What are some of the themes in "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker?

The most prominent theme in Alice Walker's "Everyday Use" is the relationship between heritage and present day life, according to SparkNotes. Additionally, the power of education to both enlighten and divide is also one of the story's central themes.

Dee, the story's central character, attempts to construct a new heritage for herself as part of her wider rejection of the oppression that shaped her family's culture, according to eNotes.com. Educated and worldly Dee takes on a new name and criticizes her mother's use of family heirlooms in everyday life, referring to them as "priceless" without truly understanding their place in her ancestors' lives.