Feminism and the Stream of Consciousness in A&P

John Updike’s short narrative “A&P” examines the way in which individuals perceive and understand one another upon first impression. When we are first introduced to the protagonist and narrator, Sammy, his actions lead the reader to regard him in a negative light. The narrative begins with his detailed scrutiny of three girls who are wearing bathing suits in a supermarket. Sammy catalogues every minute detail about their physical appearance. In fact, he fails to acknowledge anything but their appearance. He even questions these girls’ capability of conscious thought by saying “You never know for sure how girls’ minds work (do you really think it’s a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar?)” (Updike, 16). In effect, he turns these girls into meaningless objects by way of his first impression. Through this quote, the narrator’s unique voice emerges and contributes to the narrative’s overall image. It is written using a stream of consciousness style, meaning that Sammy’s true feelings and opinions are written without self-censorship. In the beginning of “A&P”, the stream of consciousness narration technique is used to reveal his male chauvinist attitude, which may have otherwise been concealed if the narration were told in another way. Additionally, Updike uses a hyperbolic statement (“do you really think it’s a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar”) in order to shock the reader and sway their general opinion against Sammy. Updike does this in order to effectively contrast between the protagonist’s thoughts and feelings at the beginning and end of the story. In the broader context of “A&P”, these comparisons are especially significant. For example, at the beginning of the story, Sammy acts on his initial impressions of the girls in an instinctively misogynistic way, but as the story unfolds he begins to see them as human beings rather than objects. These comparisons are important to make because they provide social commentary on the endlessly faulty nature of first impressions.