in her home, and she intends to hang the quilts on the wall "[a]s if that was the only thing you could do with quilts."

Treats Family Members Oddly

She even treats her own family members as curiosities, taking numerous photos of them. The narrator also tells us, "She never takes a shot without making sure the house is included. When a cow comes nibbling around the edge of the yard she snaps it and me and Maggie and the house."

What Dee fails to understand is that the heritage of the items she covets comes precisely from their "everyday use"—their relation to the lived experience of the people who've used them.

The narrator describes the dasher as follows:

"You didn't even have to look close to see where hands pushing the dasher up and down to make butter had left a kind of sink in the wood. In fact, there were a lot of small sinks; you could see where thumbs and fingers had sunk into the wood."

Communal Family History

Part of the beauty of the object is that it has been so frequently used, and by so many hands in the family, suggesting a communal family history that Dee seems unaware of.

The quilts, made from scraps of clothing and sewn by multiple hands, epitomize this "lived experience." They even include a small scrap from "Great Grandpa Ezra's uniform that he wore in the Civil War ," which reveals that members of Dee's family were working against "the people who oppress[ed]" them long before Dee decided to change her name.

Knows When to Quit

Unlike Dee, Maggie actually knows how to quilt. She was taught by Dee's namesakes—Grandma Dee and Big Dee—so she is a living part of the heritage that is nothing more than decoration to Dee.

For Maggie, the quilts are reminders of specific people, not of some abstract notion of heritage. "I can 'member Grandma Dee without the quilts," Maggie says to her mother when she moves to give them up. It is this statement that prompts her mother to take the quilts away from Dee and hand them to Maggie because Maggie understands their history and value so much more deeply than Dee does.

Lack of Reciprocity

Dee's real offense lies in her arrogance and condescension toward her family, not in her attempted embrace of African culture .

Her mother is initially very open-minded about the changes Dee has made. For instance, though the narrator confesses that Dee has shown up in a "dress so loud it hurts my eyes," she watches Dee walk toward her and concedes, "The dress is loose and flows, and as she walks closer, I like it."

Uses the Name 'Wangero'

The mother also shows a willingness to use the name Wangero, telling Dee, "If that's what you want us to call you, we'll call you."

But Dee doesn't really seem to want her mother's acceptance, and she definitely doesn't want to return the favor by accepting and respecting her mother's cultural traditions . She almost seems disappointed that her mother is willing to call her Wangero.

Shows Possessiveness

Dee shows possessiveness and entitlement as "her hand close[s] over Grandma Dee's butter dish" and she begins to think of objects she'd like to take. Additionally, she's convinced of her superiority over her mother and sister. For example, the mother observes Dee's companion and notices, "Every once in a while he and Wangero sent eye signals over my head."

When it turns out that Maggie knows much more about the history of the family heirlooms than Dee does, Dee belittles her by saying that her "brain is like an elephant's." The entire family considers Dee to be the educated, intelligent, quick-witted one, and so she equates Maggie's intellect with the instincts of an animal, not giving her any real credit.

Appeases Dee

Still, as the mother narrates the story, she does her best to appease Dee and refer to her as Wangero. Occasionally she calls her as "Wangero (Dee)," which emphasizes the confusion of having a new name and the effort it takes to use it (and also pokes a little fun at the grandness of Dee's gesture).

But as Dee becomes more and more selfish and difficult, the narrator starts to withdraw her generosity in accepting the new name. Instead of "Wangero (Dee)," she starts to refer to her as "Dee (Wangero)," privileging her original given name. When the mother describes snatching the quilts away from Dee, she refers to her as "Miss Wangero," suggesting that she's run out of patience with Dee's haughtiness. After that, she simply calls her Dee, fully withdrawing her gesture of support.

Needs to Feel Superior

Dee seems unable to separate her new-found cultural identity from her own long-standing need to feel superior to her mother and sister. Ironically, Dee's lack of respect for her living family members—as well as her lack of respect for the real human beings who constitute what Dee thinks of only as an abstract "heritage"—provides the clarity that allows Maggie and the mother to "appreciate" each other and their own shared heritage.

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Everyday Use

By alice walker, everyday use essay questions.

What is Alice Walker’s purpose in writing Everyday Use ?

Many critics argue that the character of Dee is modeled after Walker herself. In the 1960's, Walker, the daughter of sharecroppers, was attending university and, like Dee, felt that black Americans were finally finding their own voice. But Walker also shares traits with Maggie - a childhood accident left her self-consciously scarred and shy. Dee and Maggie are on opposite sides regarding how their identity. Dee seeks to fetishize and reject the existence that comprises Maggie's everyday world. Maggie knows the inherent value of objects beyond signifiers for a culture; she recognizes the traditions and heritage that are still active. The sisters are sides of the same coin, having opted diverging paths newly open to them in the 1960s. That Walker shares characteristics with both of her characters illustrates her aim in writing the story. While Maggie and Mama are cast in a "good" light at the end of the story and Dee comes off as selfish, Walker's women give voice to the myriad interpretations of identity in an era of Civil Rights.

What is the significance of Mama's dream, in which she reunites with Dee on a television show?

Although Mama seems to accept her reality, her day dream vignette has her conforming to a much more socially accepted definition of beauty. In her dream, Mama is light-skinned, thinner, and witty: she displays all the traits that white middle class America find desirable in a "pre-Oprah" African-American woman. It is worth noting that the woman in this dream is not a product of Mama’s own conception of beauty but rather a manifestation of what Dee would admire in a “beautiful” mother. Although Mama is anxious over the wounds Dee will reopen upon her arrival, she still has the latent desire to be accepted and respected by her eldest daughter, and the world in which Mama believes she exists.

What is the significance of Dee's taking photographs of her family when she meets them in the yard?

After she greets her family, Dee returns to the car to take out a Polaroid camera. Like a tourist on an archeological expedition, Dee takes shots of the dilapidated authenticity of her family’s home. Dee is careful to include Maggie in the peripheries of the picture, like a tacked on artifact that gives added meaning to her portrait of home. Dee is also careful to separate herself from both the pictures and the context of the pictures. Ironically, Dee's camera shots are as much a reflection of Dee’s rebuke of her culture as they are of chronicling it.

Dee/Wangero takes objects from Mama's home because she sees them as being fashionable, and insists that they are priceless items meant to be displayed rather than used. To Mama, however, these quilts serve a more practical and deeper meaning. Comment on the difference between both views.

The old quilts, butter churn, and whittled benches are living manifestations of the Johnson family past. The items are not only meant for “everyday use” but they also contain memories. Each square of old fabric on the quilt represent the lives of family and friends that have come and gone; they are a reminder of times filled with pleasure and pain, the sacred and profane. The butter churn represents the tree in Mama's sister’s yard, the whittled handles contoured with the hand shapes of people who fed the family. The pressed-in smoothness of the wooden benches represents the countless family and friends who sat at the family table. Dee wants these heirlooms as displays of art salvaged from a culture that is dead to her. Maggie and Mama, however, still use these items and, in doing so, keep their culture alive.

Is Dee a wholly unsympathetic character?

At first glance, it is easy to reject Dee as a selfish and insensitive person. Upon closer inspection, one can begin to understand the struggles that led her up to this point in her life. To become the person she is, Dee would have had to overcome many obstacles - namely, the limitations placed on her rural upbringing. Her education has opened up her world, and her success at college is certainly the product of her self-possession and tenacity. Dee is in a transitional phase between childhood and womanhood, so the pretension can be interpreted as the growing pains of maturity. Dee may be selfish, but she is no doubt driven. Ironically it is the parts of Dee’s personality that we might find objectionable that has enabled her socio- economic emancipation. Sure Dee could use a long lecture on empathy, but she was able to transcend the life that was preordained for her.

Is Mama a wholly sympathetic character?

There is much about Mama to admire. She is humble, caring, hard working and self-aware. She keeps her little farm going with the strength and determination that would put many men to shame. She has no illusions about herself or either of her daughters. Mama knows Dee lives in a world outside her own, and she knows that Maggie is destined to live a life that is similarly small. With Maggie, Mama’s pragmatism feels rather pessimistic. Throughout the story, Maggie is described in less than flattering terms. Mama describes her a “lame animal” who, although loyal and affectionate, has no strong qualities. It is even more disconcerting that Mama believes Maggie incapable of acquiring any strong qualities. Mama’s half-compliments of Dee’s natural beauty, “lighter skin”, and clever wit is juxtaposed with her comment about good looks, money, and quickness passing Maggie by. Mama has long been content - or complacent - with her lot in life and projects this same sense of fatalism onto young Maggie. According to Mama, the best Maggie can hope for is to “marry John Thomas (who has mossy teeth in an earnest face).” Much like Dee, Mama’s limitations help shape her strengths, but she has trouble seeing beyond her front yard.

Would you characterize Mama as a dynamic character in the story?

Mama has spent her life in the shadow of her own daughter. She has recognized that Dee’s looks, intelligence, and drive will allow her to surpass her upbringing. She has stood by when Dee has objectified and insulted both her and Maggie with condescending remarks and called them ignorant. Dee's homecoming inspires nervous anxiety rather than joyful anticipation. When Dee finally shows up, she is much like an amplified version of her spoiled self. Dee’s dismissal of Mama’s lifestyle and objectification of the items needed for “everyday use” puts Dee into final perspective for Mama. Critic David White argues that “Mama’s pride in the practical aspects of her nature” means that she has not contemplated “abstract concepts such as heritage". Mama knows she has always been refused access into this world and hence knows when she is being manipulated.

Dee’s insistence on acquiring the quilts that are meant for Maggie finally pushes Mama to react. Mama rebukes Dee in the way she should have many years ago - by calling out her immaturity and shifting her care to Maggie. For Mama, the quilts represent both a practical and emotional consciousness that she refuses to let be compromised. Thus, Mama becomes a dynamic character through the changing relationships with her daughters.

What effect does the story being told in first person have on the narrative?

Everyday Use is told in Mama's voice. The reader never learns her name, only her familial title as Dee and Maggie call her. This gives Mama an authority earned through wisdom, age, and position as matriarch. However, her namelessness also strips Mama of identity beyond that which is defined by the home. The first person narration allows the reader to get inside the head of the protagonist, but the narrative is also skewed by that character's thoughts and feelings. We glean that Mama is matter-of-fact in how she describes herself, almost as an omniscient narrator would. We understand the fraught relationship with Dee via Mama's fantasy of being on Johnny Carson's show. These glimpses allow the reader to understand Mama through her thoughts rather judging her based on appearances, or how others see her - but it also colors how we view Dee (dynamic, selfish) and Maggie (sweet, slow). At first, Mama is a passive observer allowing her story - and her daughters' lives - to unfold around her. However, as Dee brings the larger, changing world to her doorstep, Mama becomes a fully realized person in her reaction to Dee's fetishizing their heritage. Throughout, the reader never loses sight of Mama because her voice is the story.

Even though Everyday Use was written over 40 years ago, does it still have relevance today?

Race and racial identity will always be a prevailing theme in American literature despite the increasingly diverse makeup of the populace. The dichotomy between preserving heritage while driving towards an evolving identity is a constant struggle between the past and the future. The artifacts that Dee wishes to collect would now no longer be in everyday use, signaling that the recent past has always been, and will always be, displaced through technological advances. But just as constant are the cultures and traditions that are carried forth through generations. While Dee's story has a very concrete time and place (the Civil Rights era), the Johnson family story is one that can be played out through the future, and the relevance of one's search for identity is perennial.

Everyday Use Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Everyday Use is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Everyday Use by Alice Walker

From the text:

I never had an education myself. After second grade the school was closed down.

In paragraphs 61-72, how does the conversation between Dee and Mama about the quilts develop the theme?

I'm sorry, please provide the text in question.

I saw my brother sneaking out of my room, his (1) movements slow and silent. When he saw me the poor kid was flinching, practically (2) under my gaze. "I was just looking at your CDs," he told me. At least he admitted he had been (3) _. annoyed, I decided

Is this related to the book Everyday use? What are you asking here?

Study Guide for Everyday Use

Everyday Use study guide contains a biography of Alice Walker, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Everyday Use
• Everyday Use Summary
• Character List

Essays for Everyday Use

Everyday Use essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Everyday Use.

• Identity Confusion in Alice Walker's "Everyday Use"
• The Black Empowerment Movement within Bambara's "The Lesson" and Walker's "Everyday Use"
• Pride and Heritage in “Everyday Use”
• "Everyday Use" from an Antipatriarchal Perspective
• A Comparison of Dee and Mathilde

Wikipedia Entries for Everyday Use

• Introduction

Thesis: Vasectomy: Goals, Practices, and Effects

Editor's note:

Cole Nichols defended his Barrett Honors College thesis entitled, "Vasectomy: Goals, Practices, and Effects" in Spring 2023 in front of committee members Jane Maienschein and Dina Ziganshina.  https://keep.lib.asu.edu/items/184626

Vasectomy is one of few widely available methods of contraception for people with male reproductive systems aside from condoms, abstinence, and the withdrawal method, and it is the only one of those options that can be permanent (Amory 2016). The procedure’s prominence has led me to investigate the history of vasectomy and particularly the evolution in vasectomy technique over time. Since its introduction in the late nineteenth century, the procedure has had a variety of impacts on many people across the world. In this research project, I have sought to analyze what the technical evolution of vasectomy reveals about the changing priorities of the medical systems that use it. In particular, I point to ways the eugenics movement’s attempts to control individual reproduction have led to both vasectomy’s efficacy and its restrictiveness.

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2. Perfect Essay Writer

Perfect Essay Writer is another website that provides a host of writing, grammar, plagiarism checking , citations , paragraphs, and other tools. It also offers professional essay writing services tailored to individual needs. 

The free plan gives users access to all the tools but with certain word count limitations. The paid versions, Basic, Pro, and Advanced, cost $9.99/month, $14.99/month, and $99.99/year. The Basic plan includes access to “AI Essay Writer” and “AI Essay Outliner”. 

Ahrefs is a widely used search engine optimization (SEO) toolset, with multiple features and services being made available to users. While the outline generator looks like it is built for blogs, it can generate outlines for all kinds of content, including academic papers, presentations, etc. 

The company focuses on content creation and has 4 different plans—Lite, Standard, Advanced, and Enterprise costing $129/month, $249/month, $449/month, and $14,999/year, respectively. 

4. MyEssayWriter.ai

This is an AI-powered essay writing assistant that offers essay outlines tailored to specific topics. The platform offers an artificial intelligence-based essay outline generator. 

It is a focused essay outline writing tool that generates essay outlines in minutes. This free outline generator for essays is easy to use. 

5. Custom-Writing.org

Custom-Writing.org provides personalized writing services for academic needs, comprising essays, term papers, research papers, reports, letters, etc. You can also get custom essays written on this platform. Their 24/7 customer support makes getting queries resolved easy. 

Pricing is based on the complexity and assignment deadline, with rates starting at approximately $12 per page.

6. EssayService.ai

This is a user-friendly platform that offers various tools to improve essay quality. It offers grammar feedback and input on tone and style. It gives multiple essay generation options, with a free essay outline generator for users.

The platform also offers a paid essay writing service. 

This is an AI writing tool offering multiple options for content generation, including essay generation. It allows you to create essay outlines and AI-generated essays in no time. Rytr has a paragraph generator, too, which can help with essay outlines. 

The free version allows you to generate 10K characters per month. To access advanced features, users will be required to opt for paid services. 

8. Writesonic

This is a content-creation tool, but it offers essay-writing features as well. It can generate essay outlines based on your input. The platform assures users that the content it generates is plagiarism-free. 

The free version is quite effective as it offers all the features of Writesonic.

9. Writing Lab

Writing Lab’s essay outline generator is a useful essay outline generator. When you input your essay topic, it suggests ideas and creates an organized outline. This is a great tool to brainstorm, structure your thoughts, and save time while submitting time-sensitive assignments. 

This essay outline generator also gives you grammar suggestions. The only drawback of using this tool is that it offers limited free services. 

This AI outline generator is a user-friendly tool that can help you quickly draft great essays. It can create structured outlines for various content forms, including essays. It is ideal for those struggling with organizing the content in their essays and maintaining consistency in writing. 

The “Basic” user plan starts at $49 per user per month, but the free version might just be sufficient if you are a student. 

How to use an essay outline generator

Learning how to use an essay outline generator can come in handy, particularly when you need to create a well-thought-out outline and save time while writing. 

So here’s a quick step-by-step guide on how to use an essay outline generator: 

• Identify the requirements: Outline the requirements to determine the nature and content of your prompt for the tool. Identify the essay type , length, word count, tone, title options, and other topic-specific requirements. 
• Choose an AI tool: Now, select an AI essay outline generator. Consider reviews while making this decision. You can select multiple free tools to get essay outline options. Some platforms offer subscription-based services, but free tools will get the job done. 
• Input the relevant information: Most platforms ask to input information like essay type, length, purpose, academic level, word count, etc.
• Adjust, modify, or refine the input: Once you generate an outline, check if it meets your needs. If not, change or adjust the input details to create suitable outline ideas. 
• Finalize an outline: Study the outline/s and finalize one that incorporates the best ideas. From here, you are all set to start drafting your essay. 

Benefits of using an essay outline generator

Essay outline generators familiarize people at various proficiency levels with different essay structures and writing styles . Let us go a little deeper keeping this thought in sight and understand the benefits of using an essay generator.

• New idea generation or incorporation: Using an essay outline generator, you can develop new ideas and make your essay insightful.
• Idea development and review: With a meticulously designed outline and quick reviews, incorporating ideas, research points, facts, and other relevant information is easy. 
• Strong premise creation: These tools help you create logical arguments and include well-founded statements, giving your essay a solid body and direction. 
• Efficiency: Essay writing becomes efficient with a structure in place. 
• Free templates: Essay writing can be simplified further using free templates . You can save the time and effort required to format your document well. 

Also read: Compare and Contrast Essay | Quick Guide with Examples

So, these are some reasons why you should consider using an AI essay outline generator online. 

There is no doubt that this tool helps write impressive essays. However, it is advisable to use these tools as a writing aid rather than a crutch. We recommend the use of free essay outline generators and essay writers to spruce up the content of your essay that might just help you get that otherwise elusive grade A. 

If you think your essay needs a professional review, explore PaperTrue’s essay editing and proofreading services . 

You might find the following articles helpful:

• Essential Research Tips for Essay Writing
• Top 10 Essay Editing Services of 2024
• College Essay Format: Tips, Examples, and Free Template
• 100 Best College Essay Topics & How to Pick the Perfect One!
• Guide to Essay Editing: Methods, Tips, & Examples

Frequently Asked Questions

Can an argumentative essay outline generator create a detailed outline with multiple headings, can essay outline generators be used in conjunction with free essay templates, can i customize an outline generated by free ai essay outline generators.

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Hero Essay: Who Is a Hero and How to Write About Heroes

In academic writing, few topics are as inspiring and thought-provoking as the hero essay. A hero essay lets us think about what makes someone a hero and why they matter to us or the world. You might write about someone from history, a person making a difference today, or even a made-up character from a story. Writing an exceptional hero essay takes some thought and planning, but it can be a great way to share your ideas.

What is a Hero Essay?

A hero essay is a piece of writing that looks at what it means to be a hero. It usually focuses on one person who shows heroic qualities. The goal is to explain why this person is a hero by looking at what they've done, what kind of person they are, and how they've helped others.

How to Write a Great Story About Your Hero

To write a really good hero story, you need to plan it out. Here's how you can do it:

• Pick your hero: Choose someone you really look up to, real or made-up.
• Do your homework: Learn all you can about your hero's life, what they've done, and what problems they've faced.
• Find their best qualities: Figure out what makes this person heroic.
• Make your main point: Clearly say why you think this person is a hero.
• Plan your essay: Organize your ideas into a beginning, middle, and end.
• Use clear examples: Show how your hero acted in heroic ways.
• Think about their effect: Talk about how your hero has helped other people or made the world better.

When you're thinking about how to describe a hero, look at both what they do and who they are inside. What makes them want to help others? How do they inspire people? Asking these questions can help you paint a full picture of your hero.

To organize these complex character traits and their manifestations, consider using Aithor to map out your hero's qualities and their corresponding actions.

How to Make a Good Outline for My Hero Essay

A good outline helps you organize your essay. Here's a way you could set up your hero essay:

• Start with something interesting to get the reader's attention
• Give a little background about your hero
• State your main idea about why they're a hero
• Describe what makes them heroic and give examples
• Talk about the big things they've done
• Discuss the hard things they've faced and how they dealt with them
• Explain how the hero has made a difference for people or the world
• Sum up your main points
• Remind the reader why this person is a hero
• End with something to make the reader think

You can change this outline to fit your hero's story better if you need to.

Ideas for Writing a Great Paper About Your Hero

Picking the right person and topic for your hero essay can make a big difference. Here are some ideas to consider:

• Unexpected heroes: Write about someone who isn't what most people think of as a hero but who has made a big difference.
• Personal heroes: Talk about someone close to you, like a family member or community member, who you think is a hero.
• Everyday heroes: Focus on people who do small, kind things that add up to big changes.
• Historical heroes: Look at how someone from history still matters today.
• Anti-heroes: Write about people who do good things in ways that aren't always simple or easy to understand.

When thinking about how to start a hero story, you might want to begin with an important moment in your hero's life. This can get the reader interested right away.

Tips on How to Write a Hero Story

To push your hero essay from good to great, try these tips:

• Start strong: Get the reader's attention with a strong first sentence or a short story.
• Show, don't tell: Use words that help the reader picture what your hero did.
• Balance praise with reality: Talk about your hero's mistakes too, to make them seem more real.
• Give clear examples: Use specific stories to show why your hero is heroic.
• Incorporate dialogue: If you can, include things your hero or others have said.
• Show how they've changed: Talk about how your hero has grown over time. 
• Share what we can learn: Discuss what others can learn from your hero.

When pondering how do you spell heroic, remember that it's not just about spelling it right. It's about using words that show why your hero is special. Use words that show you admire them, but don't go overboard.

Aithor can help you choose the right words and spell them correctly so your writing strikes the right balance between eloquence and authenticity.

Hero Essay Examples to Read

Reading other people's hero essays can give you good ideas for your own. Here's a short excerpt of a student's essay about their personal hero:

When I think about heroes, I don't think about people with capes or superpowers. Instead, I think about my mom coming home tired from her night shift at the hospital. She's been a nurse for as long as I can remember, and it's a hard job.

I remember one time when I was about 10 and really sick. Mom had just worked two shifts in a row. She must have been so tired, but she still sat by my bed. She put a cool cloth on my forehead and told me funny stories to help me feel better. When she tucked me in that night, her eyes looked sleepy, but she still smiled. She brushed my hair back and said quietly, "We'll get through this together, sweetie."

That's just how my mom is. She's not perfect - she often burns toast, and sometimes she gets too into her favorite TV shows. But her kindness and hard work are real. She might stay late at work to help a scared patient or volunteer at the animal shelter on her days off. Mom taught me that being a hero isn't about doing big, flashy things. It's about showing up, being kind, and making things better in your own small way. To me, that makes her the biggest hero I know.

Final Words

Writing a hero essay helps you understand what makes someone a hero and gives you the opportunity to discuss people who inspire you. If you choose your subject carefully, plan your essay well, and use clear examples, you can write a story that really means something to people who read it.

Remember, the best hero essays do more than just say nice things about someone. They help us understand what it really means to be heroic. As you start writing, try using writing tools like Aithor to help you organize your ideas and focus on telling your hero's story clearly and powerfully. From outlining to final edits, Aithor's comprehensive features support every stage of writing your perfect hero essay.

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91 Everyday Use Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

👍 7 simple steps to a+ essay on everyday use, 🏆 best everyday use topic ideas & essay examples, 📌 interesting topics to write about everyday use, 👍 good essay topics on everyday use, ❓ everyday use essay questions.

Writing an Everyday Use essay can be a tough task if you don’t know the seven simple steps to an A+ paper. IvyPanda experts prepared a simple guide to ace your Alice Walker paper.

If you have writer’s block, procrastinate, and postpone your written assignments to the last day before the submission deadline, we suggest you to divide the task into small chunks:

• Determine the type of essay and learn its features
• Pick up Everyday Use essay topic
• Do your research on the chosen topic
• Write a thesis statement

Create Everyday Use essay outline

• Work on your paper
• Proofread and edit the essay

Determine the Essay Type

Your professor might assign you to write a certain type of essay on Alice Walker novel. For example, compare and contrast paper or literary analysis (don’t confuse it with literary summary!), persuasive essay on women empowerment, argumentative essay on family heritage, etc. Or you have the freedom to choose the paper type.

Learn more about various types of essays to know what you’re going to write. Depending on it, you will narrow your research and easy decide on structure of your paper.

Don’t forget to carefully read the professor’s instructions!

Choose the Essay Topic

Brainstorm ideas you can use as a base for your future research and writing. Active reading techniques would help you to determine some points in the novel that you can use in the essay.

Make notes and write ideas that come to mind while you read the book. After you’ve finished, check your notes, and write down Everyday Use essay questions that you would like to answer in the paper.

Once you’ve created a list of topics, it’s time to narrow your focus and choose the best one. Leave only one main point for research.

Do Your Research

Once you’ve chosen the essay topic, it’s time to do your research. Read critical reviews on the novel, check our Everyday Use essay topics to get examples of papers on Alice Walker’s books. Remember to keep notes so it would be easier for to refer and to cite the sources.

Master Your Everyday Use Essay Thesis

Here’s what you should keep in mind when creating your thesis:

• Thesis statement should reflect the key point of your paper.
• It should be one sentence.
• Use it in the introductory paragraph.
• Make broad enough.

If you need some ideas on how to write good thesis statements, you can always check IvyPanda essay examples. You can also use online thesis generators.

The next step you should make after you’ve finished the thesis is to master your outline.

It will help you to structure the paper. Put only one idea per paragraph and avoid overloading your body sections with too many arguments and evidence.

Make sure that you included transition sentences to keep the logical flow of the paper.

Write Everyday Use Essay

Once you’ve finished an outline, start writing! The more detailed your outline, the easier will be the writing process. Always ensure that you writing is clear and consistent. Check if you stick to the structure.

Write a strong Everyday Use essay conclusion. Restate your thesis and summarize ideas you presented in the paper’s body. You can work on the intro after the entire essay is already finished.

Proofread Your Paper

Some students underestimate the importance of the revision. However, don’t skip this step. Check it for punctuation, grammar, spelling mistakes and typos. You can also ask your friends or classmates to proofread your essay.

Are you finding it hard to express your points clearly in your Everyday Use essay? Check our variety of samples, written by professionals!

• “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker Critical Analysis By the use of the technique of contrasting the characters and their opinions in the story, the author succeeds in demonstrating the significance of comprehending our present life in relation to the culture that our […]
• Cultural Identity and Heritage in the “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker In the broad context, Walker designs the story to underscore the conflict that African Americans faced concerning their cultural identity and heritage after the abolition of slavery.
• Everyday Use by Alice Walker The two hand-stitched quilts draw attention and become the center of conflict in the family of Mama and her two daughters.
• Literary Devices of “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker The plot tells about the lives of a single mother and her two daughters, Dee and Maggie. The latter is further illustrated through Wangero visiting her mother with her partner and addressing the topic in […]
• “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker This study therefore identifies there points; in that, Walker seeks to convey the principle that art is a living and breathing part of its origin, a significant cultural possession, and a critique of the postmodern […]
• “Everyday Use” Short Story by Alice Walker Despite Dee’s overwhelming presence, Maggie is the first girl to be introduced in the story as it is she who has apparently helped her mother to make the yard “so clean and wavy yesterday afternoon….
• Literature Studies: ‘Everyday Use’ by Alice Walker On the arrival of her sister- Dee, she was not coming in the courtyard to her mother to greet and welcome her sister.
• The Short Stories “Everyday Use” by Walker and “A Worn Path” by Welty Despite coming from different backgrounds and are placed in different settings, Phoenix Jackson and Mrs. Though Phoenix Jackson and Mrs.
• Cultural Identity: “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker One of the instances of elements of life associated with identity is music. As such, blues music is not particularly popular throughout America, yet it remains a significant part and a distinctive aspect of the […]
• Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues” and Walker’s “Everyday Use” Analysis The narrative’s main focus was on the family’s relationships, trials, and the never-ending cycle of pain. The storyteller is Sonny’s brother, and the setting occurred in a rural region of Harlem, New York, in the […]
• Stories “Girl” by Kincaid vs. “Everyday Use” by Walker In my opinion, in both Walker’s and Kincaid’s stories, there are the three themes of mother-daughter relationships, economic struggles, and societal expectations. In the case of Girl, the conflict is based on the concerns the […]
• The Theme of Education in “Everyday Use” by Walker and “Sonny’s Blues” by Baldwin Initially, in both stories, the authors emphasize the success linked to education and the necessity of school attendance. Back in time, education might create a delusion about one’s intelligence, overstating the significance of existing knowledge […]
• “Everyday Use”: Differences Between Mama and Her Daughters To be more exact, the author focuses on the problem from the African-American people’s side. Overall, Maggie seems indeed similar to her mother, and they do share numerous identical features; however, Dicie is obviously more […]
• The Mood in “Everyday Use” by A. Walker From the beginning of the narrative, a sense of antipathy is observed between the main character and Maggie. The gloominess of the fiction is mainly highlighted by hardships and the dramatic visions of the narrator.
• “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker and “The Story of an Hour” by Chopin Dee, although she is not the only main character, is the drive that pushes the story forward, and the narrative unfolds with her arrival.
• Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour”, Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”, and Walker’s “Everyday Use” It is remarkable that the language of The Story of An Hour speaks for the feelings of protagonist and the plot uncovering.
• Parent-Child Relationships in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker The more distant and fractious relationship is between the narrator and Dee. The narrator is referred to as “Mama,” and a mama she is.
• Symbolism in “Everyday Use” by Walker and “Worn Path” by Welty In the second story, the symbol of the past and something that had long gone is the woman’s path that implies the historical events of the past the value of life.
• Heritage in Walker’s “Everyday Use” Short Story This is much different from the awareness of her heritage displayed by Maggie, who lives the lifestyle alongside her mother and is more intimately aware of the stories behind each of the pieces Dee determines […]
• “Everyday Use” Story by Alice Walker As a result, she can be considered a reliable narrator as she describes both of her daughters honestly and without skipping over any of the unpleasant bit of their backgrounds such as the fire that […]
• “Saboteur” and “Everyday Use” Literary Comparison The second story describes the life of a common family in which even tenor is interrupted by the visit of one of the daughters of Mama and their different understanding of identity.
• Denial in “Everyday Use” and “Jilting of Granny Weatherall” The old woman fails to accept her jilting by her lover to her death even though she prides in having been married and fend for her family all alone after facing the death of her […]
• African-American Heritage in the “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker Dee and Maggie do not interact, it is only as the story ends that Dee speaks to her angrily as she is leaving; this ending portrays the relationship of the African and American heritages.
• Comparison of “Two Kinds” and “Everyday Use” The conflict between her new constructed culture and the tradition and culture that mama was brought up to know is an aftermath of the general mood of society after the effects of war and conflict […]
• Conflict in Everyday Use In the very beginning of the story one can already see the reason why Tuten disapproved of Dee’s actions and supported the desire of Mama and Maggie to continue with their way of life.
• Analysis of Alice Walker’s Essay “Everyday Use” in Reference to the Idea of Power and Responsibility Within Family This statement of Maggie’s inner power provokes her mother to exercise her authority and stop Dee from plundering the house which she has never respected, loved or devoted her effort to.
• Analysis of Themes and Narration in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Differences in Physical Attributes, Education, and Personalities Between Dee and Maggie in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• A Rhetorical Analysis of “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• A Literary Analysis of the Different Views in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Physical Beauty of Dee in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Relationship Between Parent and Child in Joe Johnson’s “October Sky” and Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• The Value and Purpose of Cultural Heirlooms in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• How Alice Walker Explores the Meaning of Heritage in “Everyday Use”
• The Theme of Jealousy Between Two Sisters in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• A Character Analysis of Dee Johnson in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Hidden Strength of Mama and the Fight of Tradition Against Materialism in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• Racism, Resistance, and Sacrifice in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• The Usability of Symbolism in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• Past and Present Connections: Alice Walker’s Use of First Person Point of View in “Everyday Use”
• A Comparison Between Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” and Joseph Geha’s “Monkey Business”
• The Importance of Home to a Family of Three Women in Georgia in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• Heritage and Selfishness in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• A Mother’s Important Decisions in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Importance of Tradition in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker and “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
• An Analysis of the Narrative Structure in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• Symbolic References in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Value of the Intangible in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• An Analysis of the Textile Industry in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• Lost Heritage in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• Themes of Identity Fabrication and Ethnological Heritage in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• True Inheritance in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• The Thematic Character of “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• A Psychoanalytical Reading of “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Character of Mama in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• Analysis of Patches: Quilt and Community in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• Acceptance and Denial in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• The History of Quilting Based on the Story of Quilting “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• A Critique of the Effectiveness of Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• Insecurity as the Root of Tyranny in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• A Family Heritage in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• Mother-Daughter Relationships in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• The Importance of Personal Identity in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• Theme of Heritage in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” and Aurora Levins Morales’s Poem “Child of the Americas”
• The Use of Irony in “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
• An Exploration of the Main Themes in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”
• How Are Oppression and Victory Depicted in “Everyday Use”?
• What Is the Basic Conflict in “Everyday Use”?
• How Alice Walker Explores the Meaning of Heritage in “Everyday Use”?
• What Do the Characters in “Everyday Use” Symbolize?
• What Does Dee’s Boyfriend Asalamalakim Represent in “Everyday Use”?
• Who Were the Characters in “Everyday Use”?
• How Does the Author Understand Tyranny in “Everyday Use”?
• What Does Maggie Symbolize in “Everyday Use”?
• What Do the Quilts Represent to Maggie at the End of “Everyday Use”?
• What Is the Main Theme of “Everyday Use”?
• What Is the Moral of the Story “Everyday Use”?
• What Are the Self-Defense Mechanisms in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”?
• How Does Dee Change in “Everyday Use”?
• How Is Black Woman Spirituality Imaged in Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”?
• Why Does Dee Change Her Name in “Everyday Use”?
• What Does the Term the Prodigal Daughter Mean in “Everyday Use”?
• What Is the Function of Tradition in “Everyday Use”?
• How Do Dissimilar Lives Create Different Expectations in “Everyday Use”?
• What Is the Deeper Meaning of “Everyday Use”?
• What Are the Similarities Between Maggie and Dee in “Everyday Use”?
• How Are Love and Acceptance Compared in “Everyday Use”?
• What Is Alice Walker’s Purpose in Writing “Everyday Use”?
• Is There Any Cultural Conflict in “Everyday Use”?
• What Can Story “Everyday Use” Give a Primary School Teacher?
• What Is the Significance of the Title “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker?
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IvyPanda . (2024) '91 Everyday Use Essay Topic Ideas & Examples'. 28 February.

IvyPanda . 2024. "91 Everyday Use Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." February 28, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/everyday-use-essay-examples/.

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IvyPanda . "91 Everyday Use Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." February 28, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/everyday-use-essay-examples/.

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Essays on Everyday Use

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The Point of View in "Everyday Use"

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"Everyday Use" by Alice Walker: Summary

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Comparison of Characters from Everyday Use and The Necklace

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Alice Walker

Short story

Dee, Mama, Maggie, Hakim-a-barber

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