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John Updike's "A & P" and T. Coraghessan Boyle's "Greasy Lake" have many similarities as well as differences as coming-of-age stories. "A & P" is about a nineteen-year-old boy working at a grocery shop who stands up against the manager trying to defend and impress the girls he is attracted to who are not "decently dressed" (Updike 18). "Greasy Lake" is a story of several nineteen years old youths who play a prank on a bad character and experience what real bad characters can do.

Fortunately, Sammy and the narrator realize their deficiency – infantility – after their conflict with other people just like the ancient Greek proverb says, "Through suffering comes wisdom" (qtd. in Vannatta 1637). In Sammy's case, "enraged that Lengel has humiliated the girls" (Uphaus 372), he quits his job trying to defend and impress the girls. However, the girls just ignore Sammy and leave the store. Sammy is then left alone. At the end when he look back into the store from outside, "[his] stomach......

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Approximate Word Count: 1110
Approximate Pages: 5 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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