Conflict drives a story. It forces the characters into action, and the suspense the conflict creates keeps the audience reading to find out what happens.  
In literature there are two general  types of conflict:
Internal conflict takes place inside a character when they are forced to wrestle with a decision or choice.   Internal conflicts can deal with a character trying to figure out some aspect of their identity or they may involve a character having to make a difficult choice.  
External conflict takes place between characters or between a character and the outside world.   External conflicts can manifest as disagreements between spouses, fistfights between siblings, struggles between employees and their bosses, the possibilities are endless.   External conflicts can also manifest as a character facing some sort of challenge: the rent is due, there is a mountain to climb, a crime to commit, a test to take, etc.  
For each three stories specifically identify the internal and external conflicts of three stories in the reading list, using quoted material as evidence to your claims where possible.
Toni Cade Bambara’s biography and story, “The Lesson,”
ZZ Packer’s biography and story, “Brownies,”
John Updike’s biography and story, “A&P”