Is Dee wholly unsympathetic? Is the mother's victory over her altogether positive? What emotional ambivalence is there in the final scene between Maggie and her mother in the yard?
Dee, it seems, is actually a sympathetic character in that she's sympathetic to her mom and her sister Maggie and she brings out the sympathy in me as a reader. It can be seen how Dee almost pities her family for living in a kind of "cultural ignorance" and at heart wants the best for her family. In addition, the reader feels sympathy for the now fractured relationship between Dee and her family. The mother's victory is not completely positive either. Dee leaves her house still with her ignorance of her own African-American culture and the mother and Maggie remain content without putting their complete African heritage in the forefront of their lives. So it's kinda like a no-win win-win. Everybody happy! 'Cept the reader.
I agree with everything you said, aaaaand... I always wonder where you find such entertaining cartoons to illustrate your thoughts.
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