In "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker, Dee wants to achieve more than her mother ever did. Dee's mother (Mama) is an uneducated, rural, blue-collar worker. Dee wants more than that; she wants to go to college and do something that she thinks is important, like become a doctor or lawyer. Mama doesn't like that idea and doesn't understand why Dee disapproves of her way of life, but Mama is willing to put those things aside just to make Dee happy. Mama is also trying to reunite with Dee but Dee won't be close to her. This conflict is the reason that Mama and Dee do not have a healthy relationship.

In the following quote Mama and Maggie are laying on the yard outside of there home. The two of them take care of the lawn without any help from Dee. "A yard like this is more comfortable than...