The Truth About Sharks Analysis

Firstly, setting plays a crucial part of the story because of where and when the story takes place. This story takes place around the 1950’s in the United States near Boston. In the story, it read “It's not as if we're on the Cape; we're north of Boston and there's people in this town haven't seen the ocean for twenty years.” (Updike) This quote demonstrates of why the locals in the town where so upset to see the three young girls wearing only their bathing suits in the supermarket. This also takes place in a much older generation that is not okay with people walking around with revealing clothing. That is why Sammy’s boss, Lengel was so upset with the

Once, a very wise anonymous Tumblr user said “Never be fooled by what you see on the outside, because what’s on the inside is a different story” We often forget people we meet in our daily lives have lives and different circumstances than us and that leads to the mistreatment of others. In The Truth About Sharks by Joan Bauer, this is shown between two characters, Beth and Madge P. Groton. This mistreatment changes Beth throughout the story, making her a dynamic character. At the beginning of the story, Beth was quite lazy and irritable, and had to go to her Uncle's birthday party. She needed to go get new pants for the party. She leaves to go to the mall, not caring to dress up at all. As she enters the store, she is eye’d down by the security guard, Madge P. Groton. Madge glared at her with suspicion because of how Beth looked. Beth goes and tries on pairs of pants before going to look some more, leaving on the pants from the store and all her belongings in the changing room. Beth is grabbed by Madge P. Groton and is falsely arrested for shoplifting the pants she had on. Madge used her power against to try to get Beth to take off the “stolen” pants, in which Beth refused to do so. Madge then calls the police to take Beth in, and starts to tell Beth how she’s seen kids like her, stereotyping her by how she looks. Before long, an officer is brought in and takes Beth back to his car. Beth then convinces him that if they go back in, she can prove her innocence. They go back in and to the salesperson

The year was 3456, Gerald and his crew are from the deep Alaskan mountains, the new capital of the United States. No one really knows who they are except for eachother. They can not have anyone know where they live or who they are because they have and illegal job. Gerald and his crew illegally moonshine. Gerald says that it is the best tasting thing he has ever had. He has a very nice log cabin that he made in the mountains. It has everything that you would need. It has cable, lights, wifi, an endless amount of guns, and is built well enough to uphold the devastating winter storms. All of this makes him feel warm when it is really freezing cold. Each crew member has a snowmobile and a jeep to get around to the hunting spots, gold mines, and moonshine spots. Gerald loves to snowboard, mountain bike, and fish. The whole crew goes on a fishing trip on the coast of Florida. Technology had moved to the sea, and the fish are almost as advanced as the humans.

In 1962 north of Boston, a town five minutes from a beach with a big summer colony out on the point sat a store in the middle of town. A&P was a local grocery store. On a Thursday afternoon, three girls wearing nothing but bathing suits walked into A&P and initiated a slew of comments, stares and actions taken by the cashiers and other patrons in the store. Most women in the town that had gone to beach would put on a shirt or shorts before getting out of the car and into the street. When the three girls in their bathing suits walked into the store, they had no idea of the events taking place as they walk around the store. Sammy watched the girl’s every move carefully and when the girls asked old McMahon a question, old McMahon was patting his mouth and looking after the girls, sizing their joints. In the story when Sammy says ‘old’ McMahon looking after the girls, it proves that the girls may have been underdressed for a local grocery store. Sammy’s behavior and actions that he took towards his manager was nothing more than an overreaction.

Sammy based his opinion of what part of society the shoppers belonged to by the items they would purchase. The girl that he favored was purchasing some kind of fish in a can with some sort of fancy sauce, not usually something that a lower class citizen would purchase. He figured since she was purchasing such a fancy item, she must be part of the higher class society, which he was not. He wished that he could be and he envied the fact that she was part of a society where they could do anything they wanted to do. To be able to buy and wear whatever pleased them. To say whatever it is they wanted to say. It is also present when the store manager threatened Sammy when he quit his job. By saying to Sammy, “you don’t want to do this to your mom and dad” and “you’ll feel this for the rest of your life” (Updike 21), not only is he wanting to keep control of him, he is telling Sammy that he and his family will be looked at differently. They will be moved into a lower class and by quitting, not only is he going to ruin his life, he will affect the life of the rest of his family as

In a continuing attempt to reveal this societal conflict, Updike introduces the character of Lengel, the manager. He accosts the girls and starts to make a scene accusing them of being indecent: “‘Girls, I don’t want to argue with you. After this come in here with your shoulders covered. It’s our policy.’ He turns his back. That’s policy for you. Policy is what the kingpins want. What others want is juvenile delinquency” (Updike, 600). When the store manager confronts three girls in swimsuits because of their indecency (lack of proper clothes), they are forced to leave humiliated. At this moment Sammy makes the choice to quit his job in protest of the manager’s handling of the situation. In his mind, and arguably in John Updike’s mind, the standards of walking into a grocery store in a bathing suit and humiliating someone in front of other people are both unacceptable. This part of the story is pivotal for one main reason: a voice in the business community is speaking. As a manager at A & P, Lengel is the voice of The Establishment and guards the community ethics (Porter, 321). Queenie’s (the ringleader of the girls) blush is what moves Sammy to action. Here are three girls who came in from the beach to purchase only one thing, and this kingpin is embarrassing them in order to maintain an aura of morality, decency,

When three young teenage girls enter the store wearing nothing but bathing suits, things begin to change for Sammy. Sammy takes notice of the actions of the girls; how they go against the normal “traffic flow” of the supermarket and break the social rules of society with their attire. It is these attributes that attract Sammy to them, as they represent freedom and escape from the life he finds himself in. When Lengel approaches them and reprimands them for what they are wearing, Sammy quits in the hopes of becoming the girls unsuspected hero.

This story could make one wonder, how far would you go to get the person of your dreams. In Updike’s story, three young ladies walk into the A&P store wearing nothing but bathing suits. The girls catch the attention of Sammy who is the cashier. Sammy watches the girls walk around the store while making mental notes about each one of the girls. When Mr. Lengel the store manager sees the girls, he lets them know that the store policy is to have your shoulders covered and to dress appropriately when you enter the store. This conversation upsets Sammy, so in the moment Sammy spontaneously quits his job in hopes of being the girl’s hero. After Sammy takes off his apron and walks out the door he looks around, but the girls have already gone.

Sammy faces the decision of staying at his job or leaving. His parents are friends with the manager of the store, Lengel. One day three girls walk into the store wearing nothing but bathing suits. Seeing it is a slow day, Sammy observes the girls as they go through the store and to his luck come to his check out station. Lengel then sees them at checkout and confronts the girls to tell them about the store’s policy that they should be dressed decently upon entering the store, “‘Girls, I don’t want to argue with you. After this come in here with your shoulders covered. It’s our policy’” (Updike). This is where Sammy has his transitioning experience. Upon hearing this conversation, Sammy tries be a hero for the girls by making the decision to quit his job, “The girls, and who’d blame, them are in a hurry to get out, so I say ‘I quit’ to Lengel quick enough for them to hear,

Humans are just like sharks. Humans eat meat they have live babies and sharks make mistakes just like humans. Sharks are very interesting creatures but people don’t give them a chance because people make them sound like they are terrible beasts. Many people are more likely to get killed by a car crash then by a shark. If people keep killing sharks for fins there will be no more sharks.

On a regular day, three girls in bathing suits walk inside a grocery store called A&P. The three girls in bathing suits brought a lot of attention with them. At a grocery store, it is very uncommon to enter a store with a bathing suit which stirs some controversy revealing a lot of skin. One could say they did the job of getting that attention from the employees. The story is told from sammys perspective, which he talks about each girls looks. “The one that caught my eye first was the one in the plaid green two piece. She was a chunky kid, with a good tan and a sweet broad soft-looking can with those two crescents of white just under it, where the sun never seems to hit, at the top of the backs of her legs” (627). The description sammy gave about the girl demonstrates the attention they are receiving. Beside sammy, Stokesie can not keep his eyes off the girls. Even though he is a married man, he could not maintain his etiquette at work. It may seem like the group of girls hold a power that men seek. They play it off pretty good with the help of their leader queenie who catches the attention of Sammy.

As soon as she steps out of the changing room, she is caught by Madge P. Groton who is the head security guard of the store. Madge accuses Beth of shoplifting, but in reality Beth hasn’t stolen anything. Beth begins to feel hopeless as she is escorted to the main security office within the store. When a police officer arrives to the store, Beth is put into custody and sits in the back of the officer’s squad car. Beth is able to convince the police officer to take her into the store to prove she is innocent. Once Hannah tells the police officer what “really” happened, Beth is let off the hook and she is proven to be innocent. Beth is able to speak up for herself. She is full of bravery and confidence at end of this nail biting tragedy. Looking at the dynamic character from the short story, “The Truth About Sharks,” Beth proves to us how guilt could be mistaken for innocence. As a result of Beth’s honesty and bravery, it is more simple by virtue of using dynamic character to locate the theme. Innocence is the quality of being free from guilt, sin and moral

Sammy spoke up about the argument and pointed out that “[Lengel] didn’t have to embarrass [the girls],” (26), but was shut down by his manager when Lengel ended with “It was they who were embarrassing us,” (27). Mrs. Mallard did not have the right to act for herself without restraints whereas Sammy was prohibited from speaking up for what he believes is right.

Sharks are one of the most feared carnivores in the sea. There are 365 species of of sharks in the sea as we know today. All sharks are carnivores. Most of them eat live fish, including other sharks. A shark's most common natural enemy is an another shark. Most sharks eat their prey whole, or they tear off large chunks of the bodies. Some sharks crush their prey. Others take out small pieces off flesh from large fish. Sharks also feed on dead or dying animals. Sharks have the reputation of attacking human beings. But less than 100 shark attacks a year are reported throughout the world. Sharks are most common in warm seas and oceans. Whale sharks, are the largest shark known to man. Sharks are classified in the order

Beginning with the simplest one-celled organism, an extraordinary animal rose in the murky waters entitled to a non-comparable killing-eating machine. This organism has become nature’s most genuine and most successful creature that it has remained unchanged for over 250 million years. Nature finally invented the perfect king of the sea. This animal has given the sea it’s “living” adjective; in turn, it was entitled—the “great white shark.”