A Matter of Appearance
In the short story A & P, by John Updike the narrator/main character Sammy quits his job at the A & P store after defending three girls dressed in bathing suits from the “stingy” A & P manager Lengel, however the girls leave the store without even noticing Sammy’s attempt at gaining their attention. This then raises the question about why he quit. What was his reason? Was it wrong? Was it right? It is quite possible that Sammy may have had a deeper subconscious reason for quitting the A & P, but that is up to the readers to decide, because I am not going to answer that question here, but rather focus on a different matter. It does not make a difference why Sammy quit because it does not excuse or deny that his actions …show more content…
Sammy describes her as having “Prima Donna legs” (33), and breasts that look like “the two smoothest scoops of vanilla” (35). He slightly breaks away from his viewing of her physical appearance, though, when he notices her embarrassment when the manager Lengel tells them they are not dressed appropriately; showing that maybe he does notice something besides their physical appearance. However, he quickly goes back to being disrespectful and sexist when Queenie talks back to Lengel. He notes that her voice sounds “flat and dumb” to him (35). Which leads back to where Queenie was walking oddly, and Sammy said, “You never know for sure how girls’ minds work (do you really think it’s a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar?)” (33). Implying that he thinks all girls are possibly brainless, and being a girl myself I find that highly offensive. What might even be more offensive and disrespectful, however, is how he treats the tallest girl in the group, the one he calls Big Tall …show more content…
Sammy mentions what he thinks is physically wrong with her and then moves on. He does not think she is attractive, so therefore she is not worth his time. Goony is just another word for stupid, so he is basically calling her “big”, “tall”, and “stupid”, without anything to judge except for her physical appearance. How could that not be seen as being rude and disrespectful? Besides not being what Sammy finds appealing she has done nothing to be treated as a worthless goon by him. He is the one who quit his job and failed to gain their attention. He even says, “…my girls…,” at the end of story as if defending them somehow made them his possessions (36). Maybe he is the one who should be called a
In the short story A & P, by John Updike the narrator/main character Sammy quits his job at the A & P store after defending three girls dressed in bathing suits from the “stingy” A & P manager Lengel, however the girls leave the store without even noticing Sammy’s attempt at gaining their attention. This then raises the question about why he quit. What was his reason? Was it wrong? Was it right? It is quite possible that Sammy may have had a deeper subconscious reason for quitting the A & P, but that is up to the readers to decide, because I am not going to answer that question here, but rather focus on a different matter. It does not make a difference why Sammy quit because it does not excuse or deny that his actions …show more content…
Sammy describes her as having “Prima Donna legs” (33), and breasts that look like “the two smoothest scoops of vanilla” (35). He slightly breaks away from his viewing of her physical appearance, though, when he notices her embarrassment when the manager Lengel tells them they are not dressed appropriately; showing that maybe he does notice something besides their physical appearance. However, he quickly goes back to being disrespectful and sexist when Queenie talks back to Lengel. He notes that her voice sounds “flat and dumb” to him (35). Which leads back to where Queenie was walking oddly, and Sammy said, “You never know for sure how girls’ minds work (do you really think it’s a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar?)” (33). Implying that he thinks all girls are possibly brainless, and being a girl myself I find that highly offensive. What might even be more offensive and disrespectful, however, is how he treats the tallest girl in the group, the one he calls Big Tall …show more content…
Sammy mentions what he thinks is physically wrong with her and then moves on. He does not think she is attractive, so therefore she is not worth his time. Goony is just another word for stupid, so he is basically calling her “big”, “tall”, and “stupid”, without anything to judge except for her physical appearance. How could that not be seen as being rude and disrespectful? Besides not being what Sammy finds appealing she has done nothing to be treated as a worthless goon by him. He is the one who quit his job and failed to gain their attention. He even says, “…my girls…,” at the end of story as if defending them somehow made them his possessions (36). Maybe he is the one who should be called a