Everyday Use, written by Alice Walker is a short story told through the eyes of the character Mama. The author uses cultural symbolism throughout his work to tell the story of the struggle between a mother and her two daughters. The story takes place at Mama's during the civil rights movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s, when African Americans were struggling to define themselves and their heritage. The dialogue shows conflicting views on how their culture should be appreciated as Mama and Maggie enjoy a visit from Dee. Clear evidence of cultural and contextual symbolism is displayed through: two quilts, Mom's yard, a fire, a butter churn, and education. The main characters are Mama, who describes herself as "a tall, muscular woman with rough, hardworking hands" (paragraph 5), Maggie who was burned in a house fire and bears scars over much of her body. her body, Mama attributed it to "a lame animal, perhaps a dog run over by a careless person" (paragraph 9), and Dee was the educated sister who attended a posh school, said to be "more slight than Maggie, with prettier hair and a fuller figure” (paragraph 10), education and skin color were both symbolic of more beautiful things at the time this story was written. In Everyday Use, readers discover through the main characters, Mama, Maggie and Dee, that the perception and appreciation of heirlooms and cultural heritage can be as colorful and varied as the contrast of their skin. We discern a struggle between a mother and her two daughters, discovering that education is not synonymous with happiness and that a fair tribute to the things cherished by all should be left to those who possess them. In the story, Mom's first house burned to the ground a decade earlier. The fire is contextually seen in the middle of the paper and their backward ways when living in such a new age. This story leaves us wondering exactly what Dee's motivations were; her character was plagued by a lot of cognitive dissonance, she wants to preserve her roots but she hates her past, she is proud of the legacies of hard work like churning and dashing but she criticizes her mother and sister for living a simple life. The story encourages us to question how we should preserve and honor our own family and cultural heritage and to respect the idea that not everyone shows respect and homage in the same way. Preserving items through everyday use can be seen as a way to keep memories alive or a way to destroy the past, depending on how you see the world. Works Cited Walker, Alice. “Everyday Use (1944).” Literature: craft and voice. Flight. 1. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2010. 608-13. Print. Fiction.