Ambiguity In ', & Answers By Joyce Carol Oates

In times of struggle, people can be in quite different situations but still come to similar conclusions. Authors Ian McEwan and Paul Elwork, push their protagonists to extremes in their stories but come to a similar conclusion: that to move on in their lives they need to find forgiveness. Briony Tallis in Ian McEwan’s novel ‘Atonement’ leads her family through a long period of denial due to a life-ruining lie she created. Years after the event Briony is still trying to fix her mistakes as she finds she cannot live in a world without reparation. Similarly, Emily Stewart in Paul Elwork’s novel ‘The Girl Who Would Speak for the Dead’ lies to people who, after the recent war, are grieving for

As teenage girls progress through life, the need to be perfect rides on their back, causing dreams and the fulfillment of wishes to be yearned for. The ultimate need to be beautiful creates life long effects within the minds of woman, later generating the demand of many unrealistic aspirations. While many believe that dreaming is a figment of the imagination, it can be described as a longing desire of hopeful achievements, expectations and future goals. For example, in Sigmund Freud’s book “The Interpretation of Dreams” he states, “ dreams are nothing other than the fulfillment of wishes”(Freud 118). Throughout “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, the author uses setting, characterization, and plot to portray Connie’s mentality of being stuck in a dream.

In “Whoever We Are, Loss Finds us and Defines Us”, by Anna Quindlen, she brings forth the discussion grief's grip on the lives of the living. Wounds of death can heal with the passing of time, but in this instance, the hurt lives on. Published in New York, New York on June 5, 1994, this is one of many Quindlen published in the New York Times, centered on death's aftermath. This article, written in response to the death of Quindlen’s sister-in-law, and is focused on an audience who has, currently is, or will experience death. Quindlen-a columnist for the New York Times and Newsweek, Pulitzer Prize winner and author-has written six bestselling novels (Every Last One, Rise and Shine, Object Lessons, One True Thing, and Black and Blue) and has

Reality vs Death in “Where Are You Going. Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates

In Joyce Carol Oates “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, the reader becomes increasingly aware of the innate threat that Arnold poses. Oates particularly portrays this through the selection of detail in the encounters between Connie and Arnold, beginning at the drive-in restaurant and again in the following scenes of the short story. These details explicitly express the nature of his character, therefore, allowing the reader to interpret them as foreshadowing.

Charles Baudelaire once said, “la plus belle des ruses du diable est de vous persuader qu'il n'existe pas. (the devil’s finest trick is to persuade you that he does not exist).” The deceit that Connie experiences throughout the story influences the behaviors and perspectives that she has on her own life, changing the initial thoughts that she had towards her family. In the short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, Connie encountered a guy named Eddie where they spent a few hours in a restaurant that later led them to being in an alley. Though this moment seemed to of little significance to Connie, an incident with a strange man, Arnold Friend, later on in the story left Connie with an unsettling

In my essay I am going to compare things from the book Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet to events in my life. In the book on page 9 paragraph one it talks about how after Marty’s mother passed away Marty kept busy at college to avoid his dad and the reality of the situation. Marty only came back home for laundry and in asking his father for money which his dad always gave him because he felt awful. In my life I have known a lot of people that deal with death in this same way. They work a lot and keep themselves busy to avoid the life situation that’s really happening. In my opinion, this is not the best way to deal with grief because eventually it’s going to catch up with you.

As usual, he beat me to the bottom and crashed on a pile of leaves. The round started to tremble and my heart started to shake. “What’s happening”, Jonathan asked as hé followed.” I don’t know, What are you doing here?”, I asked. We raced to the bottom and there was, the hole that swallowed us all together in a blink of an eye. At moment everything changed. I yelled for the name of Jonathan, instead of seeing him come to me in my rescue, their he was lying on the floor. “ Aicha I knew you left and I knew why, but when heard you came back I couldn’t believe it. You look more beautiful than ever.”, he choked in every word. I didn’t know where the blood was coming from, it was everywhere. “ I know why she died? You were right I Keats believed you, but your uncle Damian didn’t do it.”, he said as every single teardrop landed on my shirt. His head near my chest, I was confused. “Where are you bleeding?”, I asked in anger. A glimpse a light shined and there was the bullet in his chest. “Listen to me, he’s here with us here, he did it to Faith. He shot me from telling you.” He was gone. I tried everything, in the end there I was, sitting in his blood trying to hold it together. Before he died he said I was right, Faith was raped, but by the person who was with us. “ Christopher”, I whispered to myself. Everything became even more darker and more silent until the only thing I heard was my heart

Joyce Carol Oates wrote 56 Novels, 30 short story collections, and 8 volumes of poetry, plays, essays, and book reviews. In the book Ladies and Gentelemen it takes place on a cruise ship. Lots of retired older people are going on vacation but it turns out not as they expected it to go. They end up goig to the Island of Tranquiility where they will say goodbye to the world.

Then what is even more interesting is how he told it. The author describes how the lady looked right before she dies, and then in the next paragraph goes on to say that the flight landed safely, the storm was rough, and that everyone made it but the lady. When I first read that I said, “Whoa, wait what?” I was confused at first because I haven’t seen a story written like that before. How the author just goes from alternate points to alternate points instead of the traditional points that we are used to reading.

There were drinks.Was she drunk? She doesn't think so. The dark glitter of many bottles on an island unit in a kitchen, architect designed; ceiling lights dimmed, and sequins on the women's clothes catching the secret rays. An evening party in a festive season, in a Western city, black night beyond the front door and guests taking off the still cold coats in the hall. Silhouettes, and a young man's voice complaining the loss of a budget.Voices fluttering like paper cut-outs, that's what she remembers, her sense of detachment.Not a drunken detachment, she's sure, though who can ever be sure? She was distracted, certainly, she was wondering where her boyfriend had got to. She stepped out to the hallway to look for him, and in that moment, a

The short story is told through a first person narrator, this is due to the narrator is a child called Elizabeth and that she uses words such as “I” and “We”. We get a glimpse of Elizabeth's thoughts and actions through the quote “With the sun in my eyes, I couldn’t see my mammy’s face, not even squinting with both arms above my head and my head tilted”. Everything we know about the story is something that Elisabeth has experienced and therefore our knowledge is limited by her view of the world.

It looks like the author’s purpose of this story is to make readers think and decide on their own what really happened to that woman.

Once the idea of unreliable narrators is presented, the spectator can realize that every person was simply imposing their views upon Mona, a girl they truly didn’t

The narrator is unknown to the readers but describes Catherine’s, and other characters inner thoughts, that would otherwise be reserved to them. Although it is Catherine that is made the main focus, “Catherine’s feelings, as she got into the carriage, were in a very unsettled state; divided between regret for the loss of one great pleasure, and the hope of soon enjoying another”, her narrative representation is sympathetic and pleasant but the third-person structure also allows for Catherine’s nature to be presented without confusing the