Mrs. Johnson, in Alice Walker's short story, "Everyday Use" is a woman with solid foundations and tough roots. She leads a content, simple, and practical life in which the heritage is appreciated both for its usefulness as well as its personal significance. Therefore, from the beginning of the story we see that she, who describes herself as "a large, big-boned woman with rough, man working hands", has no illusions about the type of woman she is. Although she is capable of killing a bull calf with a sledgehammer, and knows that she is uneducated, dark, and heavy, she still has enough depth to dream about being reunited with her daughter Dee. Mrs. Johnson's sharp mind allows her to analyze both Maggie and Dee and finally stand up for the one she truly believes is more deserving.
             When Maggie is first introduced in the story, she is nervous about her sister's visit. In fact, Dee's arrival makes Maggie so uncomfortable that she tries to flee to the safety of the house. Maggie is not as attractive as Dee, according to Mrs. Johnson "good looks passed her by". Furthermore, she carries herself with low self-esteem, "chin on chest, eyes on ground". Mrs. Johnson states that Maggie knows that "she is not bright". Yet Maggie is very aware of her heritage and this is evident from her statement about the churn dasher when she says, "Aunt Dee's first husband whittled the dash". While Mrs. Johnson cannot help but feel sympathetic for her daughter's scars and discusses that, "Sometimes I can still hear the flames and feel Maggie's arms sticking to me". Even though Maggie is depicted as the weaker character, when Mrs. Johnson compares her to cows in her soothing ness and slowness. When she goes on to say, "Unless you try to milk them the wrong way" displays Mrs. Johnson belief that Maggie has inner strength.
             Mrs. Johnson, and from the start, seems to have been anal
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