The Significance of Minor Characters in A&P

nipper suits atomic number 18 crucial to a indorsers spirit of any drool. In magic trick Updikes get around story, A&P this idea is very apparent. In this short story, twain of the shaver characters are quite important. These two minor characters are Queenie, a young women shopper and Lengel, the manager of the A&P. Qeenie and Lengel are vital minor characters, as Updike uses them for the readers intellect of the young adult of import character, Sammy, including his temper and motivations, which provides promote understanding of the story.In John Updikes A&P Queenie is the lead little girl if a group of girls who walk into the A&P. She sympathetic of led them (17), as Updike puts it. These girls, including Queenie, are all wearing dishwashing suits, which at the time the story was written, was considered quite risque. Sammy refers to this girl as Queenie because as he puts it, - and then the third one, that wasnt so tall. She was the queen (17). Based on how untold Sammy talks almost her and the way he does it, Queenie is his favorite girl of the group.Lengel is the manager of the A&P. According to Sammy, Lengels clean dreary, teaches Sunday civilize and the rest, but he doesnt miss much. (19) Hes a quiet man, as I say, he doesnt say much (19), but he starts the controversy that eventually leads to Sammy quitting his job. The way Sammy thinks of and talks about Queenie reveals parts of his record and motivations. As for Lengel, the manor which Sammy interacts and when Sammy interacts with him reveals parts of Sammys personality and motivations, as it does with Queenie.Throughout A&P, Queenie and Lengel enlighten the readers understanding of Sammys personality. Queenie, as the lead girl, has Sammys hormones raging throughout the story and shows the reader how Sammy is quite fond of women, but also dis lovefully defaces them by analyzing every part of their bodys as pieces of meat, not as considerful young woman. Updike reveals this when Sammy refers to Queenie by saying, She just walked straight on slowly, on these long white prima-donna legs (17).Sammy also illustrates this idea when he says, You never come how girls work (do you think its a mind in in that respect or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar? ) (17). The occurrence that Sammy is has no respect for women is undoubtedly true. Author, Patrick W. Shaw explains this in his short story criticism, Checking Out Faith and craving Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown and Updikes A & P. Shaw states, He punctuates his juvenile thoughts with chauvinistic asides and double entendres (1).When Sammy talks about his manager, Lengel, he does not seem to respect him, which is another background why Sammy is disrespectful and not only towards women. An subject of this is when Lengel comes in from the outside lot, Sammy says, is about to scuttle into that doorstep marked managerbehind which he hides all day when the girls couple his eye (19). For a regular empl oyee to talk about his manager in such a way suggests that Sammy does not have much respect for Lengel. That quote also illustrates that Sammy also is a jokingly juvenile young man.The way in which Sammy talks to and about Queenie and Lengel shows very little respect. The fact that Lengel is Sammys boss and Queenie is a woman who he doesnt get laid says to the reader, Sammy does not feel obligated to show respect for anyone, regardless of who they are or what their status is. This is another large piece of Sammys personality, revealed by these two minor characters. Queenie and Lengel also enlighten the readers understanding of Sammys motivations, which are to stand up to Lengel in order to be a hero to these girls.Sammy shows this after Queenie and Lengel have an altercation, regarding her and her friends bathing suits and how the suits arent appropriate attire for a food market. This leaves Queenie feeling pretty embarrassed. As Queenie leaves the store, Sammy says, The girls, and whod blame them, are in a race to get out, so I say, I quit to Lengel quick sufficient for them to hear, hoping theyll stop and watch me, their unsuspected hero (20). This is a clear example of how Queenie brings out that Sammy really sticks up for the girls as an attempt to get their aid and come across as a sort of hero to them.This reason for Sammy sticking up for the girls shows, that is his real motivation. During the same situation, Lengel also brings out Sammys motivation, as his words are the reason the girls feel embarrassed and leave. Lengels conversation with Queenie was about the girls attire in the store. Lengel starts by saying to the girls, Girls, this isnt the beach (19). He then explains how they should be dressed to the nines(p) more decently in the store because it is the policy. After the girls leave and Sammy says, I quit (20). Lengel addresses Sammy and tells him not to do that again.Sammy still refuses he puts his apron on the counter and walks out. When h e gets outside to the lot, he is still motivated to surface the girls as he says, I look around for my girls, but theyre gone, of course (20). The fact that Queenie is who Sammy sticks up for, along with the fact that Lengel is the reason Sammy feels as if he has to stick up for Queenie show Sammy motivation. This motivation is to be a sort of hero to Queenie by confronting Lengel and even quitting his job, in hopes that Queenie and her friends will deal his efforts and appreciate him.The idea that Sammy wants to be a sort of hero to the Queenie and the girls, also is felt by Harriet Blodgett as in her critical essay in The Explicator. Blodgett writes, Sammy plays a mythic role, too, seeing himself as the distressed damsels proverbial gentle in shining armor (1). In addition, in the book John Updike Revisited, by James A. Schiff, the idea that Sammy is a hero like character is also present. Schiff writes, Updikes apparent intention was to cast his protagonist heroically, via Samm ys hope that the girls might at some point materialize (116-117).Minor characters are a very important part of any story, as they provide a lot of information about others things such as, the main character. In John Updikes A&P, this remains true. Throughout the story, two minor characters, Queenie and Lengel, reveal Sammys personality and motivations. Qeenie and Lengel are vital minor characters, as Updike uses them for the readers understanding of the main character, Sammy, including his personality and motivations, which provides further understanding of the story.