Essay Sample on Choices Made in John Updike Short Story

Introduction

The author of John Updike's 'A&P' short story describes the memory of young adults, which includes the decisions they make and the consequences of making hasty decisions. The person narrating is a 19-year-old cashier at the A&P store who is almost making a significant step from childhood to adulthood (Sustana 2019). The narrator provides his views of both his life and of the individuals within the town. He does not like the living behaviors of these individuals, and he aims to live a different way. The short story illustrates that human development is comprised of making decisions and eagerness to accept the impacts of a person's individual choices. Sammy's dramatic way of thinking changes between the time three girls enter the A&P and the time they leave the store. This illustrative essay will respond to the choices made by the narrator in John Updike's short story.

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"I said, I quit." "I thought you did." "You didn't have to embarrass them." "It was they who were embarrassing us." "Sammy, you don't want to do this to your Mom and Dad," he tells me (Updike et al. 1986).

These statements indicated that Sammy had decided to quit the job that he got from his parents help. When Sammy stepped out of the A&P store, he began a new world that I do not think that he is ready for. The decision of quitting was very hasty and unreasonable because could it could affect his parents and himself. A person could have made the assumptions that he could have was impacted for bringing shame to his parents. Because Sammy was living in a small town, words of him quitting his job could have traveled very fast, and there was a chance that he would not have secured a job in another place. Sammy compared the people living in his town to "sheep pushing their carts down the aisle" because; they were being controlled and were unable to be their selves (University of Maine Farmington 2014). However, Sammy behaved differently as he was an adolescent male who was making an effort to build a life for himself. Based on the language he was using, it displayed that he was socially incompetent and not educated.

John Updike's story educates us that good reasoning is not always needed to make choices. Beliefs and feelings are our major determinants of making our choices. At times, young adults make some drastic choices without recognizing the impacts of the choices they make and the way these choices can affect other people. These choices can negatively affect their lives. For instance, Sammy left his job without realizing that he could hurt his parents and the judgmental people that he spoke of were still the same people o judge his parent after he left his job. Nevertheless, some choices can positively impact the life of a young adult.

For example, Sammy could have become successful regardless of him quitting his job. He was living in a small town in New England with no small businesses (Updike 2015). If I were the one quitting my job, I would have transferred to a bigger town that provided a new lifestyle and new work experience. The chance would have provided a better lifestyle that life in the small town. A better opportunity in a bigger town would have enabled Sammy, who was socially incompetent to improve his interaction skills.

Sammy's experience offered me a personal insight into an event I experienced while working at a coffee shop. The location of the coffee shop was about to have a grand opening. Other colleagues and I were gathered outside the coffee shop to discuss the preparation of the opening. Our head of the department was telling us about his expectations on the completion of our tasks. He also wanted to ensure that there were no questions or difficult issues in our jobs. Several questions were asked, and the head of our department answered them one by one. However, he provoked me when he made a statement that he could not understand why some black people could not get along. That statement shocked everyone; I decided to confront him for being a racist boss because I could not tolerate him anymore. I knew that I deserved better, and therefore, I decided to quit. It was the one, and only time I walked away from my boss.

Conclusion

I felt confident the same way Sammy felt when he confronted his boss. I believed quitting was the best thing to do because I did not have to take such insults. At that moment, I felt that better opportunities were waiting for me because, at that period, there were more significant promises. However, in the 21st century, the world has changed, and employment rates have decreased; hence, it is hard to quit from a job without genuine reasons. Employees should believe that tomorrow is brighter and they should hold on. I will conclude by saying that it is crucial to think about the consequences of the choices we make in our lives because these choices can either have positive or negative impacts in our lives or the people around us.

Work Cited

A&P By John Updike - University of Maine Farmington. www2.umf.maine.edu/mclp/wp-content/uploads/sites/91/2014/06/Lesson-4a-AP-by-John-Updike.pdf.

Sustana, Catherine. "Analysis of John Updike's "A and P." ThoughtCo, May. 25, 2019, thoughtco.com/analysis-of-a-and-p-2990433.

Updike et al. "A & P: Lust in the Aisles." Biblio, 1 June, 1986, www.biblio.com/9781556280078.

Updike, John. "A&P. Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing, Compact Edition. Ed. Edgar V. Roberts and Robert Zweig. 6th ed. New York: Pearson, 2015. 320-24. Print.