Compare And Contrast Good Country People And Everyday Use

Both Hulga (Joy) in “Good Country People” and Wangero (Dee) in “Everyday Use” have become lost in their own right. Neither knows what to do in order to break free from their own confusion. In fact, they both go through a process where there think they are superior to others. In the story, “Everyday Use”, the main character originally named Dee changes their name to “Wangero” to escape the oppression that is attached to the name Dee (A slave master gave it to one of her ancestors). Wangero says, ““I couldn’t bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me.” (Walker 2718). She hopes that by striping herself of the name Dee she can distance herself from the persecution her ancestors felt along with gaining her African heritage. Wangero does gain wisdom while away at …show more content…
She finds her African heritage and while there is nothing wrong with that she loses touch with her African American heritage. I feel as though she is unsuccessful in gaining her own enlightenment simply because she cannot see what she has been given. Instead of appreciating what she has grown up, she treats it as a foreign place. Her inability to open her eyes to her culture is fed by her condescending attitude. For example, ““I can use the churn as a centerpiece for the alcove table…and I’ll think of something artistic to do with the dasher.”” (Walker 2719). In the end, Wangero misses her chance to enlighten herself by allowing her selfish tendencies to stop her from appreciating her culture as an African American. When I read, “Good Country People”, the main character originally called Joy changes her name to Hulga. She try to get a name that matches how she feels about herself. “She had arrived at it first purely on its ugly sound…she saw it as the name of her highest creative act.” (O’ Connor 2526 – 2527). She chooses the name Hulga because of how ugly it sounds. She tries to paint herself as a strong woman who knows