Social Norm In John Updike's A & P

Capitalism and consumerism become a huge phenomenon in American society during 1950s. Economy in the United States increases rapidly after the World War II, which causing a large expansion of the middle class. During 1950s, the middle class has an increase in purchasing power and the need for more and better goods emerged rapidly. People tend to buy big houses in the new suburbs and buy new time-saving household appliances to achieve a perceived better life. Idea of conformity change become a norm in the middle class society in the late 1950s. People tend to keep the conventional role and stay in their comfort zone. John Updike’s “A&P” did a great job of illustrating the social norm of the society. The story challenges the conventional role

of the society by the character determination to break through the norms.
Sammy observes the life of people who stays in the conventional role from his co-worker and decided to quit his job to find new life path. He wants to get out of conventional role of his society as he imagines his future based on the life of this co-workers: Stoksie, McMahon and Lengel. Stoksie is an image of himself in a few more years; still a cashier even he is already married and has two children. Mc Mahon will be himself in about 10 to twenty years later; still no improvement in his job. He might change to another department but still an employee with no advancement. If he lucky enough, he might be like Lengel and become the manager of the store. In addition, Sammy also expresses his dislike of his job by describing the customers as “witch” and “sheep” which more likely to show his intention to quit the job. Toni Saldivar claims Sammy act of quitting as “gain him nothing and cost him everything” as Sammy lose his job and the girl disappeared from the parking lot by the time he exits the store. But, some evidence from the text show a contradiction. He makes a statement which “the door heaves itself open, and outside the sunshine is skating around the asphalt” (133) as he steps out of the store after he quit his job change the perspective on how he sees the world as he quits. By describing the sun as “sunshine,” he is expressing his sense of happiness from his decision. “The door heaves open itself” is a sign of a new bright future that opens up to him as he quit his job. These evidences dispute the claims made by Saldivar and clearly shows that Sammy is not losing everything yet he is able to find his own journey escaping from the conventional role of his society.
Sammy’s determination of escaping the conventional role is a wary decision. Certainly, he is not a young man who lives in his own imagination like the claims made by Walter Wells as he makes a comparison between “A&P” and “Araby”. According to Walter Wells, “like “Araby,” “A&P” is told after the fact by a young man now much the wiser, presumably, for his frustrating infatuation with a beautiful but inaccessible girl whose allure excites him into confusing his sexual impulses for those of honor and chivalry. The self-delusion in both cases leads quickly to an emotional fall.” Based on his age difference with his coworker Stokesie and the responsible that Stoksie hold by the age of 22, it’s indeed shows that Sammy supposed to mature enough to make a huge decision in his life. According to the text, Stokesie is a married twenty-two years old guy with two babies while Sammy is turning 19 on that year. If Stoksie reflect the life of the majority people in his society, Sammy is about to be married in a few years. At this degree of his life, he is expected to be mature and not making a reckless decision like quitting job to impress a girl. Again, he indeed quit his job to chase his dream not to impress a girl. This common sense is rejecting literary critics' claims that Sammy as an innocence like the main character in James Joyce’s “Araby” who is described as a boy who in a transition from a childhood life to a teenager's life. Sammy also makes a statement of “here comes the sad part of the story, at least my family say it’s sad but I don’t think it’s sad myself” (131) before he tells the story of him quitting his job shows that he had no regret for his action. If his intention is to flirt Queenie, he should have been regretting his decision since the girls just left after the incident and he lose his job, yet he is not.
Moreover, the girls are an inspiration to him to break the norms of his society.

Sammy mentioned that “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?) but you got the idea she had talked the other two into coming in here with her, and now she was showing them how to do it, walk slow and hold yourself straight” (129) as he observing the girls. Thus, this statement indicates Sammy being impressed of the girls’ determination to break the norms of bathing suit, which only decent to be worn on the beach. It also indicates how Queenie inspire and support her friend to do the same things. Queenie’s bravery can also be seen from the way she is answering Lengel after he embarrassed her. Sammy describes her voice when answering Lengel as “coming out so flat and dumb yet kind of tony” (131), which indicate she is fearless and not feel any guilt for what she is wearing. In addition, she is also bravely state “we are decent” as Lengel criticizes her as not decently dressed. From the evidence in the text, it indicates the girl is deliberately wear a bathing suit to the store. For instance, Sammy make some statements like one of the girl’s “belly is pretty pale” (129) which indicates no sunburn and “our town is 5 miles from the beach” (130) rejects the idea of the girls’ are coming from or about to go to the beach. Corey Evan Thompson makes a claims that Sammy is only interested in the girls’ bodies,

he writes “By privileging the girls' skin over their clothing, Sammy indicates that his main interest lies in their bodies.” But, Sammy’s description of Queenie and Lengel argument and how he is not paying attention on his work shows his interest in Queenie’s right to wear what she wants and her determination toward her right. Consequently, Sammy’s action declines the claims made by Thompson.
After that incident, Sammy chooses to quit his job as Queenie inspire him to do what he wants and stick to his determination even people are criticizing him. Of course, he realizes that he will need to struggle to achieve her dreams. He also knows that people will criticize his decision like how Lengel warns him and how his family think him quitting his job as a sad story. On the contrary, he decides to change his life so he won’t have to live a life like his co-worker did. Certainly, his will of breaking the conventional role that becomes a norm in his society become stronger as he saw Queenie’s determination on defending her right. Those inspirations make him have no regret in quitting his job.

Works Cited
Saldívar, Toni.

"The Art of John Updike's 'A & P'." Contemporary Literary Criticism Select, Gale, 2008. Literature Resource Center, ezhc.ez.cwmars.org:4000/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=LitRC&sw=w&u=mlin_w_holycc&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CH1100068463&it=r&asid=3194017beea1fd53fe0bb271dfa8c631. Accessed 6 Apr. 2017. Originally published in Studies in Short Fiction, vol. 34, no. 2, Spring 1997, pp. 215-225.
Wells, Walter. "John Updike's 'A & P': a return visit to Araby." Studies in Short Fiction, vol. 30, no. 2, 1993, p. 127+. Literature Resource Center, ezhc.ez.cwmars.org:4000/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=LitRC&sw=w&u=mlin_w_holycc&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA14081343&it=r&asid=2ff3c5a175c3b565f02c44af3f44bbc8. Accessed 6 Apr. 2017.
Thompson, Corey Evan. "Updike's 'A & P.'." Contemporary Literary Criticism, edited by Jeffrey W. Hunter, vol. 214, Gale, 2006. Literature Resource Center, ezhc.ez.cwmars.org:4000/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=LitRC&sw=w&u=mlin_w_holycc&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CH1100068477&it=r&asid=729ff3f1bf8248a1c4dfd596f1205fc5. Accessed 7 Apr. 2017. Originally published in Explicator, vol. 59, no. 4, Summer 2001, pp.

215-216.