Everyday Use

What does the term "everyday use" mean in this story? Why did Walker choose this as the title?

The term "everyday use" refers to the things they wear and eat on a daily basis, also their work routines. In this story the family is poor so they don't have much clothes or food to vary.
The title fits because again, they are poor and can't manage to diversify themselves.
Also, in the story when Dee tells her mother to give her the quilts, she says she's afraid of Maggie putting them to "everyday use". In this case, it means that she feels they are extremely special and should be honored and respected as opposed to being treated as a dirty rag.

How do Dee, Maggie, and Mama define heritage? Which view does Walker want us to agree with?

I think they all have their own definitions as to what "heritage" means to them.
Dee: comes off as a misguided and confused girl at first. She has a superficial understanding of her heritage but there is some passion and love behind it as well. For example: the quilt incident and the name change to "Wangero". At the same time it also seems "cliche/fake" of her.
Maggie: Right off the bat, one can see that she is clearly a good-hearted girl, simple and kind. By Maggie putting the quilt to "everyday use" she will actually represent her heritage and keep the tradition alive.
Mama: An uneducated woman, but still understands her heritage. The quilt is what keeps her connected to her ancestors. She keeps her traditions alive by maintaining true to herself, she knows she is not educated and accepts it but, is not going to stop because of that. She is a fighter, it shows through the work she does, the churning, the milking, and the landwork.
Walker, wants us to see that as much pride as Dee thinks she has Mama and Maggie clearly represent better.

Describe the setting – how does it affect the characters and story?

The time at the end of the story is around the '50s, and the setting feels like they might live on a farm. The setting helps bring out the characters true personalities. Mama does nothing but "man-work", Maggie seems a little bored and plays dress up in order to be noticed and Dee runs away to look for "bigger and better" and comes back a new woman "Wangero".

What is ironic about Dee’s name change to Wangero?

Dee chooses a name that has no connection to her family and the generations that came before her. Hakim-a-barber's difficult name shows how he has rejected his heritage, especially since he's unable to eat the collard greens and pork that are traditional foods of African Americans. It's ironic that he's shed everything about his heritage in order to "find" his identity as a Muslim.

What is the significance of certain items in the story – the butter churn, dasher, bench and quilt?

Butterchurning, has been a tradition within African Americans for years, in the story it represents all the ancestors that 'churned' in it before. It represents the ones that are gone and remains alive because, of the ones who continue to 'churn' such as Mama. The bench represents the "table" that Mama uses to skin hogs, which shows how traditions are kept and how Mama is a hord-working woman. The quilt, as mentioned before represents the connection between generations.

How would the story have changed if Mama was not the narrator?

If Dee, for example, were the narrator the audience would have probably understood her reasons more and it'd be a biased story. The mom makes the story special because, she tells it like it is. She talks about her daughters for who they truly are. She doesn't try to sugar coat there personalities and I love her for that.

Explore the final scenes in the story and discuss how the narrator changes at the end.

I love that in the final scene Mama, acknowledges that Dee was lost in the "Wangero-state-of-mind" and giving the quilt to Maggie was the best choice she had made. She knew that Dee was talking non-sense with the whole "understandig heritage" and just let her be. Finally, Maggie and her continue to stay true to who they were! : )