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A & P By John Updike Analysis

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Title: A&P_________________________ Author: John Updike_______________ (Identify sentences/words/phrases in the story to support your information.) Title (Significance?): The author was in search for ideas for stories, when he happened to drive past an A&P store. He wondered why nobody has created a story about the A&P store. He combined this question with a personal experience he once had at a grocery store. Setting (Time, Place, Social Context-(Significance?)): The A&P grocery store was one of the pioneers in this industry, making the way for the superstores we see today. Took place in the 1950’s, at that time people were expected to conform. Sammy and the girls represent a rebellion against this conformism. Moreover, in the 1950’s people …show more content…

Sammy sees the costumers as “sheep” all different from one another. The people are meant to symbolize the spirit of conformity; like the author saw among the people in the 1950’s. He goes from complaining about what he sees as a problem to actually taking action towards the situation. Characters with types (flat, round, static, dynamic,) traits, and motivations: • Sammy; Sammy is a 19 years old guy, and a cashier in the A&P grocery store. (Flat and Static) because we do not know very much about him. Also, Sammy is motivated by his hormones, which he cannot control. • Queenie: Everything we know about her is based on the descriptions of Sammy. Queenie is the leader of her little group. She is also very sensitive. (Round) • Stokesie: (Flat and Static), he is a sympathetic character, which we can tell because Sammy likes him. • Lengel: Is the manager of the A&P store, and also a Sunday teacher. He embarrasses the girls and threatens Sammy with a horrible future. (Flat) …show more content…

For the reason, that in the 1950’s it was not common to see people walk around in their bathing suits. The girls in bathing suits also caused Sammy to get distracted and start thinking in s sexual manner. -Climax: The climax in the story is when Sammy quits his job. Sammy quitted his job because he did not like how Lengel was treating the girls in the bathing suits -Resolution: The resolution takes place at the end of the story, when Sammy watches his ex boss through the windows doing his old job. Sammy began to feel that by quitting his job, will make things more complicated for him in the future. Literary Elements -Symbols: • Sheep: Sheep, symbolize people who just follow the flock. • Herring snacks & Beer glasses: Symbolize people’s social and economic class. • The apron and bow tie: Symbolize breaking free from the sheep’s • The money in her top: Symbolize the action of the unexpected. • A&P: Symbolize anatomy & physiology. -Irony: The most ironic moment in the story is when Sammy quits his job. Sammy wants to make a statement that on behalf of the girls, by being their hero. The irony is that they do not hear Sammy, they are out of the store before his resignation is

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John Updike's short story “A&P” explores teenage rebellion and coming-of-age, through multiple stylistic elements such as symbolism, metaphor, and irony; Updike can portray his theme of the consequences of making decisions based on impulse and youthful idealism specifically through the character Sammy. The “A&P'' grocery shop is a particularly effective symbol in this scenario. The narrator, Sammy, who works at the shop, has both a physical and symbolic role in the story. In addition to Sammy's workplace, the store represents society's expectations of conformity. Other customers are described as “sheep” who came in wiping their hands on their skirts as though the shelves had been dusting themselves since the last time they were in.

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In the short story A & P by John Updike, A store clerk

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In the story “A&P,” Updike communicates Sammy’s imprisonment though his location within the grocery store. In the first few sentences, Updike places “[Sammy] in the third check-out slot, with [his] back to the door, so [he doesn’t] see [the girls] until they’re over by the bread” (Updike 17). The physical isolation of the ‘check-out slot’ combined with Sammy’s inability to see outside demonstrates how he is incapable of seeing the outside world, let alone reaching its freedom. The act of Sammy noticing the girls further attests to his mental confinement; as instead of thinking of the store in terms of layout, he thinks in terms of ‘bread’ (17). His habit of thinking in terms of products signifies how the grocery store is where he spends the majority of his time, further alluding to Sammy’s physical confinement within the

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In John Updike's short story "A&P," the narrator, Sammy, is negatively impacted by his human connections with the other characters in the story. Sammy's interactions with the customers and his boss at the grocery store represent a world of conformity, predictability, and boredom. However, when three young women in bathing suits enter the store, Sammy becomes infatuated with them, and his perspective shifts. The sexuality of the females in the novel causes them to become a distraction for Sammy the narrator, and when people have a physical connection instead of a personal connection, it eventually has consequences. This has a negative effect on the character.

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A&P: The Perspective of Sammy “A&P” by John Updike tells the story of Sammy, a teenage boy working at a grocery store, when he sees three girls dressed in swimsuits enter. Quickly, Sammy becomes infatuated with the leading girl whom he dubs “Queenie”. Eventually, the girls are accosted by the manager for dressing inappropriately and Sammy quits in both an act of rebellion and wanting the appreciation of the girls. All throughout the story Sammy’s sarcastic and inquisitive nature comes out leading to a distinct voice and thought process the reader follows giving the reader a very opinionated view of all the characters and action in the story.

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John Updike's short story "A&P" is about a 19-year-old boy “Sammy” who is going through changes in his life, and has to make crucial decisions that are going to affect his job and his future in the long run. The story is set in an A&P grocery store, in a town north of Boston, and begins with Sammy’s description of the three girls that enter the store. Sammy decides to quit his job in order to impress the girl “Queenie.” Unfortunately, his gentlemanly act goes unnoticed by Queenie and her friends, and he has no choice but to face the consequences of his action. The author of the story clarifies that Sammy’s immaturity comes from his judgmental attitude, sexist beliefs, and disrespectful attitude.

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