"A&P"

"A&P" is a story about conformity. Conformity is all around Sammy in his job at the grocery store. Customers walk down the rows in the same directions every day. Lengel spends each work day in his office, hiding away. Stokesie's life dream is to replace Lengel and manage this small town grocery store.
However, when the three girls walk through the door, they are the image of nonconformity. They walk against the usual traffic patterns, wearing nothing but their bathing suits, which is against the store's policy of customers having their shoulders covered. Queenie is even wearing her straps down off her shoulders, and she argues with the manager when he says that their clothing choices are inappropriate. The girls transform the story into a struggle between conformity and nonconformity.
Sammy can't seem to take his eyes off these girls, and becomes somewhat entranced by their every move. When they are confronted by Lengel at Sammy's register, Queenie is embarrassed and blushes. We are later told that that's what made Sammy upset enough to quit his job. He is angry at Lengel for embarrassing the girls, and he also hopes to become a hero for them and draw their attention with his quick resignation. As Sammy begins to remove his uniform, he has second thoughts about his decision. He knows that the girls have already left, without paying any attention to his attempt at becoming their hero, but feels that "once you begin a gesture it's fatal not to go through with it" (223). This is when Sammy begins to understand his final epiphany. He has the option of sticking around at the grocery store, keeping his parents and Lengel happy, but he wants to stick out, to get attention, and to be a nonconformist. Thus he loses his job, the respect of his boss, and possibly the approval of his parents all for Queenie, who may never give him a second thought. However, he seems to gain a sense of pride in his ability to make his own decisions. While his family experiences feelings of dismay over Sammy's unemployment, Sammy doesn't think it's sad. Nevertheless, this experience causes Sammy to realize that deciding matters on his own has made his world much more complicated than ever before.