Sammy: A Dynamic Character

First it all, Sammy decide to quit his job because of his boss, Lengel has insulted the girls inside the store. Sammy feel unsuspected hero when he defend the girls to the manager. For example,

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

The first stage of the heroic quest of 'departure' begins with the hero's call to adventure. During this first stage, the person is poised at "the point in a person's life when they are first given notice that everything is going to change, whether they know it or not" ("Hero's Journey: Summary of Steps," MCLI, 1999). This occurs when Sammy sees the three girls walk into the grocery store. His life and his perceptions of his world as a 'local' in a small seaside town will never be the same, nor will his perceptions of himself as a sexual being. At the beginning of the story, Sammy is a shy, self-conscious cashier who is far more retiring than his fellow employee Stokesie. By the end of

In short stories, sometimes the main character may grow and change into a more mature individual. While In other occasions the characters remain the same. In the short story of "A & P," by In John Updike, the dynamic protagonist is Sammy, a young teenager who has his first job working at a small grocery store in New England. Sammy is transitioning from childhood to adulthood and through his words and actions, we discovered that he does not acquire the best characteristics which include being immature, judgmental, pervert and impulsive.

His tone, descriptions, and actions all make him a more reliable. The tone in “A&P” is much more humorous and the subject is more light compared to “The Cask of Amontillado”, which makes Sammy’s actions have less weight to them and thus less reason to contort his own view. The story being less about what he’s doing and more about what he’s seeing allows Sammy to describe the world around him (albeit in a typical teenager way) in a more distant way. He puts a lot of focus on the three girls, describing their flaws, such as calling one “chunky” and the other that had “a chin that was too long” (pg.123), he even mentions the over stretched neck that Queenie has. It shows how reliable a storyteller he is because he is able to put their flaws on display even when infatuated. When Sammy quit he was originally confident in his decision even though the girls left before he could find them, but when he looked back at the store he “felt how hard the world was going to be to [him] hereafter” (pg.127), which shows that he became aware of his actions and consequences that come after. Sammy being able to show that he might have been wrong is a strong indicator of a reliable

translates in English as being a story that traces the spiritual, moral, psychological, or social development and growth of the main character from childhood to maturity. This is a prototype of John Updike's short story, "A & P," the protagonist, Sammy, is faced with a difficult dilemma, and comes to realize a universal truth about human behavior. Sammy comes to understand that the world is an unusual place and that irrational choices based on impulse are not the best way to solve personal issues.

In the story of “A&P” by John Updike Sammy is the narrator. He is a nineteen year old young man who portrays a normal teenager by having a summer job like most teenagers do. He had a common summer job at a grocery store. He held the position as a cashier throughout the story until he ended up having a dynamic change. Throughout most of the story his actions would be considered assertive to most readers. He is very particular with every detail of all of the other characters in the story. He does with go a dynamic change from the beginning to the end of the story by becoming a very sympathetic character.

Sammy is stuck in that difficult transition between childhood and adulthood. He is a nineteen-year-old cashier at an A&P, the protagonist in a story with the same name. John Updike, the author of "A&P," writes from Sammy's point of view, making him not only the main character but also the first person narrator. The tone of the story is set by Sammy's attitude, which is nonchalant but frank--he calls things as he sees them. There is a hint of sarcasm in Sammy's thoughts, for he tends to make crude references to everything he observes. Updike uses this motif to develop the character of Sammy, as many of these references relate to the idea of "play."

He can let Lengel’s criticism of Queenie and her friends go, therefore conforming to society’s standards, or he can voice his own opinions and become independent. He appears to come to his own conclusion on what to do when he reminds himself of Queenie’s reaction to Lengel. Updike writes, “but remembering how he made that pretty girl blush makes me so scrunchy inside I punch the No Sale tab and the machine whirs ‘pee-pul’ and the drawer splats out” (167). Sammy then realizes the magnitude of what he has done once he has left the store. Updike writes, “… and my stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter” (167). Sammy knows that now, since he has gone against the normalities of society, he will not be looked upon fondly by others around him. Although he may not be liked by all, he has become his own person with his own thoughts, marking his coming of age and transition to adulthood. The external conflict experienced by Sammy in “A&P” helped him transition from conformity to

We learn a lot about Sammy from how he speaks. We learned a lot about Sammy by his speech patterns. I think that Sammy in the story has been has a considerably bad boy attitude. To put it in other words, I think he has a very strong charisma of his personality because he continuously tries to examine the three girls that walk into the grocery store. With that, I'll believe he is strong and compassionate feelings for the girls because he because continues just tries to think about different scenarios.

Even though Sammy’s mindset is childlike, he still tries to portray himself in an adult manner. The reader can observe throughout the story the way in which Sammy thinks to be immature and quick to judge. Having his concentration only on the girls, he made a mistake while ringing up a customer. Because he is so focused on how the girls are dressed and what they are up to, he has full descriptions of each girl and thinks he has them all figured out. He points out the leader and even names her “Queenie” while not giving the other two as much attention. The reader can see how Sammy sort of mocks some of the customers when he sees Lengel “checking the sheep through” (Updike 435). Sammy’s priority, which should only be ringing up customers, but happens to be seeing what the girls are up

As the girls continue their journey throughout the store, Sammy can’t help but to notice anything and everything that they did. As they proceed, they grab fancy herring snacks and walk into Sammy’s checkout isle. Because they decided to go into Sammy’s lane might not have had anything to do with Sammy at all, however he took it as if he was chosen specifically because Queenie had some sort of attraction to him. Sammy instantly becomes emotionally attached to Queenie as he rings her up, even going so far that he fantasizes about the life he could have with her, and how much better his life would be with her in it. In the midst of Sammy’s daze, his boss, Lengel, emerges from his office to reprimand the group of girls for their attire. Lengel makes a scene, and publicly embarrasses the girls. As the girls scurry away to Queenie’s mother’s car, Sammy makes a desperate final attempt to impress Queenie by quitting his job and standing up for them. Lengel seemingly realizes what Sammy is trying to do, and offers him an out. Because of Lengel’s good relationship with Sammy’s parents, Lengel says, “Sammy, you don't want to do this to your Mom and Dad.” Although Sammy is given the opportunity to take back his foolish act, Sammy tells us, “But it seems to me that once you begin a gesture, it’s fatal not to go through with it.” This points to Sammy’s immaturity, his only

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

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

All of the main characters in the story make a choice and must endure the consequences. Sammy, the cashier of the supermarket, makes the most obvious choice. After an embarrassing encounter with the three girls and his manager, he has the choice of moving on and pretending nothing had happened, or standing up for the girls and doing something