A & P Symbolism

In the stories, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, by Stephen Chbosky, and “A & P”, by John Updike, the two stories very similarly relay the ways that people seek to find greater understanding of themselves in the most confusing, chaotic times. This is just one prime example of a strong resemblance between these two stories. As the reader, the theme and symbolism of these stories share many commonalities. In both “A & P” and “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, the relevant theme expressed amongst both is that the demand for social acceptance often means much less than what we choose to assume. In Updike's story, the girls that are in the store are blatantly drawing attention to themselves by their preferred choice of skimpy attire as an attempt
This is certainly the case in Updike's story when the narrator says, “She had a dirty pink-beige maybe, I don’t know- bathing suit with a little nuble all over it, and, what got me, the straps were down.” This is the explanation of the way that these girls were willing to demoralize their own values and respect for their bodies for just a few minimal minutes of unnecessary attention, and that truly, their personal morals were meaningless to themselves. Furthering with the symbolism of clothing, in Chbosky’s story, the main character, Charlie (later in the story) became involved with his high school's GSA club and began dating one of his peers named Patrick. As he was comfortable wearing the shirt that represented his club, he also received shame for it because he was different. In the story while having a conversation with Patrick, he says, “You ever think, Patrick, that our group is the same as any other group like the football team? And the only real difference between us is what we wear and why we wear it.” This is so powerful to the true illustration of the symbolism of clothing. It brazenly shows that he was not willing to cover up his beliefs and hide his own morals for the sake of pleasing others, as well as the fact that he didn’t think he should be treated any different than the popular “football boys” just because the title on his shirt was mismatched from there’s. Both of the passages excerpted from the two books are significant delegations of the symbolic meaning of clothing, reflecting someone's core