The questioning of values in A&P and Araby
A&P written by John Updike and Araby written by James Joyce are both short initiation stories. The stories feature a young boy starting adolescence in which both suffer a loss of innocence and the frustration of first love. In A&P, Sammy, a clerk, attempts to win the love of a young girl by being chivalrous and ultimately decides to quit his job. Similarly, in Araby, the narrator, a boy living in Dublin, Ireland is in love with a girl and promises to bring her a gift from a local bazaar. Both boys go through a major change by realizing that things are more difficult to achieve then originally though. In A&P and Araby, the stories contain protagonists that are questioning the values of the society …show more content…
The small town where the A&P is located is in New England near a resort beach area. The store is set in the heart of the town where you can see “two banks and the Congregational church”. Since the church is mentioned early in his description, we realize its importance in setting the moral code for the town. These are upheld within the walls of the A&P where order, rules and routine are the norm. Sammy sees his life at the store as being dull and boring because of the rules and restrictions. The boy in Araby has similar feeling toward his life which takes place in Dublin, Ireland during the 1800’s. Society’s values can be seen in Araby when the narrator talks of the house that he lives in and the former tenant. His statement about the priest willing all his money to religious institutions shows that the Catholic values are at play throughout the story. Another example of the Catholic values is prevalent when the girl and the boy are discussing about going to the bazaar. She states “there would be a retreat that week in her convent” and will not be able to attend. The aunts thoughts about the bazaar are summarized with the narrators statement “My aunt was surprised and hoped it was not some Freemason affair”, implying that it would be in direct conflict with her Catholic …show more content…
In Araby the boy believes that in his society, the Catholic religion and its values suppress his dreams and need for romance. At the end, his statement “Gazing up into the darkness, I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger” the reader can tell he is questioning his values. In A&P, Sammy questions his society’s values but is disappointed after quitting the supermarket and the girls not recognizing him for standing up for them. Sammy’s statement “my stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter” leads the reader into thinking the town was going to question his values and
A&P written by John Updike and Araby written by James Joyce are both short initiation stories. The stories feature a young boy starting adolescence in which both suffer a loss of innocence and the frustration of first love. In A&P, Sammy, a clerk, attempts to win the love of a young girl by being chivalrous and ultimately decides to quit his job. Similarly, in Araby, the narrator, a boy living in Dublin, Ireland is in love with a girl and promises to bring her a gift from a local bazaar. Both boys go through a major change by realizing that things are more difficult to achieve then originally though. In A&P and Araby, the stories contain protagonists that are questioning the values of the society …show more content…
The small town where the A&P is located is in New England near a resort beach area. The store is set in the heart of the town where you can see “two banks and the Congregational church”. Since the church is mentioned early in his description, we realize its importance in setting the moral code for the town. These are upheld within the walls of the A&P where order, rules and routine are the norm. Sammy sees his life at the store as being dull and boring because of the rules and restrictions. The boy in Araby has similar feeling toward his life which takes place in Dublin, Ireland during the 1800’s. Society’s values can be seen in Araby when the narrator talks of the house that he lives in and the former tenant. His statement about the priest willing all his money to religious institutions shows that the Catholic values are at play throughout the story. Another example of the Catholic values is prevalent when the girl and the boy are discussing about going to the bazaar. She states “there would be a retreat that week in her convent” and will not be able to attend. The aunts thoughts about the bazaar are summarized with the narrators statement “My aunt was surprised and hoped it was not some Freemason affair”, implying that it would be in direct conflict with her Catholic …show more content…
In Araby the boy believes that in his society, the Catholic religion and its values suppress his dreams and need for romance. At the end, his statement “Gazing up into the darkness, I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger” the reader can tell he is questioning his values. In A&P, Sammy questions his society’s values but is disappointed after quitting the supermarket and the girls not recognizing him for standing up for them. Sammy’s statement “my stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter” leads the reader into thinking the town was going to question his values and