Please post one question about "A & P" and answer one question.
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About Me
- Todd's 110 Garage
- Born and raised near signs of Lewis and Clark's Missouri River portage, I now live in Auburn, WA and teach at Green River CC and Muckleshoot Tribal College. I have an M.A. in English literature from The University of Montana. I'm married and have no kids.
28 comments:
Is Sammy's family in the lower class? It seems that his parents depend on him working.
I don't think that Sammy's family depends on him working, but they are depending on him to grow up and become independent.
I have two questions:
Before answering take into account that Sammy is a 19 year old kid who has no idea how to make a living for himself, he has no way to support himself. All the people he looks to (probably even his parents) are in roles similar to that of the Lengel (store manager)and Stokesie. Did Sammy make the right decision to quit working at A&P? And doesn’t the cartoon character in the picture look like a very young Mr. Johnson?
I think Sammy decided to quit to impress the girls. I felt like he did not quit for the right reasons. He made a rash decision but he went through with it. However it did not seem like he really did not liked working there anyway so maybe in the long run he did make the right decision.
My question is, what did the conversation with Stokesie mean when he said "Oh Daddy, I feel so faint" "Darling, Hold me tight" on page 221. Was it a sign that Stokesie, the married man, found them attractive too and felt "faint"? This sarcasim/joking shows that these two must have been fairly comfortable with each other. How did Stokesie feel about the whole situation? Why wasn't he more included in this story?
I think the author wanted Sammy to quit as a sign of impulse and rebellion. This was a representation of his generation rising out of the social "normalcy" rut the generation before was stuck in. To show that these new teenage kids don't know what they are doing, nor do they think logically, but they are willing to challenge anyone who has a something to say about it.
Yes I think that you are right. The author wanted us to know that Stokesie thought that they were attractive as well, he just did it in a vague way.
Why didn't Sammy do something more to try and talk to the girls if he thought that their embarrasment was worth quiting his job? Obviously he was pretty into the girls, at least one of them.
I liked the style of this short story but a little disappointed.
I was also confused about the "Darling hold me tight"
Hmm, I don't think so much he quit JUST to impress the girls or he would have done it in front of them instead of waiting for them to leave through "the electric eye (automatic doors, very clever of the author; like eyelids! *blink*) before quiting. I think that its very possible Sammy didn't like the job to begin with... Someone with his imagination would likely find a stand-and-swipe job very very dull. I mean, Sammy's boss didn't seem heavily surprised by his resignation that to us, the readers seemed very "out of the magic hat." I would bet on some restlessness and discontent building in Sammy for some time before the story. Months. Maybe even a year or two.
What other reasons might Sammy have quit besides the suggested below:
He was tired of his boss and wannabe boss, Stokesie, he wanted to impress the girls, and he was tired of snippy customers like the witch woman.
Obviously he didn't have another job to run to, as he felt a sense of loss and hardship at the end...
My question is this: Did it seem odd to anyone else that a "small town" grocery store cared about what people wore in the store? And do you think most people would have said anything? They were on their way out of the store anyways, and I could understand if they had been shopping at a mall, or eating at a resturant, or seeing a movie, but some little town grocery store? They weren't even still shopping, they were just paying...
Answer to a question: Another reason I can think of as to why Sammy would want to quit is because he is so creative, and observant. This job doesn't allow him to utilize either of these skills, and ringing up items all day, every day, can get old real fast. He needs a job where he can be creative.
Actually, this is a conservative time in American history. And the fact that it is a small town makes it even more crucial. Like we said in class, it was an age of conformity; everyone trying to be normal, bland, a bit dull if you will. I think that when people live in a small town, it becomes more of a community rather than a city, and everyone gossips about everyone else.
Also, America is still a conservative country today if you compare it with many European countries. The picturesque image that we see in 50's movies is that women are very conservative and mostly do housework, while men are the ones expected to work and provide for the family. That's just how its shown, its not my personal opinion.
Now my question is: why do you think that Sammy goes into so much detail of his surroundings? Is it just the author trying to show off, or is there something in Sammy's personality that would say he is a guy who pays attention to the smallest detail?
My question is the same as Carolyn's. What do Sammy and Stoksie mean when they were talking on page 221.
"Oh Daddy," Stoksie said beside me. "I feel so faint."
"Darling," I said. "Hold me tight."
It seems like they're being sarcastic but I'm not quite sure what they are talking about.
My question is why did the 3 girls enter A&P wearing swim suits if they were only going there to pick up the food for Queenies Mom?
I also believe that sammy and his family are both from the lower class. It seems this way because when Sammy quits his boss Mr.Lengel(the store manager) tells him that he is making a huge mistake and will regret his choice. I assume if he is from a lower class and they need the money that would be why he would regret quiting.
My question is this: Did it seem odd to anyone else that a "small town" grocery store cared about what people wore in the store? And do you think most people would have said anything? They were on their way out of the store anyways, and I could understand if they had been shopping at a mall, or eating at a resturant, or seeing a movie, but some little town grocery store? They weren't even still shopping, they were just paying...
I'm going to answer Desiree's question. I thought it was odd that the manager waited until the girls were paying before he said something. It is possible that he didn't notice until then and wanted to address it before it happened again. Since it is a small town that is five miles from the beach, At first I thought it was kind of odd that Lengel, the manager, had such a problem with the way the girls were dressed and then I asked my Mom about the sixties and she said that this story described how the sixties were pretty well.
Ooops sorry guys, I reposted Desiree's question as the first paragraph of my second post.
My question is if the girls weren't dressed like they were, would Sammy still have quit?
I think Sammy's attention to detail shows how bored he is with his job. It's become something he can do without thinking, so he has the opportunity to notice other things around him.
I don't think that his family is poor at all. Maybe he wants to be independent and wants to make his own money.
What is the real reason that Sammy quit his job?
How come he can be this descriptive and yet was kind of nervous when the girls walked up to him?
My question is, what kind of message were the girls trying to send by walking into A & P with their bathing suits?
I personally look at Sammy as clever and artistic because of how he gives such profound detail as he describes the girls. One reason why I think Sammy quit is boring, tiresome job to finally stand up and start facing life. Also, I think he realized that he would need to start taking care of him self and A & P was not getting him anywhere. So, at last Sammy had a motive to quit, the three girls.
Is Sammy as "bold" as he acted toward the end of the story when he decided to quit? Does he feel any regret in the end?
Personally, I don't think the girls were trying to send a message at all. Because when they were confronted they replied." We are dressed appropriately."
How Does Sammy feel that the girls didn't look back after he said "i quit"? Did he have one moment of thinking of taking back his "I quit"?
Like valdi said, This is a conservative time in America, so it might be a little be odd for someone to talk to a stranger, especially for boys to girls. Girls may think the guy a pervert.
so i guess that's why Sam didnt do more.
How would employees/managers of a local grocery store react to this same situation (girls dressing provocatively) today?
Although the author does not provide us with a whole lot of background information for Sammy, I think one can infer that he does come from a lower social class. I realized this when he compares his own family's way of treating guests vs. his imagination of the "queen" girl and her family's way of treating guests. Also, Lengel makes it seem apparent that Sammy's parents rely on him financially when he says, "Sammy, you don't want to do this to your Mom and Dad" (This translating to quitting his job as a grocery store check-out clerk).
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