Reread the introduction and conclusion to the story. Why do you think Walker chose to begin and end the story in the fashion she did? What do these sections reveal about the narrator, Mama?

ANSWER FOR PLATO:
The story opens with a description of the yard, which is like “an extended living room” where “anyone can come and sit and look up into the elm tree and wait for the breezes that never come inside the house.” This description shows that Mama and her daughter Maggie share a comfortable relationship with their home and their surroundings. Maggie’s reaction to her sister who “has held life always in the palm of one hand” and is not used to hearing the word no also helps readers picture Dee.

As the story ends, a dejected and frustrated Dee chides her mother and sister for not “understanding” their heritage. She also sneers at Maggie, telling her to “make something of” herself. She doesn’t seem to realize Mama and Maggie are satisfied living in their home amid their ancestors’ heirlooms and memories and so already possess the identity that she lacks. As Mama says:

After we watched the car dust settle I asked Maggie to bring me a dip of snuff. And then the two of us sat there just enjoying, until it was time to go in the house and go to bed.

In this way, Alice Walker shows the reader that Mama understands her family tradition and heritage better than Dee does.

Hello. You forgot to mention that this question is about "Everyday Use".

Alice Walker decided to start and end the story the way she did it, to show that issues of ancestry are taken up by different people in different ways. Furthermore, it shows that, although Mama, there is no Dee in this respect, Mama's knowledge of her ancestry, race and tradition is greater and more complete than Dee's.

Explanation:

At the beginning of "Everyday Use", we are introduced to a narrative that shows a certain harmony between Mama and Maggie, in relation to their current lives. They are comfortable with their lives, with their locations and with their assets. The narrative shows that not everyone feels the same way, since it presents Dee in a more rebellious and impetuous way.

At the end of the story, the narrative no longer supports this atmosphere of harmony, as it shows Dee saddened by her situation and disgusted that her mother and sister, for not acting like her with regard to the memory of their ancestors and the identity of race they have. However, all the characters are aware of the ancestry and the weight it has in their lives, however, each one deals with it differently.

1. read the following excerpt from franklin d. roosevelt's "fireside chat 19":

on the other side of the picture, we must learn also to know that guerilla warfare against the germans in, let us say serbia or norway, us; that a successful russian offensive against the germans us; and that british successes on land or sea in any part of the world strengthen our hands.

remember always that germany and italy, regardless of any formal declaration of war, consider themselves at war with the united states at this moment just as much as they consider themselves at war with britain or russia. and germany puts all the other republics of the americas into the same category of enemies. the people of our sister republics of this hemisphere can be honored by that fact.  

the true goal we seek is far above and beyond the ugly field of battle. when we resort to force, as now we must, we are determined that this force shall be directed toward ultimate good as well as against immediate evil. we americans are not destroyers — we are builders.

analyze the effectiveness of this excerpt. how does it function within the speech as a whole? how does the structure of the excerpt to convey the speech's purpose and key points? support your argument with evidence from the speech. (10 points)

you shopuld find your answers here if you need more. the answer is the infinite variety of human nature