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Chitu Onyeador

Professor Glenn Keyser

ENGL-230-0061

30 June 2023

A Short Story Analysis of Gary Soto's "Looking For Work" and John Updike's "A&P"

In the world of literature, short stories have always had the undeniable ability to captivate

their readers with their brevity and potent use of literary elements. While they may seem brief in

size, their impact can be immeasurable. These stories have the tendency to evoke different

reactions in the audience by provoking profound emotions, displaying vivid imagery, and

exploring intricate layers of social, cultural, and emotional themes within the confines of a short

narrative. Indeed, the power of the short story lies not only in its concise nature but also in the

richness it harbors within its carefully crafted words. Gary Soto’s “Looking for Work” and John

Updike's “A&P” are modern examples of what a short story should look like. In this essay,

through the analysis, comparison, and contraction of both stories based on three essential

elements of fiction stories which include their plots, characters, and development of themes, I

determined that Gary Soto’s “Looking for Work” is the better short story and deserves more

literary canon than John Updike’s “A&P”.

The first and arguably most crucial element of a short story is the plot and the direction

in which a story is motioned. Professor Glenn Keyser, a reputable professor at Los Medanos

College, defined plot as “the manner in which a series of events are connected to one another to

create a story arc”. This means the plot is the complications of actions and events that occur over
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a period that makes up a story. To determine which made use of the plot element better, I have

based them on the concept of Freytag’s Pyramid. The principal says that a good plot should have

the following: an introduction with an exposition, an inciting action, rising action, a climax,

falling action, and a resolution. Gary Soto does a clinical job of following this concept as made

apparent in his work. The plot circles the experiences of a young Mexican-American boy and his

family as they navigate the challenges of assimilation and societal expectations in 1950s

California. Whereas the plot of “A&P” sees Sammy, an observant and imaginative teenager

working as a cashier at the local A&P supermarket. One day, three young girls enter the store

wearing only bathing suits, attracting the attention of both the customers and the employees.

Sammy as well as other staff and customers observe the three girls wonder the supermarket. It

comes to a head when they are confronted by Sammy’s boss and are asked to leave, to which he

responds by quitting his job. The exposition in this particular story doesn’t all take place at once

but throughout the protagonist meeting character in his adventure including his family members

like Rick, Deb, and their mother. Their neighbors, like Frankie and Ms. Moore. The protagonist's

best friend, Little John as well as a few others. John Updike’s “A&P” use the same method of

introducing characters to us as events take place. Characters like Sammy, our protagonist, his co-

workers Stokesie and McMahon, his boss, Lengel, and the girls, the leader whom he effectively

names Queenie. I believe that this is where the differences start to show. Both stories also have

very clear inciting events with “A&P” inciting event being the girls entering the store and in

“Looking for Work” that being the protagonist’s “vision of wealth” that could “save” him and

his family. From here onward, the following of Freytag’s Pyramid is majorly followed by

Updike. There is a coherent rising action that takes place as Sammy, as well as other members

of the grocery store and customers, observe Queenie and the other girls wander the supermarket
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in their bikinis. The climax occurs when the three girls are confronted by Lengel, Sammy’s

Boss, and asked to leave to which they purchase their item and leave. This is followed by

Sammy quitting his job in the hopes of attaining some sort of appreciation but to no avail, then

proceeds to reflect on his decision. That final part makes up the failing action and resolution.

So I believe that John Updike does a better job at creating a plot because his story covers the

most important elements of a good plot. Updike goes further to introduce situational irony in

the story. This comes in the form of Sammy not receiving the accreditation or appreciation he

excepted from going through with the act of quitting his job. The irony is that he thought it was a

noble feat. Whereas, his boss told him otherwise. In comparison, Soto’s “Looking for Work”

more detailed exposition of the characters which is important for drawing in the audience. There

is also a lack of climax, although you could argue that their going swimming may account for

the climax, as well as a falling action and resolution.

Another major literary concept is the character or characters involved in the story. This is

arguably the most important element of a short story because of the role that characters play in

short stories. Characters play a crucial role in a story as they drive the narrative forward, create

conflicts, and provide readers with relatable experiences. Although characters require certain

features to make them “good” characters. This will be the criteria that I base my comparison on.

The character elements I will be highlighting include their complexity, flaws, development,

motivation, sympathetic relation, consistency, and motivation. Focusing on the protagonists,

I perceive that the main character in Soto’s “Looking for Work” was just very fleshed out as

Sammy, the protagonist in John Updike’s “A&P” upon analysis. Although, I gave the author the

benefit of the doubt that they weren’t supposed to be as “Looking for Work” is a short story. In
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this aspect, I noted that John Updike does a great job of describing his character and applying the

elements that make a good character. Updike depicts his protagonist as a teenage cashier at the

local A&P supermarket. Soto portrays the protagonist as a nine-year-old Mexican-American boy

living in a lower-class household in California in the 1950s. I noted that Soto gives no direct

description of the protagonist, more notably, he isn’t even given a name. On the other hand,

through his adventures, we discover that the protagonist is sensitive and attentive. We observe

this for the first time a the very beginning of the story where the young protagonist envisions a

life where he and his family are wealthy and affluent. This means that the protagonist is already

conscious of the situation his family is in as a member of the lower class. Follow by not

describing Sammy immediately but allowing us to learn about the character. From reading the

text we observe Sammy to be perceptive and imaginative. We also learn that frequently

becomes bored with his job's routine and the conformist quality of the world around him. The

author definitely gives their characters good flaws (poverty or middle class) as well as makes

them easy to sympathize with. Although I believe that Soto does a better job at giving his

character meaningful character elements. This is because, from the perspective of the

audience, the protagonist is a young boy who can’t provide for himself, that lives in a lower-class

home, and doesn’t get to experience the things wealthy families experience including their

“uncomplicated routine”. Compared to Updike’s character who comfortably works a “dead-end”

job as a cashier at a grocery store, he still has enough control over his life to make him less

sympathetic than Soto’s character The protagonist's motivation is also different is also made

clear in the beginning of the story when the protagonist “had a nine-year-old’s vision of wealth

that would save us from ourselves” and “decided to become wealthy, and right away”. The

protagonist sets a goal for himself, to improve his situation to the best of his ability (which isn’t
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much as he is a nine-year-old, refer to the previous comment on sympathy ), something that

makes him relatable from the audience’s perspective. Furthermore, he remains consistent with

his design as throughout the story he “acts his age” and thinks like a nine-year-old. Sammy does

the opposite and steps out of his comfort zone to “step up” for the girls that were harassed by his

boss. This does give him some sort of dynamism. Overall, the protagonist of “Looking for

Work” works great as a character and Soto did a better job at following elements that make a

good character in detail.

The final major literacy concept I will compare and contrast will be the themes of the

two stories. Themes play a crucial role in a story as they provide deeper meaning, central ideas,

and universal messages that resonate with the audience. They include providing significance to

the story whether that be teaching a lesson or defining an issue. After my analysis, I believe that

the themes that Updike explores in “A&P” are more important compared to Soto's “Looking for

Work”, and here’s my reasoning. Updike’s “A&P” explores the tension between conformity

and individuality. Specifically, in the case of individuality, Updike through Sammy displays

the struggle between the need to fit in and the desire for authenticity and personal freedom in

the story. We observe that Sammy had grown weary of the rigid conformity of his job and the

conservative neighborhood he lives in. The appearance of the three young girls in bathing suits

attracted Sammy because they stood as a symbol that went against the social conventions that

dictate modesty and propriety in their time. Sammy's choice to resign from his position was his

way of standing as an ally to the girls, although they didn’t notice this display of courage from

Sammy. I believe that the message it spreads involves having the courage to be yourself. In

contrast, the themes explored in Gary Soto’s "Looking for Work." are the difficulties that come
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with assimilating into a new country or society, racial identity, and the need for acceptability

in a culture marked by racial divisions and cultural expectations. The protagonist of “Looking

for Work” as well as his family members attempt to present themselves as people who are within

the cultural norms of behavior and appearance, as well as their aspirations to live in a white,

affluent neighborhood. This is displayed by the protagonists wanting to imitate the actions and

scenes of the popular tv show, Father Knows Best, where a rich family is depicted in their day-

to-day lifestyle and activities. This is further displayed when the protagonist asks his mother if

they can imitate the family at the dining table. They are doing their best to live within the

standards and conform to the norms. Overall, I think that the theme of Soto’s “Looking for

Work” is way more important in a modern sense and It personally speaks to me more as I have

personal experience in the field of attempting to assimilate. I moved to the Bay Area a year and

have a good and my biggest problem had been my accent. To this day, it is very much noticeable

but needing to assimilate, I had to adjust my accent and slang to make it more understandable to

people who don’t speak like me or with my tone.

Upon the conclusion of my analysis, comparison, and contrast of the two short stories, it

is my personal opinion that Gary Soto’s “Looking for Work” receives more critical acclaim and

literary canon compared to John Updike’s “A&P”. The idea of the literary canon is that a piece

of literature is considered to be very important and influential in a particular period, genre, or

cultural context. The reason for my opinion is determined by the result of weighing the

significance of the two stories' themes. One of the themes of “Looking for Work” concerned the

impact of radical identity and status on a specific type of people. In light of the recent Black

Lives Matter protests as well as the general stereotypes, police brutality, and systematic
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racism faced by many minorities face in the United States, it is not very hard to see the

connection the short story has with the modern era. It is by this reasoning I believe that Gary

Soto’s “Looking for Work” receives more critical acclaim and literary canon compared to John

Updike’s “A&P”. It is also through the literary analysis I have made in this essay that I believe

that Gary Soto’s “Looking for Work” is, in fact, the better short story.