Student Question

What does Dee's kiss on her mother's forehead suggest in "Everyday Use"?

Quick answer:

Dee's kiss on her mother's forehead in "Everyday Use" suggests condescension rather than affection. This gesture implies a sense of superiority, as adults often kiss children on the forehead from a position of authority. Dee's actions and attitudes toward her family highlight her belief that she is superior due to her education and urban lifestyle, viewing her mother and sister as quaint relics, much like the items she wants to take home.

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I disagree completely with the previous post. Dee's kissing her mother on the forehead is not an act of love. It is an act of condescension. Adults kiss children on the forehead, standing in a position of power and authority. An act of love would have been to throw her arms around her mother and kiss her on the cheek.

Of course Dee doesn't express any sign of hatred for the current house. She doesn't have to live there. She is a fancy lady now. She doesn't have to live in a dirt-floor shack with tarpaper window coverings. She is educated and lives in the city. Her mother and sister are almost strangers to her, as quaint as the churn and quilts and other things Dee wants to take home with her.

Dee has always considered herself better than her mother and sister, and her actions upon returning home make...

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that clear. Why change her name? Why dress differently? Why ask for things to take home, not as mementoes or keepsakes, but as signs of how enlightened she has become?

Dee is not a good person, and her kiss in not a token of affection.

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