“Conflict is, among other things, the process of building and sustaining very different perceptions and interpretations of reality.” (http://fusf.org/fusf/sinkford_sermon.html) This quote by Paul Lederach, Professor of Peace-Building at Notre Dame reaches out especially to John Updike’s “A&P.” Sammy suffered a variety of conflicts in the story including conflict among characters, conflict among characters and environment, and a conflict of his own personal thoughts leading him eventually to …showed first 75 words of 865 total…

…showed last 75 words of 865 total…would react in Sammy’s shoes. Without Sammy being the narrator of “A&P,” the reader would not be aware that while his decisions seemed reckless, Sammy grows and matures as a person. So, if Paul Lederach is right and the process of building and sustaining very different perceptions and interpretations of reality is conflict, then Sammy has taken this and turned it into developing himself as a person mentally, for the reader to see.