Analysis Of John Updike's A & P

Sammy begins the story by describing the three girls in bathing suits who have walked into the A & P grocery store. The girl who catches his attention is a chunky girl in a plaid green two-piece swimsuit. As Sammy continues to observe the girls, his interest seems to focus only on the girl who leads the other two into the store. Sammy refers to the girl he likes as "Queenie",someone showing poise and leadership, while the other girls

Transition -- In fact, Supporting point 2 -- when he contemplates what Queenie might be thinking Quote -- he wonders if her head is empty or “a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar” (824). Explain/relate quote to point -- In his mind she and the other girls are objects, not human beings. Transition -- Even the nicknames he makes up show the sexist attitude of an immature teenage boy. Supporting point 3/Quote -- Referring to the one he likes as “Queenie,” to her tall friend as “Big Tall Goony Goony” or other female shoppers as “houselaves” indicates that women in his view have no place or identity beyond themselves(825). Explain/relate quote to point -- indicates that women in his view have no place or identity beyond themselves Transition – further Supporting Point 4 -- His false-chivalric gesture at the end reveals his immaturity. Quote -- He assumes that the girls need an “unsuspected hero” to save them Explain/relate to point --, that they cannot take care of themselves or handle a little embarrassment (827). Concluding sentence -- Clearly, Sammy has much to learn about heroism, chivalry, and

There is a sudden change in Sammy's attitude toward the girls throughout the story. At first, Sammy and his friend's he work

Sammy’s obsession with Queenie shows how Sammy doesn’t get much action. He is about a twenty year old guy who is obsessing over a 16 or 17-year-old girl. Sammy gives every single detail about Queenie; for example, he says, “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, she just walked on slowly, on these white prima-donna legs.” About 80% of the story is dedicated to the description of Queenie.

Sammy is the only character in this story who asserts his individuality. Two of the girls are simply following their leader, and Queenie is easily embarrassed and capitulates to Lengel. The other shoppers

In today’s world, much of society feels the need to be someone that others want them to be and not what they actually want to be, whether it be someone who is having trouble coming out as gay or transgender or someone who feels the need to follow strict family traditions. Also, people will often have difficulty doing the right thing and making the mature decision. People often accept the role into which they are born and grew up in, and then pass that position onto their children. This cycle will continue until someone has enough power to speak out against it. People will often be pressured into doing something that they may not want to do. As shown in A&P by John Updike, the narrator, Sammy, quits his job at the end of the story in order to prove to the girls that he is on their side and has ultimately done the mature thing. In A&P, Updike examines sexism and the need to fulfill a certain role that society places upon women, as well as the social pressures that occur within our lives. Lastly, this story also represents a coming-of-age for Sammy. Although it takes place over the period of a few minutes, it represents a much larger process of maturation.

In a continuing attempt to reveal this societal conflict, Updike introduces the character of Lengel, the manager. He accosts the girls and starts to make a scene accusing them of being indecent: “‘Girls, I don’t want to argue with you. After this come in here with your shoulders covered. It’s our policy.’ He turns his back. That’s policy for you. Policy is what the kingpins want. What others want is juvenile delinquency” (Updike, 600). When the store manager confronts three girls in swimsuits because of their indecency (lack of proper clothes), they are forced to leave humiliated. At this moment Sammy makes the choice to quit his job in protest of the manager’s handling of the situation. In his mind, and arguably in John Updike’s mind, the standards of walking into a grocery store in a bathing suit and humiliating someone in front of other people are both unacceptable. This part of the story is pivotal for one main reason: a voice in the business community is speaking. As a manager at A & P, Lengel is the voice of The Establishment and guards the community ethics (Porter, 321). Queenie’s (the ringleader of the girls) blush is what moves Sammy to action. Here are three girls who came in from the beach to purchase only one thing, and this kingpin is embarrassing them in order to maintain an aura of morality, decency,

In the short story, A&P, John Updike uses first person narration for two reasons. The first reason to use this style is that the arc of the story requires it. If this story were told through third-person narration or from the point of view of the author, the reader would not know what was happening. The reader would not understand the characters’ motivations, and the result would be an unremarkable, mundane scene in a grocery store. The second reason Updike uses first-person narration is to give him the ability to tell this story through the eyes of an unreliable, unlikable, 19 year old boy. Updike himself was 31 when this story was published.

He is jaded with his life as a cashier and abhors the customers in the grocery store, making negative and sarcastic comments such as “sheep” and “houseslaves”. (Updike, 5) Not only does he make remarks about the customers but he also does it to his co-workers: “…he thinks he’s going to be manager some sunny day, maybe in 1990 when it’s called the Great Alexandrov and Petrooshki Tea Company or something” (Updike, 9) Sammy thinks that he can see through the actions of everyone without even getting to know most of the people, as he judges each and every person in the A&P. However, his world changes when three girls, dressed only in swimsuits, enter the A&P to purchase snacks. His description of the three girls is quite sexist, referring to one of them with "a chin that is too

John Updike is viewed by his readers as a progressive voice in his work that promotes feminist issues. He makes these issues stand out more evidently, rather than hidden, in order for the reader to realize how women are viewed in society. From reading Updike’s A&P, the story sends the message to readers of genders working together to strive for equality. If readers do not carefully and actively read A&P they may miss key messages about the power men hold over women, not just in society but in literature as well. Even though Updike’s A&P seems to be a story about a teenager finally standing up to his boss and quitting the job he hates, the tone used reveals the hidden message on how women are in a male-oriented world. The relationship between both men are women are shown as unequals, men on the top and women always below them, Updike makes sure to open up the reader 's eyes in realizing the way females are being treated unfairly.

Queenie is important to the story's conflict and theme because she creates them. Queenie causes the main conflict when she walks into the A & P. The manager of the A & P yells at the young girls about their attire when the are being rung up by the Sammy. At the end of the story, Sammy stands up for himself by exclaiming he quits as the girls are walking out of the door. He does this because he hopes the girls will see him as a hero. As a result he loses his job and never gets the

The story A&P is in 1961 and it takes place in an A&P grocery store in New England. The Narrator is Sammy which is also the main character. He is an employee at this store named A&P. He sees these three girls that are wearing swimsuits and also looked like they just came back from the beach. The girls are looking around the store and seeing what they need and awhile they are doing this, Sammy is looking to see what everyone is saying about these girls. He also notices that they are all are independent of one another. It seems that he can tell us about these girls in such good details. After that is when the girls are caught by the store manager and kicked out for what they have one and how it is not allowed in the store. Sammy’s manger tells the girls that swimsuits that they aren’t

From the beginning, the narrator itself is the main character of the story, it’s Sammy. He talks about the 'sheep' or followers in his town. To him, everybody acts and dresses the same way. But one day, three girls in bathing suits came into the store and making spectacle to themselves and Sammy immediately notices the most attractive and elegant, he named her “Queenie”. The three girls, led by Queenie

This story I think to me is pretty much based on the girls I think simply for embarrassment. The girls felt like the owner was picking on them for some reason. They felt like there was nothing wrong with what them walking in the store with their bathing suits on cause it was close to the beach. The neighborhood in which the store is located is kind of on upscale neighborhood so I can understand as to why he would act like that but I didn’t think it was anything wrong with what they had on.

As the girls were just about done checking out, Sammy’s manager walked into the store and came over to his register. The Manager went on to tell the girls how “this isn’t the beach” and how “We want you decently dressed when you come in here” (Lawn 342) . Sammy noticed that Queenie began to blush and was starting to get embarrassed by the whole ordeal. This seemed to upset Sammy a great deal. I feel that Sammy stood up for Queenie and the other girls more than he would have when he figured that they were most likely part of the upper-class due to what they were purchasing for Queenie’s mother. As soon as Queenie said that, Sammy instantly pictured himself at Queenie’s house during a party with her mother and father enjoying the jar of herring snacks that Queenie was purchasing. Sammy then went on to compare this to what it was like when his mother had some people over and how they drank from glasses with cartoons stenciled on. As the girls quickly walked out of the store Sammy told his manager that he quits because Sammy felt that his manager handled the situation wrong by embarrassing Queenie. This was a major decision for Sammy to make so spur of the moment. With the help and incentive from Queenie and the other girls, Sammy was able to stand up for what he felt was the right thing at that time. After quitting Sammy walks outside in hopes that the girls will still be out there. When Sammy