John Updike A & P Irony

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Working on analyzing things I’m not super passionate about and not being a total bore In struts three boys, decked in nothing but bathing suits. They are nothing but an off-beat in the progression of time. Life continues, goods are bought, and they fade from the consciousness of all witnesses. In the short story A&P by John Updike, readers are introduced to Sammy, a young burnout cashier stuck in a cycle unrelenting until his death. The story jumps into action when three girls walk into the store, clad only in their swimsuits. The monotony of the A&P, combined with nonlinear happenings and Sammy's internal monologue, display the ideals of the decade in glaring detail. His sentiment of the girls and the reactions of people in the A&P are embedded into the story, but when reading, the difference between acceptable behavior at the time the story was written and today is glaring. The story A&P gives insight to the evolved sexism and rape culture of today’s society. The adapted similarities on ideals of modesty are clear with the generational separations throughout the story. Older generations tend to have more sexist beliefs imprinted upon them, however, they are less subtle than those of their younger counterparts. While seeing boys walk around with little clothing likely would not have drawn nearly as much attention, the girls are gawked at and elicit shock in whoever laid eyes on them. The girls are seen as inherently sexual. …show more content…

The story A&P paints the sexism and rape culture present when it was written, making it still relevant today when compared with now. The generational views of modesty, expression of younger men’s lust, and predation present in the story indicate the seemingly constant influx of sexist beliefs packaged in a different box. The hypersexualization of girls pertains. If the root cause is never wiped out, no true progression will be

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