Thursday, May 17, 2012

A&P- John Updike

http://www.tiger-town.com/whatnot/updike/
Please post a brief comment and a discussion question for class on Monday.

40 comments:

  1. I think Sammy made too much of a big deal about the situation. Lengel was only lecturing them to dress more appropriately in public, and afterwards they just left without caring about whether or not Sammy quit his job for them. A pretty girl can really mess with a boy's mind.

    Was Lengel too harsh on the girls for telling them to wear clothes next time?

    Sidney
    Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  2. John Updike's story made me really uncomfortable to read in the library. The cashier creeps on the girls a bit too hard. I believe this is considered a coming of age story because the narrator sees that just because you look good and act like you own the place does not mean you really do. His reasoning for quitting is absolutely irrational. The pretty girls do not see it and if they did it is doubtful they would even see it as an act of valor on their behalf.

    Did the girls come of age or did the cashier?

    Stephen
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
  3. It was a little weird how Sammy was fixated on the girls the entire time they were in the store. He seemed possessed by every little thing Queenie did. I’m sure the girls were just a distraction on a quiet Thursday afternoon, but I don’t see why he needed to stand up for them in front of Lengel. He made an impulsive decision in quitting just to make him feel as dignified and important as Queenie. It was a stupid and irrational move, and the timing was inappropriate. He may have been fed up with his job, but choosing to quit because of how Lengel treated the girls was just random. One quick decision started a life of regret. Sometimes we do dumb things while not thinking about ourselves or others that care about us. Now Sammy has no one else to blame but himself.

    Why was Sammy so intrigued by the girls?

    Kelly Du
    Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  4. I think Sammy took the situation farther than it needed to be. Right when the girls walked into the store he did not take his eyes off of them. It was like he was obsessed with them and everything they did. when Lengel went up to the girls to tell them to dress more appropriate for the store, sammy did not have to stick up for the girls in front of Lengel. sammy quit is job because he didn't like the way Lengel was treating the girls. I think Lengel did the right thing. He didn't say anything bad he just told them that next time they need to have clothes on not bathing suits. I agree with Lengel.

    Why did Sammy quit his job? Was it so he could look cool in front of the girls he was obsessed with?

    Erica Celentano
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
  5. This was a very strange story. For one, no one would ever walk in to a grocery store in nothing but a bathing suit. For two, the cashier was way to creepy. But this story was also confusing. I don't get the point of it.

    What was the point of this story? and why did Sammy quit in the end?

    Kathryn Collins

    ReplyDelete
  6. Personally i liked this story, I understand why Sammy made the dicision he did but i belive it was too harsh for the situation. Lengel was only trying to tell the girls that it was not appropriate for them to come into the store dressed like that. I think Sammy had invested too much thought into the girls and maybe thats why he made that decision, but who knows, there could be a story behind it and this just helped him decide to quite. Overall i liked this story it was interesting all of the detail that the author put into the girls.

    Q:why did sammy feel that he needed to stand up for the girls? what reaction was he trying to get from them?
    Jennifer Lassman p1

    ReplyDelete
  7. This story was very interesting. To me it was extremely unrealistic. I do not believe that someone would walk into a grocery store with just a bathing suit on. However, if this happened in real life, I would side with Lengel. It is extremely inappropriate to be in a grocery store with just your bathing suit on. In addition, there was no reason for Sammy to get angry and stick up for the girls. Lengel was right in the situation. I believe that Sammy only got angry because he had an infatuation with the girls. He was a little obsessed and was basically stalking them. I think that this was Sammy's motivation to stick up for them in the grocery store because it was for his own personal benefit. He liked the view.

    Q: Do you think the girls were impressed with Sammy when he stuck up for them?

    -Ashley Murphy
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
  8. This story was very interesting, and a little bit weird. Lengel was right in the situation. It was inappropriate for the girls to be walking around a grocery store with their bathing suits on. It made the people around them feel uncomfortable. It was wrong for Sammy to stand up for them. I believe that Sammy's motivation to stick up for the girls was for his own personal benefit. He liked to look at the girls in their bathing suits. Also, he was a obsessed with them and wanted to make a good impression.

    Q: Do you think the girls were impressed with Sammy when he stuck up for them?

    -Ashley Murphy
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
  9. This story was ambiguous, as far as the "who's right, who's wrong" goes. The girls were wrong for wearing an inadequate amount of clothing in the store. The manager was right for reprimanding them for their attire, but he was also wrong in the way he did it. It wasn't neccesary for him to scrutinize them in such a public manner; a more private way would be better, and would thus be less embarassing. Sammy was right for sticking up for what he believed in, but he was wrong for focusing only on the girls, in an inappropriate way. An insignificant, superficial infatuation is not something one should quit a job for, and as a result, he is a fool for doing so. In life, it is imperative to focus more on the big picture, rather than frivolous details, like a girl in a bathing suit walking into your store.

    What was the underlying reason for him quitting? Was it his sympathetic feelings towards the girls? Anger wih his boss? The cessation of his transitory amusement? Or something else?

    Alex Gogliettino Per. 4

    ReplyDelete
  10. This was an interesting story. I agree that the girls shouldn't have been walking around in their bathing suits in a store, but, at the same time, I don't think that Lengel should have called them out on it, especially since they were about to leave anyway. I think that it was irrational for Sammy to quit his job over it, and he was definitely caught up in the moment. If he took time to think about it, he probably would've gotten over it and moved on.

    Why was Sammy so interested in watching the girls? Was it only because they looked so out of place?

    Alessandra M.
    Per. 4

    ReplyDelete
  11. I thought this was a very unique story. I don't think it was necessary for Sammy to quit his job simply over the girls in bathing suits. Lengel also didn't need to call them out on it as they were leaving. It would have been best to just let the girls leave and avoid the whole situation.

    What impression does Sammy's initial description of the girls give off?

    Chrissy B.
    period 4

    ReplyDelete
  12. I thought this story was actually really funny; everything was perfectly described, like the costumers being sheep and the store being like a pinball machine. I also liked the fact that it was written awhile ago because if it was written for 2012 the kid would have been spending too much time trying playing temple run on his phone to notice the girls even walk in.

    This story is a classic tale of the-things-people-do-because-of-boredom because cashiering can start to become monotonous work, especially on a bright summer's day. Boredom is like beer goggles; when you're that bored, anything can seem interesting. I'm willing to bet the girls weren't even that pretty, but compared to the fifty year old sheep that were shopping around them they were goddesses.

    I don't think the girls should have been walking into a supermarket with no clothes on in the first place because it's a health code violation and if they weren't wearing shoes they could have hurt themselves by stepping on something.(That's what Lengel should have told the girls) I also don't think that the kid should have lost his job over this incident, but at least he was brave enough to stick up for himself. Being a kid you need to experience what it's like to disagree with your boss, and decide what your job is worth to you.

    DQ: Why do you think the girls decided to go to the store in their bathing suites? Should they have expected that someone would say something about it?

    Marisa
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think this story had an interesting twist on a coming of age story. At first, we see things as written, but we must look at the story with a deeper meaning. Is it possible that he lost his job because he could not stay on task and block out all distractions? I think by losing his job, it showed us as teenagers that we must know when to “doze” off, and when to stay alert.

      Does the story have a deeper meaning than what is presented?

      Pompeo M.
      Per. 4

      Delete
  13. When I read this story, I kept expecting something more to happen that just a boy staring at some girls in bathing suits. I didn't find it interesting to read, and I must have missed the point of it all. I honestly didn't understand why Sammy felt it was a good idea to quit his job over something so silly. The girls must have know it was inappropriate to walk around in their bathing suits in public, and the manager wasn't even being that harsh on them. Sammy was overreacting and trying to impress the girls. It's interesting to see how some pretty girls could change the way he thinks.

    What do you think was the real reason Sammy quit his job?

    Nina Mariotti, period 1

    ReplyDelete
  14. Let me begin by first stating that I found the story to be interesting, and influential. John Updike experiments with overlooked aspects of society and human nature in his short story entitled, “A&P.” Though limited in purpose and plot, the story and its narrow amount of characters speak great truths about attraction between the sexes, and inferiority. It is evident from the very first sighting of the small posse that they are different from the regular customer looking to cross off the “asparagus” from his or her list. Composed of three individuals the group is seen as “walking against the usual traffic” lead by Queenie, a girl that exemplifies the finer qualities of being a woman in the exposition of her skin. The story is narrated from the point of view of a 19 year old cashier, Sammy; therefore, we are brought inside the mindset of the sexually driven teen. He analyzes the girls with great detail and contrasts them to the average shopper, the “woman with six children and varicose veins” in her legs. The story is overflowing with sexual content, from McMahon’s “sizing up of their joints” to the preoccupation with the girls’ location in the store. The fact that the girls chose to enter the store bearing little cloth and a lot of skin identifies them as a unique and distinct entity. As a group they are breaking the norms of society and are doing so with little regard for consideration of the rules. Perhaps this is what drives Sammy to quit. Seeing that girls are able to cross swords with society gives him the ability to stand up for what he sees as right. Even if prompted by sexual desires in hopes of attracting the girls’ attention, Sammy fights the inferiority of his position. Sammy sees himself as lower in power in comparison to his boss, who believes that the store “is a great dune- and he the head life guard.” Sammy challenges his position and by quitting he is in some way liberated from the subjugation of authority.

    What is the significance of the girls not recognizing Sammy’s actions?

    Alexander Borkowski Period 1

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good Question...Let's discuss if Sammy's actions serve as a metaphor of an aspect of society.

      Delete
  15. I must say that this story was painfully pointless. Honestly, the portrayal of Sammy made him sound like a young man who has lived under a rock for his whole entire life until this moment where he finally meets the female race for the first time in his immensely fascinating nineteen years of living. Also, it seems like Sammy is equipped with the wise knowledge that quitting his job for the most pointless of reasons will bring some sort of good karma to his life and the lives of those around him.

    Question:
    Why does Sammy think that quitting his job will bring some sort of justice to the "evil actions" of the managers ?

    - Zhanneta.
    Period 1.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Is not too common for people to wear bathing suit while shopping in a store like A&P but they do. Lengel made is point clear but did not have to act like the girls parent. I belief if your parent led you wear something then no one has the right to tell you to take it off unless you are not school or work. Sammy did a good thing for standing up to them but I did believe quitting his job was the way to go about it.

    Why were there no young unmarried girls in the town?

    sandrine amin
    period 1

    ReplyDelete
  17. I was very surprised that Sammy quit his job. He had been checking out the girls and was upset with the way his boss scolded them. It was very usual that the girls decided to go into a grocery store in just bathing suits. I think that the boss did the right thing, but went about it the wrong way. He was right in telling them it’s not appropriate to wear bathing suits into the store, but he didn’t need to do it in front of everyone. The right way to handle the situation would have been to pull them aside and tell them privately. I think Sammy overreacted too. This event is not something worth quitting over.



    How do you think the girls would have reacted to Sammy quitting his job?



    Kelly Loftis 1

    ReplyDelete
  18. I thought Sammy was over reacting. It’s a good thing that he wanted to support what he thought was right but that doesn’t mean he can go against a person who he have been respecting because he wanted to help some unknown girls for wearing two piece to the store.

    Was it necessary for Sammy to quit the job to prove that he disagrees with his boss?

    Shila Rajbahak
    Per1

    ReplyDelete
  19. I thought that this story was very interesting in the way that it was formatted. However I did not particularly enjoy it. I thought that the message was a bit hard to find and I would like to know why the author wrote it.

    What would Sammy have said to the girls if he saw them in the parking lot?

    Emily McColl
    period 4

    ReplyDelete
  20. This article was much different than the others we have read. Sammys vision is blurred by the young girls, causing his actions to be much more extreme, than if it was someone else. He is trying to impress these girls by quitting his job, yet it is a meaningless action. He feels that by some way, he is doing a good deed by leaving his job. In fact, the girls do not even recognize his actions.

    What is the significance of Sammy quitting his job? How does he feel it would better himself/the girls?

    Tyler King
    Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  21. Do you think Sammy had another motive for quitting his job?

    I found this article interesting because of the fact that it's realistic. I can picture a man swooning over girls in bathing suits. However, what I don't understand is why he quit his job over a few girls in inappropriate attire. There must have been another form of motivation behind his decision. Also, I feel as though the girls should not have entered the store dressed in only what they were. At the same time, the boss should have pulled them aside to explain why this cannot be done. Looking back on it, Sammy probably regrets quitting his job due to the fact that he was just caught up in the heat of the moment.
    Jessica Teulings
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
  22. This article was definitley different then the ones we usually read but it wasn't one of my favorites. I think that Sammy was overreacting and I was shocked that he quit his job. I found it very strange how Sammy was fixated on the girls so much and would not stop staring at them the second he saw them. This story was very odd.

    Q: Why did Sammy feel like he was obligated to stick up for the girls?

    Kayleen Kessler
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
  23. I can understand why Sammy might feel like he wants to quit. He really doesn't enjoy his job and you shouldn't waste your time doing something you do not enjoy. That author makes it clear that Sammy finds his duties monotonous and his boss annoying. When ringing the girls out Sammy talks about the routine and listless motions he makes at the counter. He also shows no sympathy or positive regard for his boss what-so-ever. So it is not strange that Sammy has a desire to quit his job. However, actually doing so was, in my opinion, very impulsive and rash. Now Sammy is without work and has a bad rep at AnP. All in an attempt to prove a point to a couple girls, who didn't even notice him.

    Why did the boss react the way he did to those girls?

    Daniel Borrus
    Period 4

    ReplyDelete
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