Everyday Use

4. Does the mother's refusal to let Dee have the quilts indicate a permanent or temporary change of character?

The mother's refusal to let Dee have the quilts does indeed indicate a permanent change of character. Before, I feel as if the mother was willing to let Dee have or do anything because she was the one that had broken away from the society. Which in the beginning, I believe the mother sees as a good thing. However, Dee seems to put herself on a different level then her mother, and sister Maggie. Dee takes the way she acts as portraying her heritage, when really she has denied everything about her heritage. In the note on the bottom of page 173 we learn that some members of the black community reject names they inherited from a period of slavery and selecting others that keep with their African heritage. To the mother, I do not believe it is her African heritage she finds important, but rather her ancestors that do relate back to the civil war. She mentions her Great Grandpa Ezra's civil war uniform. Clearly, Dee has a conflicting few of heritage than her mother. She merely wants the pieces from the house and quilts for show, not for their real use, not for how they connect to the past. Ultimately, the mother is able to make a connection with Maggie who still lives with her and understands the true meaning of heritage.