Analysis of John Updike’s “A&P”
The story “A&P” takes place at in an A&P grocery store located in a small town, specifically in the 1960’s. We are introduced to our main character Sammy, who is one of the cashiers at the store. Sammy is a young man you isn’t at the happiest point in his life, but rather bored and doubtful towards his future. At one point in the story a group of girls walk into the grocery store and Sammy becomes particularly fascinated by them. While the girls are shopping Sammy observes how the other customers react to this outgoing group. He begins to see how these girls are in reality “going against the grain,” compared to the regulars who shop there. As opposed to the usual attire, the group is wearing their bathing suits and walking around bare foot. He notices how they are different than the others, and this is what interests him. When the girls finally check out, the store manager confronts them and they are criticized for their appearance. But Sammy on the other hand believes the situation is being blown out of proportion. Therefore, with a sudden sense of rebellion, Sammy abruptly quits his job. Afterwards, he believes what he did was right, but is unsettled by his unknown future. The question is, “Was quitting his job a loss or gain for Sammy?” Although this story takes place within a few minutes, I believe it symbolizes a greater process of maturation. By quitting his job Sammy prevented himself from being another common product of society.
The Essay on Why Does Sammy Quit His Job?
In the short story “A&P”, the character Sammy quits his job for a few different reasons. In the podcast professor Higgins suggest that she quits for two different reasons. Sammy wants to impress the girls. The other reason was because; Sammy mentions that once you make a decision it is fatal not to go back on it. I agree with both reasoning’s. I also agree with both professors that it is a ...
It’s apparent that Sammy feels suck at this point in time in his life. Instead of the A&P being a grocery store, it acts as a prison that keeps Sammy from venturing outside the box. As a young man, he seeks excitement and adventure; which is something the A&P cannot give him. He feels that there is something better out there waiting for him, and he would love to go find it. But at the same time his future is unknown, and without a guarantee of a steady salary, life isn’t going to be pretty. At the same time though, deep down Sammy wants to just move on with his life. It seems that his parents have a set path for their son, and want him to follow the norms of society, but this is not as appealing to Sammy. To continue to work at the A&P would just mean that he has settled in life; and at this young, that’s a very misfortunate conclusion.
One of the major factors that are influencing Sammy into thinking the way he is would be the store manager: Stoksie. Stoksie has decided to make a career out of working at the A&P and already has a wife and two children. In other words, he’s set for life according to the standards of society. What makes all of this worse is that Stoksie isn’t that much older than Sammy. With a family already made, Stoksie doesn’t have much room to take some time out and think about what he wants out of life. His priorities now consist of providing for his loved ones and making sure all their needs are met. Therefore, Sammy indeed views Stoksie as a glimpse into his future. He sees Stoksie’s days are very consistent and hardly off the beaten path. Working with Stoksie has influenced Sammy’s doubts and warned him to be cautious, because it’s very easy to get sucked into any sort of conformity.
When the group of girls walk into the store they make a huge impact of Sammy, which leads him to have somewhat of a revelation. At first glimpse of the girls, all Sammy notices are their physical characteristics: are they pretty or ugly, the clothes their wearing, and so on. But as he continues to observe them, he sees the overall dynamic between the girls and how they interact with each other. He then realizes that their actions begin to interrupt the order of the A&P. The customers, who are considered the regulars, always do the same thing every single day. They constantly follow the same path that society has made for them; because to them they’d rather do what’s accepted than follow their own beat. This is why these particular girls are so refreshing to Sammy. It’s simply because they are different. Sammy decides that it’s a shame anybody would want to destroy their uniqueness, and he therefore does not want to be in a place that discourages being different. So when Sammy ultimately quits his job, he’s protesting against a uniform life; a life where people are told it’s not ok to be different.
The Essay on My Life Paper Girl Blah
My life is like a box of chocolates You never know what u gonna gat. Well its like this. This paper writing crap sucks because all we want is a free per not to be given such a hassle because our papers arent really free their a waste of time because its crap than for the paper and I hope that you give me this stupid paper for my phycology class soon I wanna go on vacation. our friends say were ...
I believe this story displays how Sammy evolves into his own person. He quits his job because the girls gave him hope of another side of life. They interrupted his daily routine and made him question why he was doing things he actually didn’t want to do. The only reason he was still at the A&P is because he didn’t want to disappoint his parents; but it’s not their life he’s living, it’s his. Sammy became infatuated with how glamorous and fun the girl’s seemed, because it was like they were more content with their lives than he was with his. They impressed him, and he wanted to impress them in return by quitting his job. He realizes that in a fight between rebellion and stifling order, he would want rebellion to win. While working at the A&P, everyday he saw dreary, zombie-like people walk down the isles, and this confirmed how much he wanted something more out of life. After quitting, his life will no doubt be harder because paychecks help the world go round, and he’ll probably struggle to get by. But in the end, although quitting his job was unrealistic, it was for the best; because it doesn’t matter what society wants for you, all that matters is if you believe you’ve chosen the right path for yourself.
