Arnold Friend Character Analysis

“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)

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,

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.

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

“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.

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.

Arnold Friend does not ever seem like a believable character that one would meet in the real world, even for a second. Although he seems confident a majority of the time, his slip ups in demeanor and actions that do not appeal to normal people assure the reader that his identity is assumed, and that he is actually the devil. His actions are meant to coax Connie but instead

Many authors look for inspiration in ways such as reflecting on past experiences, art, movies, history, or even nature. There are endless ways to develop new ideas in our everyday lives. In 1966, author Joyce Carol Oates was inspired to write a short story in a very peculiar way. While reading Life Magazine, she stumbled across an article about a serial killer with a bazar style and personality, which prompted her to write one of her most famous works to date. In the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” Joyce Carol Oates uses characteristics of serial killer Charles Howard Schmid Jr. to develop her fictional character 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.

Arnold Friend, Joyce Carol Oates's antagonist in "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is a man that persuades Connie, the fifteen-year-old protagonist and target of Arnold's thirst, into abandoning her home, her family and succumbing to his power. Observed through the supernatural lens, Arnold Friend can be described as a malevolent force that displays many characteristics of a vampire.

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.

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

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

In the story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” written by Joyce Carol Oats, has great symbolism and a very interesting character. One of the main characters, Arnold Friend, is a dynamic character due to the sudden changes of this physical appearance and personality. At first he seems charming and a little on the sweet side, but then his dark side starts to show as the story progresses. He first appears when Connie abandons her friend to go with a boy named Eddie. Arnold was seen in his gold convertible Jalopy, which is the first sign that he wants to be alluring. His first words in the story is "Gonna get you, baby" this foreshadows his intentions when it comes to Connie (1098). However, all that proves he is a dynamic character reveals

“I’ll have my arms so tight around you so you won’t need to try to get away and I’ll show you what love is like, what it does”. A chilling words from a terrifying character Arnold Friend, a name ending with friend we’d think he’d be one of those goofy yet creepy characters or even just plain odd. We should call him Arnold the demon because that is what he seems more like, and not figurlivity he literally a demon! Certain aspects of the story left quite a few hints that Arnold is supernatural figure than an ordinary human.