...they change just to show off, or achieve something? In John Updike’s short story “A&P”, readers see how much the main character, Sammy, changes to impress a girl he’s never even talked to. From when this girl walks into the store where Sammy works, wearing only a bikini with her two friends, Sammy goes from being an average guy, thinking sexist thoughts, and quietly watching them, to being actively involved and being willing to help them. This change in opinion and character leads to Sammy making some questionable decisions. “A&P” starts with three girls walking into the A&P supermarket, where Sammy works, wearing nothing but bikinis while being miles from the beach. As readers watch the story unfold from Sammy’s perspective, Sammy’s character begins to reveal. Sammy thinks the girls are odd for wearing only bikinis, since it isn’t something he sees every day. He watches them and has a few demeaning thoughts about them, based off what they were wearing and the fact they were girls, “You never know for sure how girls’ minds work (do you really think there’s a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar?)” (Sammy.16). As Sammy continues to watch them go through the store looking for what they needed to buy, he...
Words: 885 - Pages: 4
...The Truth About Adulthood Remember when we were young and dreamt of the day we entered the world of adolescence. So eager to experience the sweet taste of independence that is, till reality came knocking on the door. It is the breakthrough from childhood to adolescence that was captured as the theme in John Updike’s story A &P and James Joyce’s “Araby”. The use of imagery to describe the lifeless and ordinary setting made it clear to distinguish the characters desire to overcome the barriers of childhood. The story of “Araby” begins at a dead end street where the narrator lives with his aunt and uncle. He describes the short days of winter and mentions, “The space of sky above us was the color of ever-changing violet (107).” He is expressing the continuous change that comes along with getting older, just like the ever changing skies, this feeling of continuous change is something the narrator has no power over and is frustrating to him. To represent the initiation into adulthood and the loss of child like dreams the narrator describes the street where the boys play: “The career of our play brought us through the dark muddy lanes…to the back doors of the dark dripping gardens… to the dark odorous (107). It seems as though where ever the boy goes darkness follows, representing a dreadful feeling of growing up. Passing through to adolescence comes with the crushing of dreams and illusions. In addition to the point on desire to enter adulthood, when in class the narrator...
Words: 843 - Pages: 4
...Coming of Age “A & P” John Updike’s short story, A & P discusses a simple conflict resolved with a quick and definitive action. The story focuses on its main character; Sammy who has an epiphany when he realizes a line has been crossed while working his summer job. Updike’s story teaches us of a young and relatable man who will stand up for what he believes. The story starts of with Sammy describing three young girls that catch his eye as they walk into the store. “There was this chunky one, with the two-piece- it was bright green and the seams on the bra were still sharp and her belly was still pretty pale so I guessed she just got it (the suit)- there was this one, with one of those chubby berry –faces, the lips all bunched together under her nose, this one, and a tall one, with black hair that hadn’t quite frizzed right, and one of these sunburns right across under the eyes”… “And then the third one, that wasn’t quite so tall. She was the queen. She kind of led them, the other two peeking around and making their shoulders round. She didn’t look around, not this queen” (320). When Sammy is describing these girls, he is really only describing one girl in particular. “She had on a kind of dirty-pink- beige, maybe, I don’t know- bathing suit with a little nubble all over it and, what got me, the straps were down” (321). Sammy sees these young women in such detail. He observes their every move, up until the time of their checkout. It is at this point, that the store manager...
Words: 800 - Pages: 4
...Initiation into adulthood is an event in which every human being participates. The initiation process helps adolescents grow and mature into reasonable adults, and it is the basis of many artists’ paintings, songs, and written stories. A few notable works about the orientation into adulthood are Junot Diaz’s essay called “They Money”, Lynda Barry’s essay “The Sanctuary of School”, and finally John Updike’s story titled “A&P.” All three of these stories provide a glimpse into the path to adulthood. First of all, Diaz’s “The Money” speaks of a teenager who lives in a home where money is scarce. He says “She chipped dollars off from the cash Papi gave her for our daily expenses, forced our already broke family to live even broker” (Diaz 912)....
Words: 1228 - Pages: 5
...John Updike’s “A&P” as a provocative tale of social perception In order to understand the two stories on John Updike’s “A&P”, the characters have to hold the weight of being the most important theme in the short story. The first set of characters consists of Sammy, the Girls, and Lengel who all dictate the first short story from Sammy’s point of view. The second of the two tales Updike pens about in this short, is that of where he makes us question what being “decent” by society’s current standards means, by putting an emphasis on perception and almost spoon-feeding us readers to pick up on what he’s trying to imply by using Sammy to illustrate it all. The paper-thin storyline consisting of what Sammy is going through by narrating and the other, which is the main story being Sammy and the girls representing freedom and non-conformity from a neutral point of view versus what Lengel, the shoppers, and the storefront itself represent as being the socially correct status quo and policy we hold as normal living in society. In this story the establishment that is the A&P itself, is portrayed as routine and monotonous as a market in the middle of town can possibly be. Updike made it so on purpose, to give us a neutral setting that synonymous with our reality and what we perceive as normal behavior in society. The A&P is acceptable as a run-of-the-mill chain market, this character represents the status quo of a 1st world society where one is judged instantly for behaving...
Words: 901 - Pages: 4
...John Updike's short story "A&P" is about a teenager who has to make a serious decision. The story is set in an A&P supermarket in a town north of Boston, probably about the year 1960. As the plot unfolds, Sammy changes from being a thoughtless and sexist boy to being a young man who can make a decision, even though it might hurt him. Sammy tells us he is nineteen years old. He is a check-out clerk in the local A&P, where the boss, Lengel, is a friend of Sammy's parents. Sammy does not seem to like his job very much. He calls one of his customers a "witch" and says the other customers are "houseslaves" and "sheep." He himself comes from a middle-class family. When they have a party, he says, they serve "lemonade and if it's a real racy affair Schlitz in tall glasses with 'They'll Do It Every Time' cartoons stencilled on" (15). In addition, Sammy is sexist. He gives long, loving descriptions of the girls who cause all the trouble, and he thinks at first that girls may not even have minds, asking, "do you really think it's a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar?" (13) However, he does change as the plot goes on. The plot of the story deals with three girls who come into the store dressed only in bathing suits. They make their entrance in the very first sentence, and they complicate Sammy's life. At first, Sammy, his older friend Stokesie, and McMahon the butcher all look at the girls lustfully. But of them all, only Sammy enjoys...
Words: 636 - Pages: 3
...A Comparison of “Dog’s Death” and “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night” Tammy McGee ENG 125: Introduction to Literature Instructor Jessica Dennis August 12, 2013 The theme I have chosen to write about is death and impermanence, and the two literary works I have chosen to compare and contrast are Dog’s Death by John Updike and Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night by Dylan Thomas. How we are affected by death, and how we accept that it is inevitable seems to be a theme for many short stories and poems. Death brings a struggle between the dying and the family and friends of the dying. All the loved ones of the dying want them to do is fight, to encourage them to stay positive, even when there is no chance of survival. We want to be selfish and want to spend as much time as we can with them before they die. Just as the two poets in these poems do. In Dog’s Death by John Updike, the dog wants to lie down, to hide so she can die peacefully but the family rushes her to the vet to try and save her. And in Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night by Dylan Thomas the father is being begged to fight against the inevitable death. I am going to show how loved ones want the dying to fight death, whereas the dying would like to come to peace with death and rest. Both Dog’s Death and Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night are poems, however they are structured differently. Dog’s Death is not a set structure, meaning to say it is not a certain type of poem. It has five stanzas...
Words: 2388 - Pages: 10
...“A & P” by John Updike takes place in 1961, in a small New England town's A&P grocery store. Sammy, the narrator, is introduced as a grocery checker and an observer of the store's patrons. He finds himself fascinated by a particular group of girls. Just in from the beach and still in their bathing suits, they are a stark contrast, to the otherwise plain store interior. As they go about their errands, Sammy observes the reactions, of the other customers, to this trio of young women. He uses the word "Sheep" to describe the store regulars, as they seem to follow one and other, in their actions and reactions. The girls, however, appear to be unique in all aspects of their beings: walking, down the isles, against the grain: going barefoot and in swim suits, amongst the properly attired clientele. They are different and this is what catches and holds Sammy's attention. He sees them in such detail, that he can even see the queen of the bunch. Sammy observes their movements and gestures, up until the time of their checkout. At which point, they are confronted by the store manager and chastised for their unacceptable appearance. He believes their attire to be indecent. Sammy, feeling that the managerial display was unnecessary and unduly embarrassing for the girls, decides to quit his position as checker. Thought he knows that his decision may be hasty, he knows that he has to follow through and he can never go back. He leaves, with a clean conscious, but the burden of not...
Words: 1481 - Pages: 6
...John Updike “A & P” We were asked in class to write a short paper after being asked the question, “What is the most intriguing or interesting piece we have read, and why?” My response to this question was John Updike’s “A & P”. “A & P” was not the best or even the most interesting piece that I have read. However, out of all of the stories that I have read for this class, “A & P” left me with the most questions. Some of the questions that I asked myself after reading this story were, “What did Updike want me to get from this story?” The second question I asked myself was, “Was there any symbolism or foreshadowing in the extreme amount of detail that Updike used in this story?” The last question that I wanted to answer was, “Is that it?” Did John Updike really write a story about dress code of a supermarket? Or, did he write this story about the moral dilemma a young clerk faces when he believes his boss was rude to three underdressed girls? John Updike’s “A & P” was first published in 1962. This story took place in a small grocery store. The main character, Sammy, is a young clerk. He is ringing up a lady whom he describes as a “witch”, when three young ladies enter the store wearing nothing but bathing suits. Updike uses great detail in describing the three girls. The first one that he noticed was described as “a chunky kid, with a good tan and a sweet broad soft-looking can with those two crescents of white just under it, where the sun never seems to hit…”...
Words: 1597 - Pages: 7
...Contemporary Literature Conflict and Change in John Updike’s “A&P” All of the events in John Updike’s short story “A&P” take place in a small town grocery store north of Boston, where Sammy, the main character, works as cashier. Sammy is nineteen, a late adolescent boy on the verge of adulthood. His fellow cashier, Stokesie, is twenty-two, married, with two young children. The store is managed by a much older man named Lengel, a friend of Sammy’s parents. The other characters include a customer at Sammy’s checkout slot and three teenage girls in bathing suits. It is an altercation in the aisles of the store between Lengel, the manager, and the three girls that forces Sammy to face his inner conflict and make a life changing decision. Updike implies rather than spells out Sammy’s conflict. Sammy is nineteen, almost a man, but as yet without a man’s responsibilities. If Sammy stays in town, we can easily imagine he will soon be in the same situation as Stokesie, who has wife and two children to take care of. Sammy and Stokesie have good jobs, probably among the best the small town has to offer. If Stokesie were to quit his job, he would be abdicating his responsibilities and letting his family down. In the view of the town, such an action would probably be considered madness. For him, the chance to make a radical change in his life’s course has probably passed. Sammy, on the other hand, has a window of opportunity, a short period between youth and adulthood, during...
Words: 999 - Pages: 4
...English 112 28 March 2012 A & P: An Analysis of the Character “Sammy” As people age, maturity and wisdom is gained through every experience. From the time a child turns eighteen and becomes an adult, they are required to deal with the realities of the real world and learn how to handle its responsibilities. In John Updike’s short story “A&P” the protagonist Sammy is a young man in 1961 New England who works in the town’s local grocery store. In a matter of a day, Updike goes from an immature boy with unrealistic ideas and fantasies, to a man who is about to realize how life altering the choices he makes can be. Sammy realizes that life isn’t always fair and that sometimes it involves the consequences that life can deal to anyone who has not had time to test a rash decision. Updike’s story illustrates that a part of growing up is a willingness to accept consequences of one’s choices, and that life's hardest lessons are sometimes learned a little too late. This story represents a coming-of-age for Sammy, as seen through his evaluations of the costumers as the story develops. Though it takes place over the period of a few minutes, it represents a much larger process of Sammy’s growth. From the time the girls enter the grocery store, to the moment they leave, you can see changes in Sammy. At first, he only notices the physical appearance of the girls: how they look and what they are wearing, seem to be his only thoughts. As the story progresses, he notices the interactions...
Words: 1114 - Pages: 5
...In order for the younger generation to succeed, must they do as they see others do and resist deviating from the norm? The short story “A&P” by John Updike takes place within a grocery store with plots depicting different themes, such as innocence and irony. The average reader will be stunned by the unusual break in tradition, as well as the ending with a twist. Sammy, the story’s main character and narrator, is represented as one who does not understand his own troubled life. He also despises others, who in so many words live a life of follow the leader. Ultimately, Sammy quits his job in protest of the unfair treatment of three girls, who have presumably violated the store’s dress code policy. It appears that this is an example where society is being too rigid and insensitive to the changing trends that our younger generations are ready to explore. Three young girls wearing bathing suits into a small town grocery store really caused a commotion amongst the store’s...
Words: 1168 - Pages: 5
...THE BLUE COLLAR BOYS, THE WHITE COLLAR GIRLS Purpose of statement: discuss about society and class in A&P story. Audience: Mrs. Lewis Shelley Thesis: According to Updike’s work, A&P is a short story where society and class in US during 1930s are explicitly implied. T here comes a funny riddle: “What do the poor have but the rich don’t?”. The answer turns out to be a little bit sarcastic: “Nothing”. It’s sarcastic because It shows how different and unequal this world was, is and will be. During 1930s, those differences and inequalities are even more serious. With a good use of his talent, via A&P short story, John Updike brought to us a topic where it is driven by the dynamics of various classes represented by different characters: Sammy, Queenie, Lengel (A&P manager) and people in the store....
Words: 452 - Pages: 2
...In the short stories “Soldiers Home” by Ernest Hemingway, and “A&P” by John Updike, both authors introduce the concept of rejection of community values. Although the two stories are written in different styles, “Soldiers Home” being serious and dismal, and “A&P” being more humorous and sarcastic, they both reveal similar settings, which both Kreb’s and Sammy rejects. The main characters, Kreb’s and Sammy, both have very similar views on society and reject similar things. Both of the authors used very detailed examples of how each of the main characters rejected society. To begin, “Soldiers Home” takes place in an older time, where society had more expectations and guidelines for the youth. The story demonstrates the conflict between Kreb’s value, which has dramatically changed after his time as a solider during the war. His family is concerned about his future and is worried he had lost his ambition while at war. Krebs doesn't agree with the ways of society and didn't want all the things that most of the people in his town wanted. He didn't have a definite aim in life, like society seemed to order. He rejected what everyone in society wanted. He didn’t even want a girlfriend, or to talk to girls because they were just too complicated for him. Krebs felt as if he had to choose isolation by detaching himself from social relations, love, religion and ambition. Hemingway reveals his familys worry for him in "Soldier's Home" when Kreb's mom says, “Don't you think it's about time...
Words: 449 - Pages: 2
...The narrator in John Updike’s “A&P”, Sammy, primary quits his job due to him being tired of working at a grocery store and dealing with all types of customers. The first customer Sammy describes is when he accidently rings up a box of Hi Ho crackers twice. Sammy categories her as “cash-register-watchers” and “probably never seen a mistake before” (Updike 141). He is tired of customers who would get made for no good reason as if they were as perfect as can be. Sammy called some customers “sheep pushing their carts down the aisle” (142). He basically thinks some customers are in their own little world and did not care if anyone is breaking the rules as long as they continue shopping. Sammy describes the day he quits “the sad part of the story” at least to his family it is (143). Sammy does not think it is the sad part because he wanted to get out of there. Sammy does not like his job or the people he has to deal with so he uses the scandal that Lengel performs in...
Words: 428 - Pages: 2
