Coming of Age in A&p

...

Sammy tries to imagine himself as the hero when he decides to quit his job at A&P. Sammy said to Lengel that he quit because he is hoping that the three girls would “stop and watch [him], their unsuspected hero”(4). Sammy thinks that he is making a heroic gesture for these girls by quitting his job but, he realizes that his gesture goes unnoticed by these girls. Sammy knows that it has been all said and done now. Sammy believes that “once you begin a gesture its fatal not to go through with it”(5). Sammy said he quit and now he thinks he has to go through with it and can not go back on what he said. Lastly Sammy realizes what he has done when he left A&P. Sammy realizes the outcome of his decision when “[his] stomach kind of fell as [he] realizes how hard the world was going to be for [him] hereafter” because now he has no job at A&P. Sammy tries to imagine himself as the hero but, realizes that the girls did not notice him at all and he quit his job for the girls that he just met.

Sammy transitions from childhood by learning the consequences of his actions through standing what he believes in, always judging people who walk into A&P and for going against what Lengel tells him to do. Sammy tries to imagine himself as the hero when he quit his job for the three girls, he judges everyone based on how they dress, act, and what they buy and he stands up for the girls when Lengel was scolding them for wearing bathing suits. Sammy realizes that all the choices that he made while working at A&P all have consequences and now Sammy has no job. “It’s about players making choices as they play, and then dealing with the consequences of those choices. It’s about you telling your story, not me telling mine. It’s about you.” - Warren Spector

Citation

Updike, John. A&P. The New Yorker, 1961. Print.