Question

1. Characterize the speaker and evaluate her reliability as a reporter and

Answer 1

The correct answer to this open question is the following.

First, we are talking about the story "Everyday Use," written by African American writer Alice Walker in 1973. This story is included in the collection called "In Love and Trouble."

The characterization of the speaker could be the following. She is a strong character uneducated woman that works hard to maintain the family. She tells the story from her perspective, so she is not objective. The name of the character is simply "Mama."

Where does she refrain from making judgments? For instance, when her daughter asks her if she looks good. Mama evades the question asked by her daughter but later she -as the narrator- describes the way her daughter looks.

Where does she present less than the full truth? For example, when she refers to Wangero, the other daughter. She hides some truths and then later, she expresses what she really thinks about her daughter and how she does not agree with her decisions.

Do these examples of reticence undercut her reliability? No, she simply tells the story from her particular point of view.