Essay On A & P By John Updike

The short story “A & P” by John Updike makes us think about the choices we make. Young people do not have much experience in life which causes them to do things irrationally. Young adults make choices on impulse, without a good reason, or simply to impress someone.
Some people make choices without thinking. They act on impulse. For example, the cashier, Sammy, in the story made a hasty decision. He quit his job because he did not like the way his boss dealt with the girls. After he walked out he realized that quitting wasn’t such a good idea. He said, “My stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter.”(32) In my own life, I found that you should never make hasty decisions. When I was younger, I didn’t

use to hang out with the best people. One of them did something bad and I went and told my mom immediately. I didn’t think of the consequences that I would get. I got in trouble with my mom and my friend went and told my mom my secrets which resulted in my getting grounded for life. I feel before making a choice one should think it through. It first thought we may think nothing can go wrong but when we rethink the situation or choice we see the faults. This also ties in with making choices and not always having good reasons for them.
Everyone has their own views about certain things, but then there are also rules, views or norms that are followed by the general public.

When these norms are broken there must be a good reason. The girls walking into the store wearing bathing suits was not acceptable. The girls did not have a good enough reason for wearing bathing suits to the store. In fact this was unacceptable in their society. In fact Sammy says, “..the women generally put on a shirt or shorts or something before they get out of the cat into the street.”(10) Walking around in a bathing suits in shops by the beach is one thing. When you are five miles away from the beach I feel you should at least have the decency to put on shorts if not more clothes to cover up the upper body. They were not the only ones who did not have good reasons for the choices they made. Stoksie and all the other men did not have good reasons for watching the girls either. On the other hand Sammy was watching them because he was making an effort to understand why the girls would walk in to a store like that. Lengel made a good choice when he reprimanded the girls although his intention was to embarrass them. Although if you think about it in a way Lengel was saving the girls from prying eyes of men even if that wasn’t his

intention.
In the story Sammy made the decision to quit trying to get the girls’ attention.

He wanted to be seen as a hero in their eyes. I feel there is a place for heroism in everyday life but in this story I don’t feel it was appropriate. The girls did not even see Sammy stand up for them. I feel Sammy quit for no reason. He was just trying to be a hero in front of the girls, but his plan backfired. He ended up alone while the girls didn’t notice a thing. They left before he could even get outside. He says, “I looked around for my girls, but they’re gone, of course.”(32) In my own life, I found that when I show off or try to impress someone it usually always backfires. I tried playing hero for my brother and his friends. I had a huge crush on one of his friends and I was trying to get him to talk to me. They all got in trouble with my mom and I somehow convinced her to let them go. Unfortunately he didn’t care that I helped them out. Instead I was the one who got yelled at by my mom every time. I feel heroism should be done from the kindness of one’s heart not to impress

someone.
I feel this short story really makes us think about what choices we as young adults make. Some of these choices may not be significant but others impact or lives greatly. Sammy’s choice greatly impacted his life because he was now out of a job. Personally I have not made many bad choices that impacted my life on a large scale. There are many people out there who have made impulsive choices, choices without good reasons, and people who make choices based on whether others will be impressed.