AandP 2

A detailed Summary of AandP 2

In John Updike's A&P, the main character Sammy, is developed through the use of setting. The story starts off with a young man discontent with his ordinary adult surroundings and moves to his need to change it. Throughout the story, Sammy describes and interprets the scenes around him consequently revealing his own character. Although the physical setting of the grocery store is left more to the imagination, Updike uses the vivid images of the other characters to illustrate the setting through Sammy's point of view. The characters create the setting, and the insight into young Sammy's mind leads us to see it through his eyes. Sammy's character can be seen through his interpretation of the customers, his manager, and the young girls visiting the store.

First, Sammy interprets the customers as being old, dull and unable to relate to young people. The fist customer he comes across he describes as a "witch about fifty" and a "cash register watcher". He even notes that it makes her day to see him trip up. It is at this point that he begins to make it evident that he doesn't particularly care for the customers. In the fifth paragraph he goes on to describe the customers as "sheep" and "houseslaves in pin curlers". While he describes

Next, Sammy sees himself through the interpretation of his manager, Lengel. Although Sammy depicts his manager as "dreary" he seems to see him as a good person not unlike his own family. He mentions that Lengel "teaches Sunday school and the rest" as if although it isn't bad, that he, like the customers is just an old person who cannot relate to young people. He seemed to feel upset by the way that Lengel spoke to the girls and embarrassed them. When Lengel mentions that the policy of the A&P is to have one's shoulders covered while shopping, Sammy notes "Policy is what the kingpins want. What the others want is juvenile delinquency." The others, it seems being him. Sammy put an even bigger separation between himself and his manager when he announced that he quit. It is as though he is so discontent with the thought of relating or agreeing with his manager that he must leave his job in an attempt to deviate from becoming like him. Sammy seems to feel sorry for his manager after he says that he has quit adding "Lengel sighs and begins to look very patient and old and gray". Although he feels a twinge of regret, he seems to want to prove to himself that he is unlike these older people. In some way, he seems to fear that he too, will become like Lengel in time and is trying to ensure otherwise.

Finally, Sammy's character is revealed through his analysis of the young girls visitin

Some common words found in the essay are:
Updike's A&P, Finally Sammy's, Lengel Sammy, store sammy, relate people, character sammy developed, sammy developed, character sammy, girls visiting, sammy's character, sammy describes,

Approximate Word count = 935
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English