The short story “A & P” by John Updike tells about a young boy, Sammy, who has come
of age and does not want to live according to his society’s standards. Sammy is a cashier at A &
P and lives in a remote area where the residents act, talks and does everything almost the same.
Sammy does not want to end up like the “sheeps,” as he calls the people in his village and his co-
workers, but he wants to have a great future. The values endorsed in the story are the societal
norms and A & P store policy. The people in the store were surprised by the girls dressing.
Sammy describes that “you could see them, when Queenie’s white shoulders dawned on them,
[…] but their eyes snapped back to their baskets and on they pushed” (Updike, 33). The attitude
of the people tells what their beliefs are. They believe the girls were not conforming to societal
norms.
Additionally, when Lengel said, “after this, come in here with your shoulders covered. It’s
