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Conformity In A & P By John Updike

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In the short story “A&P” by John Updike, Sammy quits his job because he realizes that he is tired of his same routine at the checkout counter and he wants to have the courage to stand up for people who do not always follow the masses. Upon seeing Queenie’s embarrassment when she is confronted by Lengel, Sammy realizes that he wants to change the way others treat those who express their individuality and uniqueness. Sammy longs for a society that is free of stereotyping and judgement. Queenie and Lengel are on opposite ends of the spectrum of conformity and Sammy is caught right in the middle. In order to make a point and to stand up for people who want to be original by expressing themselves, Sammy takes a chance and immediately tells Legel …show more content…

Sammy, a nineteen year old cashier at a local grocery store, is not pleased with his job, with his customers, or with the A&P in which he works. Sammy says that “after [he checks out customers] enough, it begins to make a little song, that [he hears] words to” (Updike 19). This shows the reader that Sammy’s job has become more of a mindless activity for him than a job that requires hard work and dedication. Sammy also does not like working for his boss, Lengel. Lengel thinks that he is the “head lifeguard” (Updike 19) who can treat everyone as if they are lower than him. This ego that Lengel has makes Sammy not want to be around his job in order to stay away from his manager. …show more content…

The A&P is a microcosm of society as a whole and the pressure to conform to unspoken rules. It shows how social and peer pressure is placed on people who are different. Sammy quits his job because of Lengel’s choice to address the situation with Queenie publicly, to embarrass Queenie, to make her feel uncomfortable, and to make her feel unimportant. Sammy realizes and disfavors that Lengel tries to be a kingpin and make the other pins of the world follow his lead. Sammy also quits his job because he does not want to conform to the image that others want him to be. He plays it off as trying to be the girls’ hero, but when he stands up for them, “they’re gone, of course” (Updike 20). Sammy knows that the girls would not see his actions and he knows that they would not matter to the girls, but it mattered to him. He wants to world to know that it is okay to be different and it is something that people should never be ashamed

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(273). Because Sammy had the courage to quit his job, he is like the girls in the bathing suits, refusing to conform. Because of his non conformity, Sammy's fear of a hard life to come seems to have a lot to do with Lengel. Lengel shows Sammy that life will be taxing for him if he quits, but Lengel’s actions prove that continuing to work at A&P is difficult as

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1032 Words | 5 Pages

John Updike’s “A&P” demonstrates through several methods the struggle that unwritten principle can place on women in their search for individuality and personal freedom from oppression. Sammy’s thoughts demonstrate this very concept, as well as Queenie’s actions as an independent woman, and the unfair and morally unjust establishment of a woman’s place by the oppressive male characters. With these ideas, Queenie is clearly represented as an innocent feminist who is ultimately shunned by her male oppressors. Sammy, the typical male totalitarian, is very much condescending towards the story’s female characters, automatically assuming ignorance on the part of them.

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1453 Words | 6 Pages

In John Updike’s short story “A&P,” Sammy is the narrator and cashier at the grocery story A&P. The author uses dynamic characters with immensely different personalities to portray conformity and rebellion in our society. Through out the story Sammy challenges conformity and social norms at his work place for personal reasons. Sammy is very bitter character and taken as a realist which fuels the story. Queenie, a rebel against conformity, sparks Sammy’s emotions after the way she is treated by his boss Langel when she walks into the grocery store with nothing but a bikini covering her skin.

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87 Words | 1 Pages

Sammy, the narrator of the story, sarcastically observes the customers of A&P from his standpoint behind the cash registers. He's technically an adult at 19 years of age, but he still relates to the teenage girls who walk into the store, and he reacts to Lengel's authority with youthful rebellion. However, as a blue-collar worker, he has to face more uncertainties and fears about the future than the girls do, and he finds himself dreading the adult consequences of his actions at the end of the

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1120 Words | 5 Pages

Who is the Real Hero in A&P? During the story of "A&P" by John Updike, the narrator playing the main character Sammy has a really negative view on the place that he works, and also a negative view of the people that choose to shop in the store. Sammy is portrayed to be a typical nineteen-year-old boy who doesn't act on his beliefs until three random half dressed girls spark his interest. He is really bitter towards the customers and towards the whole entire store in general but only chooses to speak up about it when he needs to prove himself to the ladies. Sammy acts only on his impulse to prove himself to his boss and the girls, and would not have taken a stand otherwise.

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1094 Words | 5 Pages

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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1505 Words | 7 Pages

John Updike’s story “A & P” was written in 1961 and takes place in a small town in Massachusetts. In a supermarket named “A & P,” which is on the town’s Central Street and is across from typical small-town stores – “two banks and the Congregational church and the newspaper store and three real-estate office” (Updike 748) – a cashier-clerk named Sammy witnesses three girls walking into his store wearing bathing suits, and he recounts his perceptions of them, their actions, and how they contrast with his relatively bland setting. Since he objectifies these women throughout the story (using phrases such as “sweet broad soft-looking can with those two crescents of white just under it” (Updike 746-7)), it could be suggested that “A & P” is a satire

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564 Words | 3 Pages

Sammy’s failed attempt goes unnoticed, and Lengel offers to give Sammy another chance. Sammy however, thought that taking it would be a “fatal not to go through with it. ”(Updike.19). Sammy exits the store, being jobless and failing his goal of wooing Queenie. Nonetheless, Sammy’s act of standing up for Queenie because of her attire is what makes him a hero.

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1852 Words | 8 Pages

3 The story of “A&P” by John Updike adopts the uses of figurative language to embellish the critical moments of transitions of people’s lives, particularly in the life of Sammy. Updike utilizes crafts of plot, character, setting, point of view, theme, and symbol to constitute the story, and to project the idea of "life passages. " Also, Sammy undergoes a series of events that enables him to transition as a person in his life. 3

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255 Words | 2 Pages

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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500 Words | 2 Pages

A major theme in A&P is personal freedom. Throughout the story Updike uses metaphor for all elements in the story to implies the theme. At the beginning of the story, Sammy uses sarcastic tone to describe the customers as “sheep” and “houseslaves” which implies he is different from them in mindset. The way how Sammy talks about others shows his intellectual mind. He is not same as Stokesie who wants to be a manager one day.

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781 Words | 4 Pages

The time to Mature As the story of “A&P” unfolds, readers can see a change in the main character from the start of the story to the end. John Updike’s main character Sammy in “A&P” conveys the theme of growing up through making decisions based on how others are treated, and what he wants for himself in order to mature and find his identity. Throughout the beginning of the story readers can see that Sammy is still a very immature nineteen year old because he easily gets distracted by three girls who enter into his job in bathing suits. “The one that caught my eye first was the one in the plaid green two-piece”.

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1251 Words | 6 Pages

This technique allows freedom to his audience to make their own interpretation of the dialogue in “A & P.” Sammy’s conscience was conflicted with the situation he was in. He established internally that what Lengel did was wrong and that he should have not humiliated them publically as he did, rather he should have taken them aside and explained the situation. Sammy did not hesitate on his instinct and consequently used this reasoning as justification for his actions as he quit with the little “time [he had to] [think] (Updike 343).” He was trying to act in the best way he knew possible using his better judgment in this difficult situation.

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941 Words | 4 Pages

As made apparent by Sammy’s first thought outside, “I look around for my girls, but they’re gone of course” (pg. #7), Sammy initially quit his job in the moment to gain praise from the girls and hopefully to have them swooning over him, but all along he knew the chances of gaining praise from them was slim. Although Sammy was hoping the girls would be waiting for him after he quit his job to stand up for them, he wasn’t really surprised by their absence; He expected it. As Sammy stated “I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter,” (pg.#7) without a job and without any form of reward for his somewhat heroic act, Sammy finally realized the challenges women in society face. Overall, A&P by John Updike is a short story raising awareness for women’s rights as well as proving that you shouldn’t judge someone based on their appearances.

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368 Words | 2 Pages

Discuss one of the following regarding John Updike's "A&P": Characterization, Setting, Theme. Sammy is the narrator of this story. He is an opinionated teenager who describes people shopping at the store as “sheep”. He believes everyone acts the same.

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