Maggie: Character Analysis

The short narrative story of ‘Everyday Use’ by Alice Walker introduces us to the main character of this story Maggie. This story is about the unidentified person waiting for Maggie back in the yard, which was cleaned the previous day. Moreover, the author takes me on a short tour of the yard, for it was not just the typical average yard but an extension of the living room, whose floor was smooth, elegant, and sparking thanks to the thorough cleaning. The yard is also decorated by sand along the edges of the tiny, irregular grooves. Any person who comes and sits down on the lawns will be left with admiration for this breathtaking and serene environment, as one enjoys the cool breeze coming from the house. The author introduces Maggie as a shy and nervous girl who is deeply ashamed of the scars she got due to burning.  Movers Maggie doesn’t trust the company of other persons but just her sister alone. In her sister’s absence, Mais portrayed as hopeless and slightly jealous of her sister. Maggie believes that the burns inflicted on her robbed her basis to enjoy life just as her sister does. To her, her sister seems to be enjoying life to the extent that she cannot resist an invitation to make her enjoy her life. (Walker,1994).

            One aspect I picked from this story is resilience. Both the narrator and Maggie stood out to be resilient despite the hardships they are facing. In the current world, people usually are met with a myriad of issues. Therefore to overcome these issues, one must possess the life survival trait of resilience. In essence, adaptability is key to surviving in this harsh and unforgiving world. Maggie is resilient, and she has the will to live despite the pains and deformations inflicted on her body more so her hands and legs by the burns. Even though she is ashamed of herself, she still has the courage and energy to ask her mother how she looks when she wears her pink and red blouse. (Walker,1994). On most occasions, people who are bogged down by deformity tend to lose morale and give up on their fate. However, this has not been the case with Maggie.

 Secondly, from the narrator’s account, she poses a resilient trait when she avers that she has to work hard to survive. She describes herself as a big-boned woman who has to overcome the cold and unforgiving winter weather as she scouts for food. She has the resilience of a man. Therefore she can kill a hog just like a man would; she can also cook and eat pork’s liver cooked over an open fire. Besides, she recalls one incident which happened, one winter. She narrates how she was able to singlehandedly knock out a bull calf in the brain, while only armed with a sledgehammer.  This was a heroic act that can only be done by women who possess a resilient trait. She went further to slaughter the bull calf alone and hung the meat just before the night fell. (Walker,1994).

 Thirdly, the need to live her real life and not the one she fantasizes about in her dream and driven by the passion and love she would like her daughter to see her live her own life. She describes herself as weighing less than a hundred pounds, her sun-scorched skin resembling uncooked barley pancake, and lastly that her hair glistens when subjected to hot and bright lights .without being resilient,  she could not have had the courage to describe her real self as she did. Most importantly, she needs to stop living in her dreamland fantasies where she is charmed by Johnny Carson’s of this world but to wake up and face the realities of life that await her.

  Finally, I genuinely appreciate this short story by Alice Walker. I find this story not only to be interesting to read but very educative, more so on life survival tips. From this story, I can conclude that resilience is an essential trait. Going by the author’s narrations and the conduct of the actors mentioned, adaptability is key to success and survival. Had they not been resilient enough, both Maggie and her mum could not survive the harsh realities of the world. I also found the story to be exciting and captivating and motivating to read. The author employed stylistic devices, making the story more eye-catching and captivating the reader’s mind. Everyday Use by Alice Walker is a masterpiece worth investing your time and money in a nutshell.