An Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

Another symbolism of evil is that Arnold tells Connie that he will not come in her house. He has come to take Connie away but “he may not cross a threshold uninvited” (Wegs 2). Arnold threatens Connie by telling her that if she does not come outside then he will wait till her family gets home “then they’re all going to get it” (Oates 481). Arnold ultimately lures Connie out by promising that her family will be unharmed if she gives herself to him (Oates 1). We do not know how Connie sacrifices herself. As Oates states in her article, we only know “that she is generous enough to make it”.

Joyce Carol Oates's short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” was written in 1966 and twenty years later was made into a movie entitled Smooth Talk by Joyce Chopra, winner of the 1985 U.S. Film Festival for best dramatic picture. The writing by Oates is loosely based on a true story known as “The Pied Piper of Tucson.” The most significant differences based on the story and movie are the father-daughter relationship with Connie and Chopra’s changing the mother’s attitude toward her. Even with these changes, however, the character of Connie and her creepy stalker Arnold Friend remain the same.

Joan Carol Oates states, “But all the boys fell back and dissolved into a single face that was not even a face but an idea, a feeling, mixed up with the urgent insistent pounding of the music and the humid night air of July” (Oates 483). Connie was not attracted to one particular guy; however, she was enticed by certain qualities that she would like in a guy. She wants a guy who will treat her like the singers of the music she listens to: a misunderstood man with a kind heart who will treat a girl like a princess. Tracy Caldwell’s essay explains “Where are You Going, Where Have You Been?,” through various forms including: religious, historic, and scientific views. She connects music and sexual desire in the story by stating, “Connie's very life seems dependant upon the music she hears that serves as a drug to both exhilarate her and drive her dangerously into fantasy…” (Caldwell, “Joyce Carol Oates”). Connie’s love for rock music has pushed her to be attracted to a rebellious guy. She refuses to believe that the song is full of exaggerations within the lyrics. It incorporates the singer’s hopes and

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been is a short story originally written by Joyce Carol Oates. It was first published in 1996 and immediately faced sufficient criticism and public discussions. This story involves both surreal myth and deep psychological realism which obviously distinguish this writing among other works of the author. In the center of the narration is a young girl named Connie. She is fifteen years old and is experiencing quite a turbulent period of her life. Her mother constantly compares her to her older sister and this factor only intensifies Connie's feeling that her mother does not understand her. In the story, the world of Connie is quite contradictory as well as her character itself. Nevertheless, it remains interesting to explore until the very last page of Oates' writing.

In the story, “Where are you Going, Where Have you Been?” the author, Joyce Carol Oates, uses literary devices to convey a message about the loss of innocence. To be more specific, Oates’s characterization of the protagonist, Connie, specifically shows the actions leading to her innocence being taken from her. The literary device of characterization gives a clear picture Oates thoughts at the time she wrote the story, expressing concern for young girls who are at risk of having their innocence taken from them.

When the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have you Been?” written by Joyce Carol Oates was first published, there were many controversies to the theories and interpretations regarding the story. According to the author Oates, the inspiration of the story was based on “the tale of Charles Schmid, a twenty-three-old from Tucson who cruised teenage hangouts, picking up girls for rides in his gold convertible. Eventually, he murdered three of them, while other teenagers served as accomplices” (Coleman et al. 211). With knowing such fact of where the author got her inspiration, there is a clear understand to why many critics have suggested that the antagonist in the story, Arnold Friend, represents: feminist allegory, fear of the adult world, rebellion against the conformity, and symbolism of monster or even Satan.

Throughout the story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, Connie is a conceited young girl who tries to portray herself as a sexual persona, though she is a young woman who is attempting to seem older than she is. The story portrays her in a negative feminist lens as well as an archetypal lens because of the recurring events that happen.

The story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” is essentially about a young woman’s strive for independence, which eventually leads to conflict. Oates portrays a social issue that relates to today’s society by using symbolism and characterization. She takes you on a journey throughout a teenagers life, tells about her thoughts and feelings while also relating to naïve girls today. Connie is a symbol of young girls who try to rush and grow up too fast. The ones who want to be popular with all the boys.

Joyce Carol Oates' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" explores the consequences that a young girl, Connie, must deal with after garnering unwanted attention through her flirtatious behavior and attitude. Throughout the course of the story, Connie demonstrates that she puts her desires above those of others without regard for the reputation she creates for herself or for how her perception of others results in a negative perception of herself. In "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?," Connie creates a dual persona to satisfy her seemingly perpetual need for approval, attention, and feed into her self-absorption.

Connie, the protagonist of “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, is a character who goes through a traumatic experience in her life. Her encounter with the antagonist, Arnold Friend, permanently changes her selfish innocence and challenges her way of thinking. With an unsupportive family and shallow friends, Connie lacks a strong moral foundation and is self-absorbed. Connie’s character, by the end of the story, drastically changes through her encounter with Arnold Friend. Connie transforms from a selfish, shallow character to one of self-awareness.

Oates, Carol Joyce. “Where Are You Going, Where Have Been?” 40 Short stories: A Portable Anthology , 4th ed., edited by Beverly Lawn, Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2012, pp. 369-392.

It’s towards the end of the story, when it’s too late, she is put in a decision where she has to grow up and make the most mature decision in her life. Not only did Connie learn how to grow up, but she also learned the value of family. Arnold Friend, who is not so friendly, becomes aggressive and menacing, threatens to hurt the people she loves most. ‘“... Honey: you can come out and we’ll drive away… But if you don’t come out we’re gonna wait till your people come home and then they’re all going to get it”’ (86). Connie has to choose whether to go with Arnold and keep her family safe, or risking them in return for the possibility of saving her own family.

This is when Connie realized he is a threat. Those to blame for what happened to Connie at the end of the story are Connie herself, her parents and social

Joyce Carol Oates’s Where are you going, where have you been? is a post-modernist story. The primary theme is childhood versus adulthood. The story explores Connie’s, the main character’s, ambivalence about adulthood.

“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is a short story by Joyce Carol Oates that brings a young girl’s nightmares to life. The setting of this story is particularly important to the course of the story and the character development because the setting vitally influences Connie’s decision to go with Arnold Friend. In the story, the setting provides the instability and vulnerability necessary for Connie to go for a ride with Arnold Friend.