A Feminist Reading of John Updikes A&P Essay -- John Updike A&P

A Feminist Reading of A&P byg atomic number 53 are the days that humans could live freely, only taking visible pain and pleasure into account when making decisions. Or so one would like to believe. In a display of sheer innocence and ignorance, Sammy, a securities industry clerk at the A & P, managed to revert back to the trustworthy behavior patterns of his ape-like ancestors. One cannot possibly predict the future of Sammy, given his take in illogical and irrational behavior. But one can, through a painstaking examination of Sammys life, determine that Sammy is just a naive, new man whose impulsive acts, partly as a consequence of his upbringing, compel him to participate in a cause not worth fighting for, instead of using his talents for more(prenominal) constructive purposes. No matter how much Sammy tried, he could not transcend the rational barriers of his evolutionary counterpart, the ape. From the moment that Sammy first gazed upon those three young women in bathin g suits to his outburst and subsequent resignation, Sammy was not able to develop reason from basic sexual instinct. Sammy first makes the comment, The longer her neck was, the more of her there was, (Updike 408) and later says, From the third slot I look square up this aisle to the meat counter, and I watched them all the way (Updike 408). later on hours--perhaps even years--of being deprived of the sight of a beautiful girl, Sammy gave in to the natural animal tendency to observe and pursue a instalment of the opposite sex. It was of no consequence to Sammy that he did not even go to sleep the three girls and had not seen very much of them. Sammys only overriding zest was, simply put, sex. Sammy made no effort to rationally think active what he was doing instead, he acted on an impulse stemmin... ...ions were divulged, and Sammy began to really realize what he was doing, his actions became more noble. One can learn from Sammy the importance of not sustenance down once dec isions are made, and to stand up for ones own opinions disrespect what other people think. If one can disregard Sammys initial ape-like motives which emphasise the importance of the sex drive, there is much to be learned from that now-eminent grocery clerk. If people finally decide to stand up for what they believe, themselves and the world beyond doubt be bettered. And then, the world would run less rampant with people who erupt to have missed their fair share of natural selection, and the world would be a much more spiritually sound place. Works CitedUpdike, John. A & P. The Bedford Introduction to Literature. 2nd Edition. Ed. Michael Meyer. Boston St. Martins Press, 1990. 407-411.