Is the supermarket setting vital to the story? Could the story been set in a car wash? In a fast food restaurant? in a business office?…
In her essay, Welty remembers the importance of this store and how it shaped her family. The purpose of doing so is to describe the pure innocence of youth, in which a corner store can prove to be mesmorizing. Welty captures this youthful feeling as she describes the scene in which she “skipped [her] jumping rope up and down [the sidewalk], hopped it’s length through mazes of hopscotch, played jacks in its islands of shades, serpentined along it on [her] Princess bicycle, skated it backward and forward” (Welty par. 4). These seemingly playful and simple events are made complex and intricate with the use of words such as “serpentined” and “mazes”. By doing so, Welty is adding to the subject in which events of your childhood seem more interesting than as an adult. The tone of her essay is rather casual and playful. Welty captures her mental image of store when describing the “enchantment [that] is cast upon you by all those things you weren’t supposed to have need fore, it lures you close to wooden tops you’d outgrown, boy’s marbles and agates in little net pouches...” (Welty par. 8). This enchantment blinded Welty to what normally would be viewed as disguisting and dirty. For example, the tangible smells- “dill-pickle brine that had leaked through a paper sack in a fresh trail across the wooden floor” and “the smell of…
“The whole store was like a pinball machine and he didn’t know which tunnel…
“It works just as good as the name brand,” my mother would always suggest. As I have matured, I regret to admit that, in most instances, my mother’s notion was right. Consequently, those very words describe my shopping nature. When I think of what kind of shopper I am and how I have developed my shopping habits, there are three factors that are responsible for my consumer behavior. Those factors include my childhood shopping experiences, my knowledge of advertising and marketing, and my persona.…
As a Chinese-American, my family expected me to help out at the restaurant while maintaining straight A's in school. But, it wasn't easy; every day, I would report to the restaurant after school and immediately start working. Inside the kitchen, I would pack all the orders into aluminum containers, place them into a brown bag, and insert packets of sauces and utensils. Burns and cuts were common due to the terrible and tearable aluminum containers. Outside at the front desk, I would answer the seemingly endless ringing phones. In many instances, customers had to wait either on the phone or at the front desk for me to find their orders on the computer, even after they showed me where it was on the menu. During lunch hours, the pressure was even…
To tell my story, I have to set the scene. It was the summer of 2014, the Thursday before school started actually. I had not seen familiar faces in a while so, I was ready to get back. I did not realize it yet, but taking a job at Whataburger would be the biggest (only) mistake I ever made.…
1. Updike arranges details artfully in order to set the story in a perfectly ordinary supermarket. His description of the appearance of the supermarket itself offers a vivid image. Updike talks about a girl in a bathing suit “in the cool of the A & P, under the fluorescent lights, against all those stacked packages, with her feet padding along naked over our checkerboard green-and-cream rubber-tile floor” (14). This offers the perfect description of a modern supermarket. The way in which Updike describes the three girls walking down the aisles adds to the supermarket image. Updike explains, “The fat one with the tan sort of fumbled with the cookies, but on second thought she put the packages back. The sheep pushing their carts down the aisle” (14). The author adds to the illustration with a description of this consumer, whose approach and actions reflect those of any supermarket customer.…
In "A&P" Updike describes the store as a gray 1950's "Leave it to Beaver" kind of setting. The setting is not upbeat at all, actually the atmosphere of the grocery store is boring and extremely ordinary causing the three girls Sammy sees seem like the most entertainment he's ever had in the store. For example Sammy describes to you the florescent lights, the stacked packages and the checkerboard green and cream rubber-tile floor. The grocery store setting allows the girls to stand out even more than they would otherwise. Even though the girls are dressed in bathing suits…
My ears ring as the old school bus screeches to a halt. We hop off and a dry, winter gust smacks my face. Instantly, my stuffy nose runs. I grasp the cold metal handle of the school door, open it, and slam a piece of wood underneath to keep it ajar. After we become accustomed to the cold shock, Mrs. Cimenski, our director, orders us to haul the heavy wooden tables and a set of four lockers toward our designated area backstage. We struggle through multiple doors and long curtains until we reach our destination. The first aid kit mends our minor cuts and bruises created in the process. Gathering our senses, we collect the makeup and costumes and begin a brisk walk to the classroom assigned to us. The first performance is in an hour and a half,…
In Defense of Food was quite shocking at first. In all honesty, it made me think I was going to die within the next week due to a heart attack triggered by all the junk I eat. Considering I myself indulge in processed cookies from the aisles of Stop and Shop, and steak tips that have been marinating in salt for two days, the film hit close to home. But in all honesty, I don’t eat that bad; in comparison to the Seventh-Day Adventists I do, but I think I’m doing alright.…
A grocery store is probably not the first place most people associate with entertaining stories, but in my family, there have been quite a few tales that revolve around our local Kroger. For instance, hearing my sister, Mary Jean, recount the loss of her beloved parking space when Kroger built their gas station has been the cause of much hilarity. Approximately two years ago, Mary Jean and I went to Kroger for just a few items, and found the place teeming with other shoppers. The holidays were approaching, so the lines were four or five shoppers long and more than a few of them had carts that were almost overflowing. The overhead lights were noticeably bright, compared to the overcast sky outside, and all…
i stole the crisp ten dollar bill you let on the edge of the table for your waitress, and not my grimy six year old hands.…
Jack uses the supermarket as his base for his consumer lifestyle and a place to escape, which is validated by the interpretation of his friend and colleague Murray Siskind. Murray views the supermarket as almost a holy place, an atmosphere with rays and "white noise" everywhere. It's full of psychic data .Everything is concealed in symbolism, hidden by veils of mystery and layers of cultural material The large doors…
Pan seared chicken, garlic bread, hamburgers, steak, homemade macaroni and cheese, enchiladas, or whatever my dad had decided to make that night as what was for dinner was always unpredictable with the only exception being Fridays with a pie from my family’s favorite pizzeria, Sal’s, guaranteed to be on the kitchen counter accompanied by garlic powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, fresh basil picked right from the backyard, and a fresh block of parmesan cheese.…
I was going to graduate in six days. I had another job already lined up and had decided this was going to be my last day working in a restaurant. Waiting tables defiantly should not become your career. I see people all the time that do it for a living and cannot fathom how they are able to put up with people seven days a week. I serve at a Mexican restaurant, and it has been one terrible experience after another. It was constant forced smiles at rude patrons, cleaning up after messy eaters, and poor tips from people who had already over-stayed their welcome; until my last day arrived.…