John Updike uses the persona of an immature teenage boy to illustrate an ambivalent attitude towards women and the growth into adulthood. This illustration is a common theme among adolescent males in society today. Updike is able to relate this to his readers through a young, growing boy, Sam, who works at an A&P. Updike then tells about an incident in which Sam had been faced with that relates to his adolescent immaturity. When the incident is over, Sam has grown up.
Three young girls walk into the A&P, inappropriately dressed in bathing suits. They walk up and down the aisles looking for things, all the while drawing stares. Sam shows off his immature side of an adolescent male through his thoughts and actions. In talking with his fellow cashier, Sam describes the girls in terms of physical appearance, commenting on size, weight, curves, and prettiness. Talks as though they were pieces of meat. He also makes provocative comments to his coworker. As he does this, he also watches the movement of the girls around the store. Sam follows their every move and mentions how he wants them to notice him and come to his register. This is Sam's first stage of growth, from looking at women as nothing but possession to wanting them to notice him. He is gaining a sense of respect for the girls while developing a desire to be noticed by them.
Sam's second stage of growth is seen in his actions that take place when the girls approach his register. He barely begins to scan their item before his manager appears and scolds the girls about improper dress in the store. Sam was speechless and motionless the entire time until his manager had finished yelling, at which point he rings up the food and takes the money. Here, Sam is unable to react in front of the girls whom he just labeled inferior a moment ago. In his third transition to adulthood, Sam realizes that he had been looking down on women when he himself could not react in their presence.
