Arnold Friend Character Analysis

In “Where are you going, Where have you been?”, Arnold Friend’s character actions closely resemble that of Charles Schmid. Charles crammed his shoes with paper and cans to appear taller and was always muscular and fit from doing gymnastics up until his senior year of high school. After he graduated from high school, Charles Schmid started dying his hair black and wearing an abundance of cosmetics to appear young and gain attention from young girls. In “Where are you going, Where have you been?”, Connie describes Arnold Friend trying to have the same illusion of making himself taller, “He was standing in a strange way, leaning back against the car as if he were balancing himself” (208), “[Connie] looked out to see Arnold Friend pause and then

Professor Crawford is a assertive human. He does not like to be corrected. The first time Jamal turned in an essay Professor Crawford doubted that he wrote it by himself. Crawford doubted Jamal because he was African American. Jamal is an extremely talented writer and Crawford knows, but he refuses to accept the fact and continues to bring Jamal down. Crawford wanted to see if Jamal can come up with his own words so he made Jamal write an essay with his supervision.

While taking English 102: Introduction to Literature as a dual enrollment course at Chesapeake College, one particular reading assignment from the course still haunts me to this very day. Joyce Carol Oates's "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" involves the predation of a young, careless girl, Connie, by a manipulative older male, Arnold Friend. Accidentally catching Arnold's eye while passing by his car, Connie is initially intrigued by her admirer. While home alone, Arnold unexpectedly arrives at her house and beckons her to come out for a ride with him to which she rejects. Consequently, Arnold abandons his friendly facade as he verbally threatens Connie and her family if she decides to call the police or does not comply with his requests. Therefore, in hopes of protecting her family, Connie surrenders to Arnold Friend.

“Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been,” is a testament of a true artist, because art can be interpreted into many forms and meanings. These meanings can differ from person to person, such as each reader of this tale can walk away with a different understanding of what the deeper implication may be. With the element of religious metaphors and allusions, the author is able to connect her short story to a much deeper value that pertains to today’s society and it’s current relations with religion.

Randy Pausch. Who is he? What does he stand for? The day he gave the last lecture... His last lecture he only had months to live. He packed a lot of lessons into his lecture. The claims he gave that stood out were to be optimistic, to be determined, and to take risks.

Connie, the girl that every guy wants but only a few are lucky to get, is quite possibly one of the most cliche characters in literature. She’s a two-faced, insecure girl with a smart mouth and resentment towards her family members. In the beginning of the story, Oates sets the scene with Connie out with her friend, whom she then ditches to hang out with some random guy she met at the diner. Everything seems to be going predictably, until the unimaginable happens when Arnold Friend pulls into her driveway, beckoning her to come outside since he knows her family isn’t home. He knows this because he has convinced himself that Connie is in love with him, and he wants her so bad that he has been stalking her for who knows how long. In Where are you going, Where have you been?, Oates uses the cunning and charismatic Arnold Friend along with the insecure Connie to foreshadow the horrible fate that is met.

Our conscience is the indicator into what we think and the actions that follow our thinking process. It acts as a guide into different paths of behaviors, such as wrong and right. Sociopaths lack a conscience, have a personality disorder, and act uncontrollably in extreme, and violent behaviors when in encountered in unappealing situations. As “4% of people are sociopaths-1 in 25 people.”(10) Many sociopaths have the tendency to murder and harm others without feeling remorse for their actions. Martha Stout, the author of The Sociopath Next Door, really digs deep into the conscience of sociopaths and their cycle of thinking through many studies.

Joyce Carol Oates finds inspiration for her short story based on Charles Howard Schmid Jr, a serial killer who made his debut in 1960’s. Charles Schmid was a charming, older, bad boy who targeted young girls in Tucson, Arizona. The similarity can be seen in Joyce’s short story when Arnold Friend targets stunning, 15-year-old Connie. Manipulation as well as other factors lead Connie to make an irrational decision, which jeopardizes her life. In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” aspects of belonging to neglectful family with an overachieving sister, an envious mother, and careless father particularly contribute in Connie’s kidnapping,

“I am good, but not an angel. I do sin, but I am not the devil. I am just a small girl in a big world trying to find someone to love” (Marilyn Monroe). Joyce Carol Oates is the author of the realistic allegory story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”. The story is about a young girl named Connie, who likes seeking attention from men, as a distraction from her problems at home. She meets a man named Arnold Friend, he goes after Connie, claiming he has to take her for a ride, but it is obvious he wants to do other things. Because of this character’s actions, it is determined that he is a representation of the devil. Through plot, characterization, and dialogue, Oates successfully portrays Arnold Friend as a symbolic Satan.

Joyce Carol Oates’ story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” could be read in a completely literal sense. A man abducts a young girl from her home using psychological torment. At first, it seems like a mostly regular serial killer story. But, when analyzed, it is truly much deeper. Even though Arnold Friend might seem like just a psychopath, could he perhaps be something even more sinister?

“Nothing about Arnold Friend is genuine, except his violent intentions and his skill at psychological and physical intimidation. By the story’s end, Connie understands that she is not the confident flirt she thought, but a powerless pawn in the hands of a dangerous individual.” (Cormier)

Psychopaths are prevalent in almost every aspect of life. They are at school, in the office, and at the grocery store. People view psychopaths as socially removed and isolated, but many with psychopathic traits lead normal lives with their own quirks. Functional psychopathy has become more and more normalized, as it has been featured in different aspects of pop culture. Many people hope to break the stereotype associated with psychopathy in order for society to become more inclusive of mental disorders, and also to educate more people about psychopathic behavior through popular shows and movies.

Connie did not leave her house of her own free will. Supernatural or not, Arnold Friend’s forced her to come with him. One could say that Connie left of her own free will due to Arnold Friend giving her a choice, but the choice her family in danger, making it not much of a choice at all. The aforementioned choice is between leaving with him or him hurting Connie’s family: “...You come out here and give me your hand, and nobody gets hurt, I mean, your nice old bald-headed daddy and your mummy and your sister…” (Oates 416). Arnold Friend continues to threaten Connie’s family, but he twists his words to make it sound like she has a choice. He says, “You don’t want [your family] to get hurt. Now get up, honey. Get up all by yourself” (Oates 418).

When most people hear the word psychopath their mind forms a picture of a wild-eyed, rambling, lunatic who is often restrained in a straitjacket. The media has helped this belief along the way with slasher horror films and grisly CSI episodes depict these strange humans. However, the average psychopath is much harder to spot than most people believe. In fact, most of them are extremely difficult to distinguish from ordinary humans. They outwardly appear normal and many do not find it difficult to blend into common society. They can interact with others, hold successful jobs, and effectively keep themselves out of trouble. Most are not the sadistic killers many people think they are. Psychopaths are people born with problems (Bartol 105) or

Sociopathy is a definitive wayward behavior that is considered to be strayed from the norm. Sociopaths are understood to behave in ways that are out of the ordinary or outside of the acceptable norm (Eiseberg, 1995). In essence, sociopaths are overbearingly preconditioned to perform excesses of certain behaviors. Sociopaths often fall under the category of moral outlaws (Joana & Abigail, 2014). Psychologists have noted that psychopathic tendencies are inert. They can be triggered by brutal upbringing, or life-threatening or -changing experiences (Marsh, 2013). For a trait that is so mystifying, it leaves to ask, how are sociopaths created? How do people with this trait get to become this way? A major theme of this literature review finds that there are still large gaps of understanding when it comes to the clinical study of what makes a sociopathic mind work.