What role does the grocery store itself play in the story A&P?
By John Updike The A&P grocery store chain was one of the pioneers in this industry, paving the way for the superstores we see today (source). In Sammy’s eyes, the A&P he works in reflects the conformist tendencies of his community. Sammy and the girls in bathing suits represent a rebellion against this conformism.
Does anything lead you to expect Sammy?
Sammy’s smile and the narrator’s diction of “lifeguard” lead me to expect Sammy to show his sympathy. Besides, “It just having come from between the two smoothest scoops of vanilla I had ever known were there”, this metaphor that the author uses also shows Sammy’s admiration to those girls.
Why does Sammy quit his job so suddenly?
Sammy quits his job so suddenly in an attempt to impress Queenie and gain her admiration. Since Sammy hopes to personally benefit from his dramatic decision, his quitting is not genuinely heroic and would constitute merely the misguided idealism of a rebellious adolescent.
How does Sammy view Stokesie?
Sammy condescends to Stokesie, who intends to make a career out of working at the A&P. However, Sammy also identifies with Stokesie in some ways and sees him as a cautionary example of how he himself might end up.
What is the resolution of A&P?
2. But it seems to me that once you begin a gesture it’s fatal not to go through with it. Sammy makes this resolution near the end of the story, as Lengel tries to dissuade him from quitting his job.
What is the climax of the story Stargirl?
In Stargirl, the climax is the scene where Susan returns from winning the public speaking contest expecting a hero’s welcome, and instead is greeted by only a handful of people. After that, Susan returns to her identity as Stargirl, and in her personal conflict between individuality and conformity, individuality wins.
How does Sammy change in the story A&P?
Sammy is a dynamic character because he changes in the course of the story. After he quits, he realizes that his gallant actions have been lost on Queenie and that no one understands his chivalry. He decides that he will no longer be one of the “sheep” in his small town and will instead make his own way in the world.
What does Sammy call the housewives who frequent the A&P store?
Sammy says he’s one of the “bums,” a favorite term of his for the customers. Later, he labels them “scared pigs in a chute,” further dehumanizing them. In “A&P” what assumptions does Sammy make about the customers he calls “house-slaves in pin curlers”?
Why did Sammy quit his job essay?
The arrival of the girls at “A&P” greatly motivated Sammy to quit his job urgently. He was highly interested in Queenie because he wanted to live her lifestyle. His attraction to the girl went beyond her physical attributes. Sammy wanted to behave and live like the girl.
How does Sammy describe Queenie?
According to him, she has a queen-like presence. She is a leader, not a follower. She’s not afraid to go against the grain and is proud of who she is. Sammy thinks she’s probably from a fairly wealthy family.
What does A and P stand for?
Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company
What is Queenie’s response to Lengel’s confrontation?
What is Queenie’s response to Lengel’s confrontation? “It’s not your business.” “Don’t be creepy.”
How does the manager react to the three rich girls wearing nothing but bathing suits to A&P?
He is amazed because they have nothing on except 2 piece bathing suits. Then the manager (Lengel) comes out and yells at the chicks because they are under-dressed. They argue and the girls tell him they are there for one thing (herrings). Finally the girls check out and leave.
What is the main conflict in A&P?
– The main conflict in the story is when the Manager -Lengel- starts telling the girls they can come dressed like that and embarasses them, then Sammy trying to be the hero quits trying to get the girls attention.
Why does the author title the story A & P?
The name A & P came to be synonymous with “grocery store” in the way that Kleenex is synonymous with tissue. In small towns, no other store could compete with the A & P and it was where “everyone went.” Thus, the A & P represented a part of Americana of the late 50s.
What is the meaning of Fiddle de doo in paragraph 28?
of disagreement
Why does Sammy call the customers sheep?
In John Updike’s short story “A&P,” Sammy calls the people in the store sheep. Sammy refers to the people as sheep because he fails to see any differences between them. Essentially, he does not look at them as individuals. The girls do not follow the unstated rules and are not considered sheep by Sammy.
What is the message of A&P by John Updike?
The main message of the story is the choice made by the main character. He rebels against the society that is consumer-conditioned and chooses to live honestly and meaningfully. The nature of this rebellion is what J. Updike wanted to show in his A&P short story.
Why does Sammy think the world will be hard on him?
Hover for more information. There are some obvious reasons why Sammy might feel that the world was going to be hard for him after he walked off his job. The fact that he has walked off the job without giving any notice whatever will be a black mark on his record. Getting up to the level of a checkout…
How does Sammy feel about the usual customers in the store?
In “A&P,” Sammy thinks of the regular customers in the A&P as sheep because they seem to him timid and obedient like sheep, flocked together in one indiscriminate herd. Calling them sheep shows his contempt for them but also helps him distinguish between them and the girls he admires, Queenie and her friends.
What is the climax of A&P?
The climax of the story is when the protagonist gets quite upset at his A&P manager for his treatment of Queenie and the rest of the bathing suit girls and quits his job in front of everyone. Plus, he is quite fed up already with his job, his manager, and everything around him.
What does Sammy symbolize in A&P?
Sammy is initially drawn to the girls simply because they are scantily clad, young, and attractive. However, for Sammy, the bathing suits come to symbolize freedom and escape from the world in which he finds himself.
What type of character is Sammy in A&P?
Sammy, the narrator of “A&P,” is an opinionated, sarcastic, disaffected teenager with a healthy interest in the opposite sex and a keen observational sense.
How do Sammy’s actions in A&P reveal his character?
Sammy’s notion that he needs to protect the girls says all kinds of things about him. On one hand, Sammy’s thoughts and attitude reveal something about what he believes about gender and gender roles. Sammy buys into the idea that women are the “fairer/weaker” sex.
Is Sammy a hero in A&P?
Sammy is an unrecognized hero whose drastic actions initially seemed illogical. His rebellious attitude is an indication of his willingness to stand with those people who are oppressed and also to stand firm for what he believes is right thing. He therefore becomes a hero to himself and to the oppressed.
What is the biggest conflict in the outsiders?
major conflict Against the background of the clash between the poor greasers and the rich Socs, the greaser Ponyboy struggles to mature. rising action Johnny kills a Soc; Johnny and Ponyboy flee; tension mounts between the greasers and Socs.
How does setting affect conflict?
The setting can be rife with problems that prevent your protagonist from solving her problems and even add to her internal conflicts. These environmental conflicts are the issues and situations that make it harder for the protagonist to face the challenges of the novel.
What does Sammy do at the end of the story?
Sammy has just quit his job to take a stand against no-bathing-suit policies everywhere. The three girls didn’t stick around to exchange numbers with their unsung hero, and the story ends on a kind of lonely note. This sentence leaves room for lots of different interpretations.
How does the narrator’s point of view influence how the events are described in the text A&P?
“A&P” is narrated by Sammy. This greatly affects the plot and theme of the story. Sammy is a biased narrator because he is infatuated with the girls. The story is told in first person omniscient point of view.