Response Essay Everyday Use By Alice Walker - 1033 Words

Student’s Name: Professor: Class: Date: Response Essay on â€Å"Everyday Use† by Alice Walker Everyday Use is a short story written by Alice Walker as part of the story collection in the book Love and Trouble: Stories of Black Women. The short story is a powerful piece of writing that takes the reader on an insightful journey into the challenges, struggles, and realities of growing up as an African woman. The main issues that are palpable throughout the story are the issues of black consciousness and the stereotypes of rural black African women. I believe that the purpose of the text is to highlight the interconnectedness of the past and the present. The author wants the reader to appreciate the struggles and challenges that Black women faced†¦show more content†¦As African Americans gained civil rights, a new generation, eager to break away from past horrors, emerged while others remained chained to the specter of past inequality and poverty. The story scrutinizes the intense tensions and trains that were created as these two conflicting worlds came together. I believe that the short story clearly presents the stereotypes of rural Black women, and the challenges and struggles that African women faced with regard to heritage, personal fulfillment, and family relations as the past collided with the present realities. The concepts of family and Black women within this short story are highlighted by the fact that the three main characters among who the story revolves are all Black women and members of the same family. The clash of the past and future, personal fulfilment, heritage struggles, and the stereotyping of rural Black women is visible in the clear contrast of attitudes and ambitions of Dee and her boyfriend, who represent the future, and mama and her daughter Maggie, who in this case embody the past. The stereotypes of rural Black women are depicted in the seemingly dilapidated state of mama’s old homestead. This is a stereotype of the poor and humble lives of the black subsistence farmers residing in the old South. Although Dee and her friend look down upon their lives, the reality is different. Mama completely owns her own reality and she is proudShow MoreRelatedNineteen Fifty-five Essay1669 Words   |  7 PagesEssay question: What message do you think Alice Walker is trying to convey in the short story Nineteen fifty-five? In Nineteen fifty-five, a short story written by Alice Walker, there seems to be a variation of different messages that she is trying to convey. As an author she relates the story to real life issues as well as using the character Gracie Mae to highlight the way in which black people have been exploited by whites. 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