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The Use Of Symbolism In 'A & P'

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Primarily, "A & P" is a story about growing up, related circumstances and important transition from childhood to adulthood. At the beginning of the story, the reader meets Sammy, an ordinary nineteen-year-old who works at a grocery store. Though, his inner changes start when he observes the reactions to the girls. Actually, he is amused by these reactions and frustrated at the same time. He feels that he does not want to work at a grocery till the end of his days. In general, the whole story along with Sammy's alterations themselves are rich in symbolism. Hence, the main purpose of this essay is to provide an evidence regarding the symbols in "A & P". Basically, the general setting of the narrative is one of the most significant symbols. The same applies to the shoppers to whom Sammy frequently refers as to sheep. Both grocery and …show more content…

In particular, the older generation is depicted mainly in negative terms, for example, Sammy refers to one of the shoppers as a witch. "She's one of these cash-register-watchers, a witch about fifty with rouge on her cheekbones and no eyebrows, and I know it made her day to trip me up" ("A&P - John Updike"). That is a symbol of the inability of the older generation to understand youth. At the same time, Queenie, one of the girls, symbolizes all fascinating of being a woman and by herself represents the life which to Sammy seems fairly enjoyable yet unreachable. Sammy's older co-worker named Stokesie is a symbol of the life the protagonist may have headed for. Stokesie is married, bounded to his children and several opportunities for different life. "Stokesie's married, with two babies chalked up on his fuselage already, but as far as I can tell that's the only difference. He's twenty-two, and I was nineteen this April" ("A&P - John Updike"). Lengel is a general symbol of the older generation who does not want to hear anything about youthful

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The use of various and different archetypes such as the threshold guardian and the defiant anti-hero in “A&P” coveys John Updike’s changing perception of women and the values in today’s society. When the reader is first introduced to Sammy, they see him observing “three girls in nothing but bathing suits” and privately starts pointing out distinct physical features such as their “sweet broad soft-looking can” and how “the third one wasn’t so tall. She was the queen.” (Updike 1). Sammy is a very atypical person and doesn’t fall under society’s norm of a gentleman or one who shows any form of chivalry towards women..

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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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Generation gap plays a subtle role in “A&P”, whereas it serves as a cause for the regretful memories in the song lyrics. In John Updike’s “A&P”, the generation gap is first foreshadowed by the accusing customer in the first paragraph, as Sammy mocks “she'd been watching cash registers forty years and probably never seen a mistake before” (1). Sammy’s exaggeration is hereby indicative of how he perceives the older generation: discipline now connotes inflexibility, and rationality considered a conceit – all of its best features are replaced by shortcomings. The conflict reaches a boiling point in paragraph twenty-two, with Sammy quitting his job in protest to Lengel’s rebuke against the girls. When Sammy accuses Lengel by saying he “didn’t have to embarrass them” (23), Lengel gives a firm reply that “it was they who were embarrassing [them]” (24).

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Have you ever heard of the story the “Drummer Boy of Shiloh?” If you have you know the story. If you haven't then you should read it it's a good story. This story was written by Ray Bradbury .

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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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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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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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A&P My experience when reading “A&P” was pleasant. I was entertained by the author's choice of diction when describing the characters and her actions. The story did engage me and hold me interest, due to reading someone else’s perspective and experience when working in a grocery store. I find Legals attitude more appealing, because even though he told them to put on some clothes he did not judge them and made conclusions.

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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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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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