Estimated Reading Time: Less than one minutes
"A&P" is John Updike's short story written about the adventures in an ordinary supermarket. The story is written in first person and the speaker's name is Sammy, a young man who seems to pay more attention to the actions of the customers than his job.
The story is a recital of what happened on Sam's last day. The characters such as the watchful lady, the three girls, Stokesie his friend and the manager Lengel made the story seem very real because they were described as a normal everday person would talk about them in conversation.
The organization is chronological. It begins with the three girls entering the store, their misadventures and finally leaving as does Sam. Each part is connected to the preceding and following paragraphs. This makes the story flow very evenly.
The weak objectivity in the story can be attributed to the author trying to present a person who quit his job for people that didn't even realize it. The negative description of the watchful lady and how females think and Lengel show these feelings as well as calling the lead girl Queenie.
Updike's use of first person gives the story an amazing sense of reality and believability as a speaker. All of the events come from Sam which leads me to believe a biased view was taken but that adds to the story. The point of view is consistent throughout.
Nov 29, 1992