A and P, john updike PDF

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Summary

Many literary works focus on an individual’s defiance of society’s expectations. By focusing their works on defiant individuals, authors can easily open a highly effective window which can be employed to offer an advanced criticism of that society or of the individual. Sometimes society’s expectatio...

Description

Many literary works focus on an individual’s defiance of society’s expectations. By focusing their works on defiant individuals, authors can easily open a highly effective window which can be employed to offer an advanced criticism of that society or of the individual. Sometimes society’s expectations can be viewed as oppressive, and in other circumstances they can appear to the audience as fair, or in line with their own morals. Through manipulating the relations between the morals of both society and characters, the author can create a dialogue that drives a compelling story. In A&P, by John Updike, Sammy acts in defiance of society and parental expectation in his actions to quit his job at the grocery. A Job which his parents likely anticipated would be his final outlet in life. Lengel saw this as Sammy’s future as well saying, “You'll feel this for the rest of your life" (John Updike, A&P Page Number), prior to Sammy’s resignation from the A&P. Though it is obvious to the reader that Sammy is too smart to work a dead in grocery job for the remainder of his life, and through this the audience is given a unique view of Sammy’s motives, motives that the members of his community are blind to. Throughout the work, the reader is able to watch Sammy come to the realization he does not belong where society has placed him. The final catalyst for him was Lengel’s treatment of the girls. His parents are not pleased with his decision, and it is unclear whether or not sammy will fall back in line and continue his job at the A&P or if he will pursue a life beyond it and realize his potential as an individual, free of society’s oppressive weight. He uses the women as an excuse of shorts to leave the A&P. In saying he expects to see them outside afterwards, though he knows this to be false, he shows us that it was the only way he could convince himself that it was worth the cost of his future at the A&P. Shiloh, by Bobby Ann Mason, is another example of a work in which characters defy society’s expectations and morals. Norma Jean and Leroy live as teenagers in an adult setting, neither are willing to grow up and take on the responsibilities of adults ever since the detah of their first and only child, at the end of the work Norma Jean is described as standing at the edge of a cliff, it is unknown whether or not she jumped, however it is my impression that she did jump. She has no reason to live, her life has been a repetitive and tragic cycle revolving around leroy, who she can not escape. Neither are able to discuss their dead child, who perished at their hands in the back seat of their

vehicle at a drive in theatre. Norma Jean is described as working out and learning grammar. She does these things for herself in an attempt to make the most of her bleak life in leroy’s circle of influence. Leroy is not suited for life as a normal adult, he defies society’s expectations of a normal nuclear family member. He lead an on and off biweekly marriage for many years, which worked much better than him staying around all the time. The couple’s inability to stay together for an extended period of time further emphasizes the childlike relationship they have. Leroy loves Norma Jean, but is completely unable to show it to her. The couple completely lacks communication. In a Rose for emily, by William Faulkner, Emily stands as a monument to a past society, the old south. A south that has since ceased to exist outside of her own home. Her tenacious resistance towards change is a direct defiance of her society and the expectations of her community. Her desire to maintain a pre war south is made clear in her way of life, her black servant and her family’s 1870’s mansion which, despite it’s decaying frame, stands as a relic from a long extinct time. Miss Emily once occupied a central role in the community due to her family’s stature, a role which has slipped from her as time has carried on and the community has developed and she had refused to. Her solace lies in a Yankee man who she poisons in what is a considerably more unorthodox act against the morals of society for her own personal needs as a Southern Woman. A need for a man in the house, or for a companion. Society looks back on Miss Emily with respect and a sadness, they do not blame her for her actions nor do they hold her accountable. Upon death she is described as a “Monument” (William Faulkner), an object of symbolic nature that evokes a sacred representation of the old south. Despite their awareness of her immoral crimes, it is due to this sacred air surrounding the subject of Emily herself that the town remains quiet in the face of her sin. Emily’s servant abandons her after her death. He is likely covering for himself. While no one is willing to pin the death of a Yankee on the aging (and now deceased) miss emily, they are likely to have no real problem pinning his death on her african american help. It further shows the town’s unwillingness to taint the final trace of the old south in a modernized

community. Emily murdered a Yankee to keep someone in her unchanged world of the old south. In many cases society can hold individuals to standards or morals in contrast to their own. These three works heavily touch on a contrast between society’s expectations and the individual’s own goals. In many cases individuals with strong will will breach society’s boundaries. Bibliography Updike, John. “A&P”. DiYanni, 32-36! O’Connor, Frank. “Guests of the Nation”, DiYanni, 51-59...