A&P- Critical Analysis

I have chosen to write about the short story “A&P. ” The story takes place in 1961 in a small town of New England, which has a small grocery store named A&P grocery store. The town contains very less population. From the setting, I came to a conclusion that the town was a very low maintenance town where everybody knows everybody (very tight community) with mostly old school beliefs and structures (religious beliefs, dress code, ethical values, morals). The town was visited by tourists for a very short period of time, who come to live for a while and can be said that they disturb with their own outside culture.

The main character Sammy is nineteen, works or was working as we can say after the story, as a checker or observer at the local A&P store. (Alexadrov and Petrooshki Tea Company) The life of Sammy changes suddenly as one day three scantily clad young women enter the grocery store to buy some eateries. The women were wearing swim suits as they were coming from the beach, which was across the store. At this time, Sammy introduces his co cashier “Stokesie”, who was married and had two children. Because of attire of the trio women, everybody stared at them as they were contrast to the interiors of the store.

Sammy being overwhelmed by seeing the trio women in the store, he even watches the expressions of the customers as they lay their eyes on women, which is being a guy/man and living in sort of a small town myself and you know all the girls . They are either taken or you just are not interested in them. Sammy tells everyone was overwhelmed seeing them because they were different as they were not seen before by anyone in the town. As said “everyone knows everyone”, the women were not familiar in town and this made everyone to attract themselves to women.

This made to build a thought of “Wow, I have got to talk to her. Sammy thought only he has a chance to talk with them as Stokesie’s is married, with two children already. Even though Stokesie’s is married, Sammy tells even he was thinking of marrying those women knowing nothing about them. During last section of the story, Sammy quits his job over the women who came to the store. The reason he decided to quit can be understood as Sammy wanted to represent his manliness and bravery to the women. Sammy could not tolerate the way his superior was trying to confront the young ladies on what they were wearing in this time and a place of small town, which was embarrassing for those women to flaunt.

The trio women were said to pay and leave quickly by the manager, which was the moment at which Sammy immediately thought of leaving the job without any second thought of what he was doing and what were the circumstances he has to face in near future. The action of Sammy can be explained as bravery, to attract the women by leaving his job for them, to stand up to his superior, risk his job, and also making a scene (which was not required). The only thing Sammy expected from the women was hell of a first impression.

Author failed to explain any past experiences at the store that might have led Sammy to think of leaving the job. Assumptions like Sammy might have been fed up with his work and thought this moment as a chance to quit the job and look tough and manly, also attracting the queen of the group and the group of women themselves. Sammy wished to go out with the women but the story tells that he never looked back which was a very stupid action because, he could not meet the women if he was not looking back at the women and the whole thing done for them was going waste.

In my view, it was very unreasonable to quit the job that too in a state of never getting it back just for the sake of couple of girls was very unreasonable and unnecessary as the story tells that Sammy had to look after his parents. If I was Sammy, I don’t care how awful the job was as I had to take care of my family, and help them financially. I did not cared about the women, besides how much beautiful and attractive the women were. I would have not argued and left the work in a state of getting it back impossibly just for proving something to the opposite sex.

As the place was very small, even the opportunities of employment I think would be very difficult and if Sammy leaves his job for the silly reasons explained, the total life of Sammy would be in trouble along with their family and their financial status. I chose this story for the fact that the story imposes the mistake most of the people do in their life just by taking unreasonable decisions which don’t have any advantages but affects the life of the individual and sometimes their related people very badly. The mistakes can be categorized into unfortunate mistakes, but their effect shown in very near future.

The mistakes done make us deny how one event leads to another and also shows the carelessness out actions are while doing things. The story ends by making Sammy realise of how his life will change after his unreasonable decisions taken with no thought imposed on the decisions. The story tells a moral that “the decisions taken with stupid reasons may not have immediate results but will have huge effect on life in near future”. The moral is very near to the butterfly effect, which explains that hurricanes are in even possible far away from where the butterfly flaps its wings.