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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In what location does the young woman who first catches the narrator's eye have "two crescents of white" (1)?

2. What name does the narrator use before saying, "Hold me tight" (8) to Stokesie?

3. What metaphorical body part or parts does the narrator mention in reference to the "cash-register-watcher" (1)?

4. What street does the narrator name when depicting the "free-loaders" (10) in his town?

5. To what animal does the narrator compare his customers when discussing how they react to seeing the girls in the store?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the symbolism of the buildings Sammy names?

2. What is Stokesie's career goal?

3. What sorts of details does Updike use to portray the appearance of the store and why?

4. What simile does Sammy use to describe the layout of the grocery store?

5. Who is the protagonist of the story "A and P"?

6. On what evidence does Sammy base his conclusion that one particular young woman is the leader?

7. What is Sammy's purpose for using a historical allusion in Paragraph 1?

8. How is the animal motif included within Paragraphs 1-6?

9. Discuss the way in which Sammy objectifies the three young women.

10. Describe the three young women who enter the store.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Updike’s messages about guilt and responsibility within the story “A and P.” Focus on elements of the story such as Sammy’s family’s negative reaction to Sammy’s decision to quit his job at the A and P.

Essay Topic 2

Look carefully at Sammy’s language use throughout the story. What is Updike’s purpose for shaping Sammy’s voice in the way that he does? For example, why does Updike often choose to put grammatically incorrect phrasing into Sammy’s mouth, while also choosing a word like “hereafter” (32) for Sammy’s final line of narration within the story?

Essay Topic 3

How is the topic of masculinity treated within Updike’s story and how does its treatment relate to the story's depicted messages?

(see the answer keys)

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