A&P is a story written by two time Pulitzer prize award winning author John Updike. He is one of three authors to win the award twice.1 He is a celebrated author, artist, and cartoonist, but he is perhaps most well known for his writing. An extremely prolific writer, his works are recognizable to a large portion of the American population. In fact, a biography by Steven Moyer states that readers “would have entered into the at times sad, at times triumphant thoughts of, say, a certain check-out clerk at the local grocery store; 'A&P' serving as a model of dramatic irony for at least two generations of English literature teachers.”2
A&P , which stands for The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, is a supermarket chain with a long history. In the 1950s, A&P was a prominent food retailer in America, but its popularity had declined by the 1960s; the company had lost its luster, and the public viewed the A&P as a stale, struggling corporation.3 Updike's story is set in a 1961 A&P in Massachusetts just five minutes away from the beach. This short story outlines the maturation of the main character Sammy as he works at his local grocery store. While working on a normal summer day at his cash register, in walk three young girls in their bathing suits and flip flops searching for some herring snacks. While the girls walk around shopping Sammy extrapolates details about them from their appearance. Although he starts the story immaturely agreeing with his cohorts about the audacity of the girls' attire, he later sees his boss's interaction with the girls, gains some perspective, and ends the story a more mature young adult.
Sammy's State at the Start of the Story
The starting point of the story portrays Sammy as a disengaged and opinionated teenager working at a local A&P grocery store. The definitive way to describe Sammy is that of an immature nineteen year old.