The Turning Point in John Updikes A & P Essay -- A&P Essays

The Turning Point in John Updike's A & P John Updike's short story "A & P" reveals nineteen-year old Sammy, the central character, as a complex person. Although Sammy appears, on the surface, as carefree and driven by male hormones, he has a lengthy agenda to settle. Through depersonalization, Sammy reveals his ideas about sexuality, social class, stereotypes, responsibility, and authority. Updike's technique, his motif, is repeated again and again through the active teenage mind of the narrator Sammy. Sammy is, like most young men, object-minded. The object of his mind is the female body. Although his upbringing and the fact that he is at work do not allow him to voice his admiration for the girls in bikinis at the A & P, he lets the reader know, in no uncertain terms, what he is thinking. He gives each girl a name--Plaid, Big Tall Goony Goony, and Queenie--based on his evaluation of their physical body parts. The game is one that teenagers play the world over, with countless hours spent seeing and being seen. The primary object to view, in Sammy's eyes, is the queen. He describes how "she must have felt in the corner of her eye me and over my shoulder Stokesie in the second slot watching, but she didn't tip. Not this queen" (28). Sammy goes on to tell how "she [...] turned so slow it made [his] stomach rub the inside of [his] apron" (28). The irony of the setting is that the girls, dressed in nothing but swimsuits, have turned the neighborhood grocery store into a human meat mark et, with themselves as the commodity of choice for the male consumer. In Sammy's mind's eye, the queen was of such regal bearing that she commanded his worship. He envisioned his well-bred idol as being of a higher social class than his own. ... ...iphany that afternoon in the A & P. Sammy's immaturity and lack of experience were largely to blame for his wrestling with conflicting roles in his transition from child to adult. Updike's protagonist was at the same time an imaginative, observant young man who stood by his convictions, defending the girls to the end. Sammy was perhaps more intelligent and more gutsy than one would like to give him credit for, however. He knew what he did not want out of life. On that Thursday afternoon in the A & P, his name game caught up with him. Quitting his job was to be a turning point for him, a time for him to confront his own issues of sexuality, social class, stereotyping, responsibility, and, on a deeper leve, authority. Work Cited Updike, John. "A & P." Literature: Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and the Essay. Ed. Robert DiYanni. 5th ed. New York: McGraw, 1998. 27-31.

‘A taste of honey’ and ‘My mother said I never should’ Essay

The two drama texts we have studied are ‘A taste of honey’ and ‘My mother said I never should’. These two texts have similar themes and issues. They both deal with growing up, single parenthood, leaving home, friendship, family relationships including conflict between daughters, parents and the attitude toward different class behaviour. In this essay I shall be exploring the similarities and differences between the two texts. I shall start with an analysis of ‘A taste of honey’ and compare this with ‘my mother said I never should’. ‘A taste of honey’ is set in the 1960’s in a scrubby little worn-down flat. It deals with the life of a young girl called Jo and her mother called Helen. In this drama text, Jo and Geof do not get on well with Helen. They are in conflict with each other all the time. We know this because the text illustrates lots of aggressive language like â€Å"oh, go to hell†. Helen has a boyfriend called peter she leaves Jo to live with him, but when she finds out that Jo is pregnant she returns to the flat. When she returns she finds that Jo is living with a young man called Geof. He is a homosexual and peter is quite homophobic so he insults him constantly. We know this because he calls him a pansy. Jo is similar to Jackie in ‘My mother said I never should’ because they are both young single mothers that have dropped out of college however, they are slightly different too because Jackie, Margaret and her family are middle/upper class opposed to Jo’s and Helen’s family which are lower/working class. ‘A taste of honey’ we see Helen come back to look after her daughter, but she runs out on her Jo and her new baby. In ‘My mother said I never should, the daughter is required to give up her role as a mother to return to art college. Jo never has this option and this is another difference between the texts. ‘My mother said I never should’ has many themes that are the same as ‘A taste of honey’ for example both deals with young mothers. In this play, there are four different generations of women. The characters names are Jackie, Margaret, Doris and the baby is called Rosie. Attitude to sex and having children has changed through the play form generation to generation as the different characters reflect this. For instant, Jackie is a young child, Margaret is pregnant, we know this because the play goes back in time to a scene in the garden where Margaret tell Doris how she feels about her miscarriage. Margaret says, â€Å"I thought I didn’t want it, till I lost it†. Doris, Margaret’s mother tells Margaret that she shouldn’t have worked while she was pregnant. She seems to think that working was the reason that Margaret lost the baby. This shows that in the 1960’s women were supposed to stay at home in bed, resting and not working. Margaret thinks that this idea is very sexist. Later in the characters’ lives Jackie challenges her mothers attitudes to sex before marriage. We learn that Jackie is already sexually active. We know this because the text states that Jackie slept with her boyfriend at his parents house Jackie say, â€Å"It was a relief to get it over with†. Her mother is not particularly happy about it as she says, â€Å"oh you can wound me sometimes, Jackie†. She is unhappy about the fact that Jackie could possible be pregnant. Later in the play we see Jackie with little baby Rosie. They are living in a run down council flat, which shows that the area is lower class. We also learn that the father is not there to help look after Rosie so Jackie is therefore a single mother. Her mother comes to visit and we learn that Jackie’s mother is pressuring Jackie into giving up the baby and return to art college. As we learn from the text, Jackie is not happy about this as Jackie mother says, â€Å"Jackie, we can’t go over this again †¦ you know as well as I do, it would be impossible† and Jackie replies by saying † I don’t believe you†. Margaret and her husband are ashamed by single parents. We know that her father is unhappy about Jackie and Rosie because he won’t go into the house however Margaret is more relaxed about the situation that Jackie and Rosie are in. she comes to pick up Rosie and Rosie’s clothes as she will be her new mother. Jackie is reluctant in giving Rosie to Margaret. Jackie is now free to go to Art College again. This reflects that attitudes towards working mothers have changed from one generation to the next. In conclusion I think both are similar in most of their themes however they differ when it comes to how the mothers react and why they react to the situation. For example Helen wanted Jo to move in with her because she thinks she cant cope and Margaret want Jackie to give the baby to her so she can go back to art college because Margaret is from an upper class family and a young single mother is shamed upon and she also wants to have a better life.

The Problem Of Teenage Pregnancy - 1720 Words

Like Amy and Loeber (2009), when it comes to the ecological paradigm of teenage pregnancy, Corcoran, Franklin, and Bennett (2000) also believe one’s socioeconomic status is a huge factor that contributes to this problem. A person’s socioeconomic status a lot of times determines â€Å"education, expanded family size, single-parent household structure, and lessened resources in terms of employment and income.† These three authors claim that educational performance and goals â€Å"dictate the potential costs of child bearing at a young age.† Their studies have also shown that teenage girls’ relationships with the school setting and poorer performance in school serve a greater risk for adolescent pregnancy. Corcoran, Franklin and Bennett (2000) confirm, â€Å"being part of a single-parent household seems to act as a risk factor for early pregnancy.† Among singe-parent households, â€Å"conflict within the family, stress, and less monitoring and control of children† occurs, which the authors say can increase the risk of teen pregnancy. In addition, â€Å"teenagers experiencing family problems might be more at risk for influence by a negative peer group† that could potentially lead to motherhood at an early age. They also claim â€Å"support is indicated for parental control over teen activities as a protective factor against teenage pregnancy† that a lot of times isn’t found in single-parent homes. Bentham (2012) not only considers a dysfunctional home background, but also inadequate parenting as â€Å"keyShow MoreRelatedThe Problem Of Teenage Pregnancy1894 Words   |  8 Pagesactually deliver the baby (Kirby 2007). Out of that 20%, 82% of those pregnancies were unintended (Kirby 2007). Teenaged parents are more likely to drop out of high school, will not go to college, and the mother more than likely becomes a single parent (Kirby 2007). Children who are born to teenage parents are more likely to have a less supportive and less stimulating home environment, lower cognitive development, behavioral problems, and will most likely have a child when they are a teenager (KirbyRead MoreThe Problem Of Teenage Pregnancy Essay2119 Words   |  9 PagesStatement of the Problem Most people say that your teenage years are supposed to be the best years of your life; Finding your place in this world, mostly carefree (with the exceptions of homework and parents), and most of all, having the least amount of responsibilities you will have before you reach adulthood. Sadly, some teens do not get to live this luxury. Many girls in this generation become mothers while they are still considered children. There are approximately 1.3 million homeless teensRead MoreThe Social Problem With Teenage Pregnancy1358 Words   |  6 PagesThe social problem with teenage pregnancy is one to be aware of. Throughout the years we have seen the numbers all across the spectrum. This being, the number of pregnant teenage girls has decreased in recent years, but on the other hand, has also been pretty high ten to twenty years ago. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), â€Å"In 2013, a total of 273,105 babies were born to women ages 15-19 years, for a live birth rate of 26.5 per 1,000 women in this age group. This is a record low forRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy : A Serious Problem1690 Words   |  7 PagesTeenage pregnancy is widely viewed in our society as a serious problem. According to Pregnant Teen Help, over 750,000 teenagers will get pregnant each year. This is a statistic that has lowered in numbers since the 1990’s mainly due to more teen pregnancy prevention programs in schools and contraceptive availability(). The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate than any other industrialized country in the world. About a third of these teens abort their pregnancies, 14 percent suffer aRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy Is Becoming A Problem921 Words   |  4 PagesEarly pregnancy is becoming more of a problem every year. More and more teenagers are becoming pregnant and becoming young mothers. There are many reasons on why this is such a problem. For instance, young mothers drop out of high school, their bodies are not mature enough, not as financially stable as they should be, and many other reasons. In the periodal How to Stop Teen Pregnancies, it states â€Å"When teenage girls have babies, they are in danger. They more likely will suffer serious health problemsRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy Is A Growing Problem1782 Words   |  8 PagesIntroduction Teenage pregnancy is a growing problem today even though statistically over the history it has improved the U.S. still has the highest teen pregnancy rate. These issues have a spiraling effect with the teenage parents or the mother. Financial, academic, and childcare for a teenage parent can be stressful and demanding more so with a teenager. Not only will the child of the teenager be affected but the parent and the community will have adverse effect. Thesis Even though with properRead MoreThe Social Problem Of Teenage Pregnancy929 Words   |  4 Pagespositive. Occasionally, â€Å"average age† parents are not sufficiently prepared to deal with parenthood, thus a teenager is greatly less prepared. Therefore, teenage pregnancy has become a major social problem which fundaments should be understood in order to provide a solution to it. In order to understand a social problem such as teenage pregnancy, it is important to look firstly at its causes. In the first place, parents are of immense importance regarding a child’s development because they are theRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy And Parenthood As A Social Problem1466 Words   |  6 PagesTeenage pregnancy and parenthood as a social problem Question – To what extent should we regard the efforts of recent governments to reduce teenage pregnancy and early parenthood as successful? * Source 1 Williams-Wheeler, D. (2004). The unplanned pregnancy book for teens and college students, Virginia Beach, VA: Sparkledoll Productions. The information gathered from this source is definitely devoted to the topic of teenage pregnancy because it is a helpful guide to those handling unplanned pregnanciesRead MorePublic Health Problem Of Teenage Pregnancy2260 Words   |  10 PagesPublic Health Problem Teenage pregnancy has been a common public health problem in society, particularly in America. When an individual hears that 15 year old girl is pregnant, people perceive it as a negative connotation. The average age to have a child today is 28 years old (Jewkes, Morrell, Christofides, 2009).   Adolescent pregnancies are preventable, but are still bound to happen today and in the future (Langille, 2007). This is a problem is society due to teenagers not being able to supportRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy : Society s Biggest Problem1503 Words   |  7 Pages Teenage Pregnancy Teenage Pregnancy is society s biggest problem, there are so many ways to prevent it, also many advices from people and many decisions a teen parent must make in life. It is today s biggest issue because it affects teen parent s future in many results. The three most important things that it affects is education, financial problems, and being a teenage parent. Those three important things are key to each other in order to succeed in life. Teenage Parents are most