Short Story

Everyday Use by Alice Walker is my favorite story among the three. I can relate to this
story’s events, especially because of my family background and experiences. It uses devices such
as symbolism to highlight the significance of family history and cultural heritage (Walker, 1994).
The author tells a story of a materialistic and thankless daughter who requests to take family
pieces to decorate her new home. Walker creates familiar characters through symbolism,
allowing readers to relate to their own lives and behavior. The family members depicted in this
story are negative and disrespectful. Such provides a moral story of how one should never treat
their family. Besides, it highlights the importance of embracing own culture and being part of the
family’s heritage.
My least favorite story is What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond
Carver. Besides offering doses of a variety of love, the story pitches violence, depression, hatred,
and alcoholism (Carver, 2014). All this is the effort to define what love is and why people should
care. Love is falsely depicted as confusing, elusive, and messy, which is not a common
experience for everyone. The story can make beginners at love shy away from falling in love.
The author I would wish to explore is Alice Walker. I want to read her bibliography and
other collection of her works to know what motivates her to write such intriguing stories with a
moral foundation. As a reader, I have learned that one needs to have ideas and incorporate
devices such as symbolism to create realism. To appreciate any work, it needs to have ideas that
people can relate to in contemporary society. The pieces have made me grow as a reader,
especially in story analysis and perceiving things from the writer’s perspective.

3

References

Carver, R. (2014). What we talk about when we talk about love (Mandarin Edition). Simon and
Schuster.
Walker, A. (1994). Everyday use. Rutgers University Press.