A True Hero In John Updike's A & P

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A Crushing Crush In today’s world the term hero gets thrown around freely. A true hero is someone who acts in an unselfish way to help another person. In the short story “A&P” by John Updike, Sammy is presented two doors. The protagonist is placed in a situation where he must choose between trying to be a hero or keeping his job. When he opens the door of his choosing, he must face the harsh reality of losing his job, letting his parents down, and most importantly, acting selfishly toward the girls by trying to be a hero. In everyday life, many people can honestly say that they dislike their place of occupation. For sammy, that life was brewing all around him. Like many, he was not going to college and being a cashier at A&P was his plans or income for quite some time. Aside from his plans, Sammy’s motives for quitting were not genuine, and thats why he “ felt how hard the world was going to be hereafter” (263).…show more content…
Unfortunately not all the decisions you make will always go as planed. For Sammy, this case was no different. At times a hero will come along and stand up for the underdog. In this particular situation, there were three. This was the opportunity of a life time and he did like any other boy would do, act without thinking. Sammy didn't just close one door when he quit. In the process he closed any possible benefits that came with his parents being friends with Lengel. It closed any possible future transaction for his parents and himself at A&P. Its an understatement to say the decisions you make in everyday life can affect those closest to you, like a big rock being thrown into a
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