Friday, June 8, 2012
A&P: Life in a Supermarket
As I read the story A&P by John Updike, I was reminded constantly of how similar Updike's supermarket is to our lives. It seems like a rather broad generalization, but the idea is far too prominent to be unintentional. The protagonist, Sammy, represents the younger generation: willing to bend the rules in their own best interests. The "witch" represents the kind of person most of us know: the one who wants the rules enforced when they pertain to themselves. The supermarket's shoppers, the "pigs" and "houseslaves", represent the kind of citizen who is complacent and drawn into their own lives--they wouldn't notice if a "stick of dynamite" went off nearby. The "manager" represents the typical authoritarian figure: he's got plenty of power and he has no problem using it, regardless of the circumstances.
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I had never thought of any of this reading in this way, any reading for that matter. I am going to consider this the next time i am reading a short story.
ReplyDeleteLonny: Nice observation! This observation leads to the next question: given the extension of Updike's setting to life more generally, what does the story seem to be suggesting about our lives, etc.
ReplyDeletegad
@gad
ReplyDeleteI think he is suggesting that people are generally lazy and complacent in life. Just as they wouldn't notice if a stick of dynamite went off, most people are way out of touch with world events and how they affect us.