A & P

1. The way he describes the people talking to themselves as they are trying to remember everything they need to get while they are at the store really makes me think of the supermarket; also the variety of people that he talks about; the old lady watching everything that he scans and the lady in sweatpants with her cans of juice. These details help put me there cause I can imagine the many times when I have seen similiar sights at the supermarket.

2. By the way Updike describes Sammy's character I think of a self conscience boy wanting to get attention from the girls. He stairs at the girls while they are walking around the store wanting to get there attention but when they come to his check out stand he doesn't quite know what to say. He is admirable in sticking up for the girls but doesn;t stick up for them while they are getting in trouble it's after they have already left. I don't think he is any less of a hero in wanting the girls to notice him but he doesn't get the girls in the end and he ends up without a job. The doctor in "Godfather Death" wasn't described very much, just his career was described.

3. The exposition is the part of Sammy describing his point of view of the three girls as they came in and made their way around the store. The detailed portrait of Queenie is important to the rest of the stroy because it makes you think of her as someone superior, in charge, so when Lengel looks down on her it makes it that much more dramatic.

4. The more Sammy interacts with the girls and see's how they react to the situation with Lengel he becomes more attached and tries to protect them and make them feel better.

5. The dramatic conflict becomes apparent when Lengel the store manager walks into the store and sees the girls in nothing but their bathing suits. This leads to what I think is the climax of Sammy quitting in front of everyone.

6. Sammy quits his job to look like a hero to the girls and says says he doesnt like the way Lengel treated those girls and didn't think that he needed to embarrass them.

7. The way Sammy reacts while the girls are in the store, he is smitten with everything they are doing and he also describes the check out process and its sounds as if it were second nature to him.

8. I think that Sammy realizes that he made a mistake by quitting like that; the girls didn't acknowledge what he had done for them and now he would have to deal with his parents and Lengel seeing as how they were long family friends.

9. It seems to me that Updike is showing that supermarket society brings in all kinds of people, old, young, etc.. The store is like a pinball machine with all of the different aisles to go up and down. Sammy didn't seem very enthused about his job in the supermarket.