The Many Levels of Sammy’s Decision

How do human beings make decisions? Well, there are two main ways in which one comes about a decision. The decision can either be made through an extensive, well-thought-out process, or it can simply be a rash, in-the-moment decision. This question of the decision-making process is very pertinent to the main question in John Updike’s story “A & P”; why does Sammy quit his job? By looking closely at this story, it becomes apparent that both forms of decision-making take place in Sammy’s action.

The obvious portion of Sammy’s decision-making process consists of his rash, in-the-moment decision to quit his job because of the girls. Since Sammy is closer in age to the girls than to his manager, he can relate better to them, and therefore feels sympathy for them as Lengel informs them that they cannot walk through the A & P as if they were dressed for the beach. (12-18) Also, Sammy hopes if he quits his job while the girls are still present he will cause enough commotion and show his support for their side of the argument so that they will “stop and watch [him], their unsuspected hero.” (21) While these two actions are far less significant in actuality than they are in Sammy’s mind, his own belief in their significance causes him to view quitting his job as the right choice at the time. It is this sympathy for the girls and desire to be heroic that causes Sammy to rashly say the actual words “I quit” to Lengel. (21)

The next portion of Sammy’s decision is perhaps not so rash, but rather more deep-seeded in his subconscious. This portion is that which relates to Sammy’s attitude toward his job in general. Concerning his manager, Lengel, Sammy does not quite hate him, yet he definitely does not prefer him as a boss. “Everybody’s luck begins to run out” when Lengel comes into the story, who Sammy describes as dreary, hiding in his office all day, and observant of all that happens in the store. (12) Also, Sammy may feel a certain amount of shamefulness for being part of the A & P workforce, consisting of standard working-class people. In contrast, Sammy would rather be part of the upper echelon of society of which the girls are a part, a society “from which the crowd that runs the A & P must look pretty crummy.” (17) With this certain amount of contempt for his boss and his society, it is inherent that some part of Sammy would want to escape from these parts of his life. And quitting his job would enable him to escape from his boss and at least the society that runs the A & P. Thus, the idea of quitting his job must have been planted, at least subconsciously, in Sammy’s head.

Finally, the part of Sammy’s decision-making process most removed from rashness and deep-seeded in extensive thought is his commitment to finishing what he starts. When Lengel tries to talk Sammy out of quitting by telling him, “Sammy, you don’t want to do this to your Mom and Dad,” of whom Lengel is a close friend, Sammy thinks, “It’s true, I don’t. But it seems to me that once you begin a gesture it’s fatal not to go though with it.” (30) This commitment to completing a gesture is the most thought-out part of Sammy’s decision because it is not by any means rash, it is not even an effect of previous events, it is a question of his morals, the fundamental truths one believes in off which he or she lives their entire life. Therefore, it is this commitment to completing a gesture that causes Sammy to follow through with quitting his job when he could have easily backed down and taken Lengel’s advice.

By closely looking at Updike’s story it is evident that Sammy’s quitting of his job is not just a rash, in-the-moment decision, but rather a decision build from both rashness and multiple layers of thought. So when Sammy “fold[s] the apron,… drop[s] the bow tie on top of it,…. [and] saunter[s] into the electric eye,” there is a lot more at work than a rash, un-thought-out decision. (30) (709)


What does Sammy mean when he acknowledges “how hard the world was going to be… hereafter”?

What can be said about the effect of Updike’s style of writing on the story as a whole?

What about Updike’s characterization of the girls stands out the most?