Response to A&P

As a class, we recently read the short story A&P by John Updike. A&P is about a 19-year-old named Sammy, who works for the grocery story A&P, and his interest in three girls (well, one in particular) who walk in with bathing suits on, even though there are no beaches nearby. His manager yells at them, and Sammy quits his job because he thinks his manager embarrassed the girls. I find the story okay: it's just about a young grocery clerk who likes some girls who walk in. The underlying tone of the rich vs. poor struggle is a nice touch, though.

Personally, I find the character of Sammy flat and dull. The only thing that changes about him the entire story is whether or not he is employed. He likes the girls, especially "Queenie," as soon as they walk in, and quits his job because he wants to be their "hero," because he thinks they were embarrassed. However, the girls had already left and didn't see or hear the exchange between Sammy and his manager. To me, he's a typical adolescent male. He makes fun of women multiple times in the story, yet is still attracted to these three. He talks inappropriately about them, and has interesting descriptions of different parts of their bodies. Overall, I guess I just don't love Sammy as a character. He's just too flat and typical. That description applies to the story as a whole as well, in my opinion.