Through The Eyes of Sammy: An A&P Checker
Through the Eyes of Sammy: An A&P Checker This short story by John Updike describes a few minutes in the life of an A&P checker. The setting, in 1961, reflects on some of the values society held at that time. People were expected to act and dress in a proper fashion. The conflict in this story revolves around the appearances of three teenage girls and the differences of opinion between Sammy, the checker, and his boss. To understand the conflict, we must first look at Sammy's intolerance of others. Throughout the story Sammy mentally criticizes the looks and actions of people around him. For example, he describes a customer that comes through his checkout line as a "witch with rouge on her cheeks and no eyebrows" (Updike 73). He is irritated with her because she gives him a hard time for ringing up an item twice. His sarcasm extends to the usual women, in their small town that have "six children and varicose veins mapping their legs" (Updike 75). He also refers to the men working on the sewer as "freeloaders" (Updike 75). Although Sammy "sizes up" the teenage girls that come into the A&P, he is annoy
Maybe the girls realize they should cover up before entering the store; nevertheless, they do not deserve the verbal criticism they receive from the manager. As he removes his apron and bow tie he remembers how his boss had made Queenie blush which makes him angry inside. At that time women were expected to be fully clothed when going out in public, and now they go out in whatever they want. To allow others to affect your life, like Sammy did when he quit his job, is not acceptable. He even thinks of the women shoppers in the A&P as "sheep" herding down the aisles, checking their lists and muttering to themselves. Then there is Queenie, the leader of the three girls, whom he depicts as being from a wealthy family who eats herring snacks and has "drinks the color of water with olives and sprigs of mint in them" (Updike 76). Turning his criticism on Sammy, the boss says, "You'll feel this for the rest of you life" (Updike 77). However, in 1961, that was not considered appropriate. When the manager of the A&P chose to verbally disapprove of the girls for their apparel, it truly upset Sammy. However, the truth may be that Sammy felt guilty about his own intolerances and realized that it was not correct to think badly of others. Of course, things were different in the early 60's. But, they do not seem to even notice. In the present day, it is uncommon to see the checkers of a store sporting a crisp white shirt with a bow tie, along with an apron that has their name stitched on the front, just as Sammy was required to wear at the A&P. The manager says to the girls that "this is not the beach," and you need to "dress decently when you come in here" (Updike 76).
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