What is the use of of irony in Everyday Use.

The character of Dee is full of irony. Dee objectifies and exploits her own culture. She is, for example, dismayed that Maggie and her mother would use the quilts everyday, despite their functionality. Dee views the quilts as remnants of a culture that is dying or already dead. Note Alice Walker’s use of both Dee’s given name and her name of reinvention. In this moment, Dee is not Dee, but Wangero - she ceases to understand the heritage in her hands. Dee rejects factory made quilts that Mama offers her: she cannot exploit them. For Mama, the quilts represent both a practical and emotional consciousness that should remain above Dee’s manipulation.