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Updike's A&P

Sammy's Muses in Updike's "A&P"

John Updike's "A&P" tells the story of Sammy whose life is transformed after three girls visit the store where he is working and are humiliated by the store's manager. The A&P where Sammy works offers the readers insight into the quotidian life of middle-class suburbia, while on the other hand, the three girls, whom Sammy nicknames Queenie, Plaid, and Big Tall Goony-Goony, represent rebellion and allow Sammy to recognize and realize the freedom he longs for. In "A&P," Sammy's defense of the three girls is superficially both egalitarian and sexist and serves as an excuse to break free from suburban normalcy.

Queenie, Plaid, and Big Tall Goony serve as the impetus for Sammy's ruminations on suburbia, sexism, and capitalism and corporate culture. Sammy sees the girls as being a rebellion of suburbia. They do not appear to conform to society's expectations of dress or demeanor, and they are oblivious to the stagnant realm of suburban life encapsulated at the A&P. Sammy notes the girls are the antithesis of the suburban women that frequently shop at the store. Sammy refers to suburban women as "house-slaves in pin curlers," implying that these women have caved to social pressures and conformed to social expectations and conventions (Updike). Sammy continues to describe A&P's suburban customers as "sheep pushing their carts down the aisle" and insinuates that these typical shoppers have lost the capability to think for themselves and engage in their daily activities out of habit rather than as a choice.

On the other hand, Sammy appears to admire the girls for their complete disregard of the suburban norm. While Sammy views suburban women as "house-slaves in pin curlers," simultaneously commenting on their social status and dress, he is taken aback by the girls' unconventional dress. Sammy notes,

You know, it's one thing to have a girl in a bathing suit down on the beach, where what with the glare nobody can look at each other much anyway, and another thing in the cool of the A&P, under the fluorescent lights, against all those stacked packages, with her feet paddling along naked over our checkerboard green-and-cream rubber-tile floor. (Updike)

By contrasting how the beach atmosphere differs from the A&P's atmosphere, Sammy not only comments on the differences between the girls and the A&P's regular customers, but also comments on the freedom the beach represents when compared to the confines of the grocery store, a subconscious juxtaposition of suburban life with what he perceives the girls' life to be. Moreover, Sammy comments that the girls are unconventional beyond their dress and their unconventional demeanor extends to how they move around the store. While Sammy refers to the A&P's regular customers sheep, he notes, "the girls were walking against the usual traffic (not that we have one-way signs or anything)" as though to comment the girls refused to play by society's rules and literally and figuratively went against the crowd, or what society had defined as a norm.

While Sammy's thoughts and attitude reflect his rejection of social norms and suburbia, quitting his job can be construed as a rejection of capitalism and corporate culture. Through his description of typical A&P shoppers, it is evident Sammy does not enjoy working at the store. He sees the same thing everyday and has been performing the same tasks so much so that they no longer hold their original intended meaning, but have taken on a new one. Sammy contends, "I go through the punches, 4, 9, GROC, TOT -- it's more complicated than you think, and after you do it often enough, it begins to make a lttle song, that you hear words to, in my case "Hello (bing) there, you (gung) hap-py pee-pul (splat)"-the splat being the drawer flying out" (Updike). Sammy has created an alternative reality to amuse himself while he is at work, which is probably one of the reasons that he is so attracted to the girls.

Based on his attitude, thoughts, and behavior, it is difficult to classify Sammy as an egalitarian or a sexist and it can be argued that his simultaneously both and neither. Sammy's sexist attitude can be seen in how he perceives the three girls. While Sammy ultimately appreciates their boldness of character and their apparent refusal to conform to social convention, he bases his initial perceptions based on their appearance. By fixating on the girls' physical appearance, Sammy objectifies the girls Sammy explains, "The one that caught my eye first was the one in the plaid green two-piece. She was a chunky kid, with a good tan and a sweet broad soft-looking can with those two crescents of white just under it, where the sun never seems to hit, at the top of the backs of her legs" (Updike). After correcting a mistake incurred by being distracted by the first girl, Sammy proceeds to objectify the other two girls and states,

There was this chunky one, with the two-piece -- it was bright green and the seams on the bra were still sharp and her belly was still pretty pale so I guessed she just got it (the suit) -- there was this one, with one of those chubby berry-faces, the lips all bunched together under her nose, this one, and a tall one, with black hair that hadn't quite frizzed right, and one of these sunburns right across under the eyes, and a chin that was too long -- you know, the kind of girl other girls think is very "striking" and "attractive" but never quite makes it, as they very well know, which is why they like her so much. (Updike)

Moreover, Sammy continues to objectify the girls by giving them nicknames based on how he believes they carry themselves. He nicknames Queenie based on how she "kind of led them, the other two peeking around and making their shoulders round," nicknames Plaid based on what she is wearing, and nicknames Big Tall Goony-Goony based on her physical appearance (Updike). Sammy appears to be drawn to these girls because they break up the monotony of his everyday life and disturb the delicate A&P ecosystem through their ignorance.

Only after Sammy objectifies the girls does he begin to look further into what he believes they represent -- freedom and rebellion. While it may appear to be noble that he stands up for them, he does not stand up for them based merely on it being the right thing, but also aims to impress them. Sammy recounts, "I say "I quit" to Lengel quick enough for them to hear, hoping they'll stop and watch me, their unsuspected hero," however, Sammy's grand gesture goes unrecognized and he is left to cope with the ramifications of his actions. Although Lengel tells Sammy his parents will be upset, Sammy contends, "it seems to me that once you begin a gesture it's fatal not to go through with it" (Updike).