The short story is told in the first person by "Mama," an African-American woman who lives in the deep south with one of her two daughters. The story follows the differences between Mrs. Johnson and her shy younger daughter Maggie, who still adhere to traditional black culture in the rural south, and her educated and successful daughter, Dee, or "Wangero," as she prefers to be called , who takes A different route to claim their cultural identity.
One of the main themes of "Daily Use" is the idea of a person's relationship with their culture. In the story, Dee's mother remained close to immediate family traditions, while Dee chose to look more deeply into her African roots. Because of her different mentality, she does not have the same ideals as Mama and Maggie, particularly in regard to cultural preservation and the best way to do it. In Mom's mind, Maggie learning to make her own bedspread is preserving the culture; At Dee's, you're preserving the quilt itself.