Significance of tradition against moral values

             Significance of Tradition Against Moral Values
             The short story "The Lottery" by, Shirley Jackson and "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker both focus on the significance of tradition within the plot. The character's in the two stories are so into the specifics of tradition that their values and morals at times are forgotten. The characters in the stories live by tradition to an extent where tradition becomes a character in itself. They fail to realize that as they explore the meaning of tradition, the significance of their tradition is often lost.
             In "Everyday Use," the significance within the story is that following tradition is not nearly as important as understanding the traditional values and morals that come along with culture. It is perfectly clear that Maggie although being younger than her sister has more sense of her cultural traditions than her sister Dee. Wangero becomes ignorant when it comes to understanding the values of her tradition. For example, in the beginning of the story when Dee announces that she has changed her family name to something of her liking. Even after her mother tells her that she was named after her aunt Dicie. Wangero still refuses her traditional name. Wangero even insults the tradition in her name when she states, " I could no longer bear it any longer being named after the people who oppress me" (Walker, p.345).
             As the plot thickens over the ownership of the quilts, it is easier to understand what little knowledge Wangero has of her own tradition. In Wangero's eyes all that is important is who the quilts get passed on to and what a average traditional family would do with the quilts. Wangero feels that she is more deserving of the quilts because she will hang them up in a frame rather than put them to everyday use. Wangero shows that she doesn't understand the moral value of the quilts because when her mother offered her some other tr...

More Essays:

APA     MLA     Chicago
Significance of tradition against moral values. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 11:55, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/29104.html