In Joyce Carol Oates’ short story, “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been,” Connie is caught in the crossfire of the war between fantasy and reality in her teenage mind. This story clearly demonstrates that what one may see, is not what one always gets. Sometimes what an individual sees in his or her eyes, is not exactly what it appears to be in reality. People can delude themselves into creating their own “reality”, when it is merely a fantasy. In Connie’s case, she faces her struggle with fantasy
Connie was a petite young girl with lots of friends but Arnold Friend was anything but her friend that day. The short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates (1966) is a very moving and eye-opening piece of literature. Connie wasn’t unintelligent but just easily influenced for several reasons. Lacking a good relationship with her parents, having her mindset only on a perfect body and image and craving so much attention and affection leads Connie into making a false
question that lingers in most critics mind is the identity of Arnold Friend. Subjected to multiple interpretations, Arnold Friends existence is central to the realistic hermeneutics. Connie asks with her eyes: “who is this guy”? Critics of the story have also indulged in this question and responded with varieties of interpretations. And for most of the critics, the answer monotonously is that Arnold friend is undoubtedly an enigma; his mysterious demeanor has given rise to much unrealistic speculation
Coming of Age Paper Through the short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” By Joyce Carol Oates the main character Connie experience a drastic transformation in her outlook on life. She overcomes being an immature, dependent, and naïve person who lives on her own idealistic world. Connie lives in a world where she is oblivious to her surroundings and the horrible incidents that can happen to her. She always so focused on how she looks and how people perceive her that causes her to
As we examine the foundation of the story a conflict can be understood throughout the complexion of the state of being sexual. "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" occurs inside ‘60s middle class territory, an interval where carnal scruples were examined, juvenile involvement in sexual activity was passionately deliberated, and the established functions intended for females were opposed. Within Joyce Carol Oats drama concerning the emotional facets of sexual potency affecting the womanly pubescent
“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” by Joyce Carol Oates is a story about a girl- Connie-who is stalked by a boy-Arnold-and is eventually persuaded into leaving with him, but is that really what this story about? Or is there is another meaning between the lines. The actual story itself is based on a serial killer that kills teenage girls and is successful in doing so by manipulating his appearance to blend in. After all appearances are everything in the world. You must look a certain way and
A Journey Within Everyone as human beings at some point or another in their life go through the phase of trying to figure out who they are and finding their independence. Some don’t have to work too hard, it just comes naturally to them. For most people it takes a lot of mistakes made, learning from those mistakes, getting stronger from those lessons learned, and finding the strength within ones self to rise up every time they fall down to be able to get back up and keep fighting doing it better
Precaution for where are you going and where you have been without knowing. Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been, by Joyce Carol Oates writes: a story of a young girl and her relationship with her family. This girl is name Connie she is constantly at war with her family. Oates demonstrates her absurd desire to grow up. Connie is a girl who flaunts her beauty which leads her to a terrible event with Arnold Friend which results to death. This story was sitting in the 1960s, when in American there
Critical Lenses While the feminist lens explores the victimization of women as a result of the predatory behavior of men, Joyce Oates’s “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” can be read as an allegory. Ostensibly, the feminist lens seems like a perfect fit for the story; Connie chooses to leave with Arnold Friend, demonstrating her individuality as a woman by leaving the protection of her parents. However, when one realizes that Connie decided to leave her home only to be forced to live under
Joyce Carol Oates is an American writer who has published over forty novels. Most of her novels are graphic and many of them depict death. In her short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” Oates tells the story of Connie, a fifteen year old girl. Like in many of her previous novels Connie dies, or the reader is led to believe she does. Oates was inspired by Bob Dylan’s song “ It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue”, Charles Schmid, and from the book of Judges chapter 19 verse 17 in the Bible.