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In the short story, “A & P,” by John Updike, 19-year-old Sammy works as a grocery store clerk in the middle of his town. One fateful day, three girls meander into the store, wearing only their bathing suits. To Sammy, these girls appear free, cool and confident. In his description of Queenie and the two other girls, Sammy says, “She was the queen. She kind of led them, the other two peeking around and making their shoulders look round. She didn’t look around, not this queen, she just walked straight on slowly, on these long prima-donna legs ”(188). Sammy watches the girls very closely, studying their every move with a seemingly sexual eye. With a judgmental perspective, he immediately labels these perfect strangers based solely on their appearances. In reference to the girls’ obvious affluence, Sammy even says, “I wonder where the money’s coming from”(192), and also condescendingly refers to the girls as “sheep pushing their carts down the aisle” (190). Sammy’s boss, Lengel, upset with the girls’ inappropriate attire “concentrates on giving the girls that sad Sunday-school superintendent stare,”(193) and orders them to wear more clothing the next time they shop there. Sammy, deeply troubled by the confrontation, suddenly makes the huge decision to quit his job. Initially, it seems that he selfishly quits his job to appear more attractive to the young, sun-kissed beauties. “The girls, and who’d blame them, are in a hurry to get out, so I say ‘I quit’ to Lengal quick enough for them to hear, hoping they’ll stop and watch me, their unsuspected hero” (195). However, if Sammy clearly views the girls’ in a negative light, why is he so eager to impress them? Is his condescending tone a message to the reader that he doesn’t like the girls? When the three girls first enter the store, Sammy’s admiration for their bodies and bathing suits is distinctly obsessive.
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