John Updike A & P Language Analysis

1. Based on the dialogue Sammy uses, one can suspect he does not take himself too seriously. He speaks from a first person point of view which portrays him as a quiet observer. Sammy also seems to be slightly shallow because when he is referring to the girls in bathings suits inside the store he notes, the girl that initially caught his attention was the “chunky” girl in plaid. In addition to his shallowness, Sammy uses harsh words such as “the fat one with the tan sort of fumbled the cookies.” Sammy seems to be overly worried about this woman who is so called “chunky,” or “fat.” He seems to be an unhappy person, who feels the need to put others down to make himself feel better.Furthermore, Sammy uses informal words and sentences that are

The reader learns Sammy is an experienced “girl watcher” based off of his dialogue as well as his mannerism. For instance, Sammy uses the phrase “ you know, the kind of girl that other girls think is very striking and attractive.” This sentence, in particular, gives the reader an impression that he is always watching girls and the way they interact. Another example of Sammy’s girl watching ways would include the way he mentions how the “queen” walking on her bare feet. He notes, “she came down a little hard on her heels as if she didn't walk in her bare feet that much.” Again, based off of his dialogue the reader can assume this man is a girl watcher because he knows the way girls walk. He notices right away if a girl walks a certain way he hasn't seen before. Sammy seems to have this distorted image of women. He gives the reader the idea that all women are supposed to be tall, thin and attractive, who have perfectly groomed hair and a “prim” face. However, toward the end of the story, the reader begins to see a softer side of Sammy. Not only is he embarrassed his manager yelled at these young girls but he gains the courage to quit working at

When Sammy says “I quit,” so abruptly was to gain the attention of the young girls who had just been embarrassed by his boss. So, by saying he quit was a way to impress the girls, and also a way to stand up for them. I believe Sammy thought the girls would admire and respect him, however, this was not the case. The girls ended up walking out of the store without hearing what Sammy had said and he was left without a job. When Sammy says ‘’ the world is going to be hard to him” he means after quitting his job he realizes life just got that much harder. I believe he knew deep down inside that he had made a mistake but was so full of pride there was no way for him to apologize or beg for his job back. I believe Sammy also realizes that he is finally going to experience the world as a man. He no longer has a job, or a steady source of income so he is going to have to be proactive and search for a new