Character Analysis of Dee Johnson in Everyday Use
For hundreds of years, African Americans have battled for equal rights, social equality, and their freedom. After the Civil Rights Act of 1964, black replaced the derogatory negro, and many African Americans took pride in their identity. In Alice Walkers Everyday Use Dee feels very comfortable being an African American, and tries to gain attention from others while trying to regain touch with her African roots. Everyday Use focuses on heritage and how it affects the members of Dees family differently. The family consists of Momma, and her daughters Maggie and Dee. In Everyday Use Dee tries to get closer to her culture through artifacts as opposed to learning about her familys roots as African Americans.
The story takes place in the late 1960s, after the African Americans gained equality and political and social freedom. From the text, the reader can assume Dee joins the group that embraces their identity, such as the Black Nationalism, which before the Civil Rights Movement would have been oppressed because of their identities. Dee becomes a member of this group in hopes of gaining as much attention as the group itself has been receiving. When she joins this group, Dee feels the need to reconnect with her culture. Unfortunately, the way Dee tries to re-link herself with the African ideology only leaves her further away from her familys heritage. From the beginning, the author portrays Dee as a beautiful but selfish girl who conceited and thrives off attention. Dees sister Maggie is described as being more restrained, and intimidated by her sisters success. The feeling of intimidation sets up the tone of the story and displays the significance of how Dees character affects her sister and mother.
Throughout the story, it becomes clear that Dee thrives off the attention of others. One way she does this is by becoming the first member of her family to go to college. Dee feels superior by being blessed with beauty and brains. From the beginning the relationship between Dee and her mother is obvious when Momma explains I will wait for her in the yard that Maggie and I made so clean and wavy yesterday afternoon(Walker 163) while she prepares the yard for Dees return from college. If Momma and Maggie were close, they would not feel uneasy about Dees visit and would not feel the need to impress her with a polished front lawn. When Dee arrives, she immediately starts taking photos of her house, family, and farm, then she puts the Polaroid in the back seat of the car, and comes up and kisses me on the forehead(164). Her motive is to document where she comes from, so she can show her new peers she is a true rags-to-riches story. In return, this makes her sister and mother feel as if they were in a documentary. Although she is the first in the family to go to college, Dee is the least educated on her heritage.
As the story progresses, Dees character becomes more complex. After her arrival, Dee informs her family she has changed her name to Wangero Leewankika Kemanjo, and then introduces her new boyfriend, Asalamalakim. Momma is quick to enlighten Dee that her name originated from her aunt and grandma. Momma also states, Though, in fact, I probably could have carried it back beyond the Civil War through the branches(164). Although her name was passed down from generations Wangero identifies herself with an idealized African culture. Dee feels the African name is more fitting, mindlessly throwing away the history and true heritage her grandma represents. When her family asks her why she changed her name, she replies, Shes deadI couldnt bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me(164). Dee makes it very clear she is ashamed of who she is, and where she came from. In return makes herself a new, more authentic heritage. She tries to connect herself with a superficial African culture while putting down Momma and the rest of their familys heritage.
The Johnsons home is filled with rich heritage that goes back generations. Their home is filled with the history of the struggles her family has encountered being African Americans. One of these artifacts is a butter dish that belonged to her Grandma Dee. Thats it! I knew there was something I wanted to ask you if I could have(165). Dee gets very excited to find something she can take back with her to college. In the story, this is when you start to see Dee is very materialistic. First she wants to have photos, then the butter dish. Being clueless of what her family has been through, Dee believes that by having these items it will bring her closer to her heritage.
As the story continues, Dee finds more things to bring back to college with her that will make her appear to have a thicker culture. At the end of Mommas bed, a chest holds the familys quilts from generations before, and Dee wants to display them. Momma states I has offered Dee a quilt when she went away to college. Then she has told me they were old-fashioned(166). This proves Dee is materialistic, and now that the quilts are popular, she wants them for the purpose of drawing attention from her peers. Since Dee turned them down before, Momma had planned on giving the quilts to Maggie. Hearing this, Dee becomes furious. Dees motive is not to learn her heritage but to have artifacts to exhibit to others so they think she is more cultured. Dee is more concerned with having a fake, exhilarating, idealized culture than what her family has created for her.
In the story Everyday Use Dee wants to use materialistic items to showcase to others her culture rather than learning her familys roots. She changes her name, documents her family and home, and tries to get the familys quilts, but none of this had made her closer to her family. The story ends with Momma directly telling Dee she knows nothing about her heritage. Momma and Maggie saw right through her and uncovered her poor motives. Dee is carefree about the struggles her family faced by being African American and just wanted to impress others. Even though Dee goes to college and proves to be book-smart, she continuously insults her family by being oblivious to her familys past.
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