"A&P"

The short story “A&P” is about feminist protest. When the girls walk into the A&P they are clearly going against the norm of that society by the way they are dressed. The leader of the three girls did not look around to see if anyone was watching she just walked slowly and held herself straight (220). The three girls even walked the opposite way in the aisles than the regular customers did (221). The most evidence of feminist protest in the story was at the end when Lengel confronted them about their clothing. When he confronts them they do not simply say “sorry it will not happen again”, they argue with him (223). One of the factors that cause Sammy to quit is the way that he sees Lengel treat the three girls (223). He also wants to be seen as a hero to the girls by saying that he quit before they walked out (223). I think that he also wanted to show those girls that he supported them and their decision to go against the norm of that society. Sammy’s epiphany is that he realizes that Lengel is not treating the girls with respect and he does not agree with the way things are at the A&P. The epiphany happens when Lengel says “Sammy, have you rung up this purchase?” (223). The story then notes that Sammy answered “No” but that is not what he was thinking about (223).