"'What don't I understand?' I wanted to know. 'Your heritage,' she said. And then she turned to Maggie, kissed her, and said, 'You ought to try to make something of yourself, too, Maggie. It's really a new day for us. But from the way you and Mama still live you'd never know it.'"
When I first read the story, I had trouble understanding the characters or their motivations. They turned out to be much more complex than they seemed on the surface, especially Dee. Mama described herself like a man, saying she has characteristics of a man, dresses like a man, and works like a man. This is probably because a husband is not mentioned, so she has to play the roles of mother and father to provide for her family. She seemed to give into Dee, adjusting to her new man and her new name. Even though she let Dee have her way until the end, I don't think this was because she was weak. Mama is a strong woman since she cares for her daughters, acting as their mother and doing the work of the father. Maggie, however, is not a strong character. She is extremely self conscious because of the scars she sustained from a house fire. Maggie lets Dee step all over her, afraid to speak up and get anything for herself. Dee is the exact opposite of Maggie; she is overly confident and knows what she wants. What was interesting about Dee is her conflicting actions and beliefs. She had previously made her distaste for their way of life known, and then she returns with a new name, distancing herself from her family's heritage. Even though she distanced herself from her family, she was trying to reclaim their African heritage. It seemed insincere and hypocritical, like she was just trying to keep up appearances for whatever reason. This is shown through the quilts and her wanting to display them, not actually put them to everyday use.
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