What are some examples of figurative language in Walker's "Everyday Use"?

Instances of
, , and implied metaphor appear in
"."

Figurative language has many
effects. One is to make a
complex and idea (by nature abstract) spring to life in a more visual
manner;
another is to render a more concrete image in our heards (sensory description
with
imaginative resonance).

In the first paragraph, the
narrator (the mother)
talks about the yard "is not just a yard. It is like an
extended living room." An
outdoor space is being compared to an indoor.
Already an abstract concept is clarified for us:
that the narrator feels at
home outside, that she lives outside quite comfortably. Later she
reinforces
this idea with sensory detail, how she is comfortable outside in zero weather due
to
her fat, can kill a hog easily, and so forth: she is a competent farm
woman. How does this idea
of outside being "good enough" for the mother and
Maggie contrast with Dee's attitude
toward indoors/outdoors? To the theme
implied by the title, "Everyday Use"? This
initial simile taps into the theme
of functional, commonplace items being colonized by those who
feel they have
superior intellect and need to put them in a museum. No one would put this
yard
in a museum, but that's only because a well-combed yard doesn't have a
market value for
intellectuals such as Dee.

In paragraph
5, we get another simile: "my
skin like an uncooked barley pancake." Why is
it important that the mother picture her skin
tone in this manner? Later in
the story, as issues of race are explored in more depth (plus the
fact that
the mother works outdoors), we can assume that the mother's skin is definitely
darker
than an uncooked pancake. We have a strong sensory details here, sight
and taste with this
simile -- a light tan food item, not ready for eating,
decidedly a nonfunctional image (who
wants to eat something uncooked?) But to
get on a TV show, one ought to be lighter skinned, this
woman is saying.
She's also saying that with this color, she is "the way Dee would want me
to
be." So we have a concrete image with resonance: daughter wants mother to be a color
of
something that is useless, something "uncooked." To lighten one's skin is
about as
smart as eating something uncooked.

Implied
metaphor -- that Dee has a temper
and an effect on people that's hot and
dangerous as fire -- appears in implied
comparisons:

• "(Dee) burned us with a lot of knowledge we
  didn't
  necessarily need to know"; and
• "the scalding humor that
  
  erupted like bubbles in lye."

Take these images and
balance
that with the image of Dee watching the house burn. What do we learn
about Dee as a person,
where she fits in this family and the effect she has
on things and people who are best for
"everyday use"?

There's lots more to examine; these instances are
just a start. If
you're not sure how to find resonance in figurative language, start by
reading
the themes analysis (see below) and then examine the figurative
language to see where such
themes crop up.

Good
luck!