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Heroism In John Updike's A & P

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Saving lives, jumping from tall buildings, and flying -- is heroic characteristics.Sammy in John Updike's story “A&P” is not a hero. I believe he is not a hero because Sammy never interacted with the girls, he quit his job to impress the girls, and they never saw his action. Sammy never interacted with the girls, his mindset was just lust and how pleasing they are. “She had on a kind of dirty-pink bathing suit and, what got me the straps were down” (Updike). Sammy was just impressed by how the girls had the decency to walk in a grocery in bikinis, it made his day. “The one that caught my eye was the one in the plaid green two-piece” (Updike). He never spoke to the girls, he only stared like a deer in headlights. These statements explain how …show more content…

“I pull the bow at the back off my apron and start shrugging it off my shoulders” (Updike). This proves how he didn't interact with the girls. Although he was trying to be “heroic”, the girls never noticed. Whenever he done his so called “heroic” act the girls didn't even notice. “The door flies open and they flicker across the lot to their car” (Updike). His action goes unexpected, the girls didn't hesitate, they were in a hurry to leave. This shows how the girls didn't notice what he had done. Although I believe Sammy is not a hero, others think he is. Some people think he is a hero because he took up for the girls. By quitting his job he took up for them? I don't think that's taking up for someone, that's stupidity. Sammy didn't have to throw out his job like trash when he could've easily have kept his mouth shut, or just have said “you didn't have to embarrass them like that”. He necessarily didn't have to quit. In conclusion, heroes are people who do dramatic actions, jumping from building to buildings, not people who quit their job to impress a bunch of girls. Sammy is nowhere near a heroic figure. He never interacted with the females, he quit his job to impress them, and they never saw his action

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