“The Self ” and “The Other”in “Everyday Use for Your Grandmamma”

【Abstract】“The self” and “the other” are two important terminologies in the Post-Colonialism. Despite originally being two philosophical concepts， under the matching of time， they are gradually given political， economic and social connotations and implications. This paper devotes to an analysis of the relationship between “the self” and “the other” in the short story Everyday Use for Your Grandmamma by Alice Walker. It aims to make it clear of the identity of “the self” and “the other” in African-American society.

【Key Words】 “the self”； “the other”； African-American； disposition； identity

African-Americans are still living a suffering life in American society and even the worst among all races. According to some statistics， African-Americans are two times more than the white in unemployment. In addition， they accounted for twelve percent in the whole population， but forty-seven percent in prisons. What mentioned above are just two small aspects of their living conditions. They are not “the self” neither in African society nor American society， which means they are the opposition in both. So， in order to make some effect in improving their living situation， we should first pay close attention to the relationship between “the self” and “the other”.

Everyday Use for Your Grandmamma is a short story in Alice Walker’s collection In Love and Trouble： Stories of Black Women， in which she gave us a panorama of African-American women’s life and experiences.

The story is set in the rural South America in the 1960s. Mrs. Johnson and her younger daughter Maggie was waiting for her elder girl Dee in the yard. Dee went home together with her boyfriend， wearing an African-style dress. The dress was extremely strange and uncomfortable to Mrs. Johnson. Dee came to her own house but as a visitor----bore interest in everything in the room and took pictures. She was eager to take the two old quilts by declaring that she would be a good inheritor of African cultural heritage. But after a fierce inner-mind struggle， Mrs. Johnson finally made the decision to give the quilts to Maggie. Then Dee left in anger but Mrs. Johnson and Maggie began their next day just as usual.

In the short story， attention should be put on the dispositions of the two groups’ characters， one is Mrs. Johnson and Maggie， and the other is Dee. Mrs. Johnson， the narrator and one of the main characters， is a typical African-American woman. She has two daughters who are poles apart in personalities. One of them is Maggie， a shy， timid， scar-bearing girl and afraid of her sister very much. She is so common that the kind of girl like her can be found everywhere in the African-American society， but change is never a word that could possibly came into her mind. Another daughter of Mrs. Johnson named Dee， originallyi. Dee is a pious pursuer of modern and white culture， a representative of open-minded African-American women. The only chance for college education in this family has been given to her as she wished. The whole story happened between the three women around the heritage towards African culture and their identity in society--“the self” or “the other”.

According to the brief introduction of their characteristics， we can easily find that they are typical African-American women. They live a simple and poor life in their own African circle. On the surface， they are “the self” in the circle because of generationally living， but the truth is， they can’t be the real “self” in this way in either African circle or American society. The reason is addressed below. First， they are Africans originally， but are forced to live in America because of the colonization， which means they cannot prevent contacting with Americans even though they want to. In this sense， they are not completely “the self” in African society. Second， they still two of the small groups of people that are not necessary for American society； what they said would never be heard and what they do would never make any effect neither. They are still auxiliaries of American society but not complete human beings， thus are not “the self” in American society.

Dee is attracted by white culture all the time in her life. She hates her African identity and tries the best to get rid of it. As a result， she finally had the chance to receive college education in American society. After several years， she was almost an American girl both in appearance and in manner. Of course， she was no longer “the self” in African society， but can she be called “the self” in that of American？ The answer is negative. Dee cannot hold a right and rational attitude toward her own culture as well as nationality， which is exactly why she cannot be “the self”. A reasonable saying can be quoted here： those who are not clear with their own identity can never be “the self” in any way and any place.

African-Americans are still living a suffering life in American society and even the worst life among all races. They are not “the self” neither in African society and American society， which means they are “the other” in both. Through the description of the two groups of people in “Everyday Use for Your Grandmamma”， we can reach the agreement that none of them is “the self”， no matter in African society or in American society. They must make some changes of themselves to get improved and be the real “self”.

注釋：

i Dee changed her name into “Wangero”， which is considered a noble name in African culture， because she thought of the name “Dee” as something given by the oppressors （the white）.

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