Mother-Daughter Relationships in Short Stories
Mother-Daughter Relationships in Short Stories
There are three mother-daughter relationships found within the stories “Snapshot: Lost Lives of Women” by Amy Tan, and “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker. In “Everyday Use” there are two. The first relationship is between the timid Maggie and her passive mother. The second mother-daughter relationship is between her pushy sister and their mother. The third relationship is in “Snapshot: Lost Lives of Women,” and is between Amy Tan and her shameful mother. Although these five women all have some type of mother-daughter relationship, the relationships differ greatly in their attitudes and actions.
First, Maggie and her mother in “Everyday Use” have similar characteristics. They have neither received a good education, nor been blessed with beauty. They share similar feelings of intimidation towards Dee, Maggie’s sister. Their mother feels sorry for Maggie because she is not as pretty as Dee. Maggie and her mother enjoy doing simple things together. This is shown when their mother recalled the simple act of sitting together and says, “I asked Maggie to bring me a dip of snuff. And the two of us sat there just enjoying, until it was time to go in the house and go to bed” (Walker, 78). Maggie and her mother also share a mutual resentment towards Dee because she sees things they use everyday as outdated and decoration. Dee cannot understand that these objects are not artifacts to her sister and mother. Everyday objects that Maggie and her mother use are the quilts Dee insists upon taking home with her. Their mother has already promised Maggie the quilts as a wedding gift. Dee argues, “ ‘ Maggie can’t appreciate these quilts! …She’d probably be backward enough to put them to everyday use.’ ‘I [the mother] reckon she would…God knows I’ve been saving ‘em for long enough with nobody using ‘em. I hope she will!’ ” (77). Maggie and her mother see the quilts as objects meant for everyday use. This displays their mutual difference in character from Dee.
Secondly, Dee and her mother share an odd kind of mother-daughter relationship. Dee takes the dominating role in their relationship. Dee intimidates her mother because she is well educated. Her mother also feels intimidated by Dee because she is pretty and stylish. The quote,...