Where Is Here Joyce Carol Oates Analysis

“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” was published in 1966 by Joyce Carol Oates. The story follows a girl, Connie, who encounters a mysterious man. She catches him watching her walk away with another boy, but doesn’t bother to think of him. As the days pass, she is stuck home alone to do whatever she wants; she enjoys her day relaxing—daydreaming about boys—until a car drives up to her house. Who might it be? The man… the man we soon call as Arnold Friend. Connie’s failure to look beyond her fantasies makes her prone to manipulation and deception; so one of her major character flaws is naiveté.

The short story “Where is Here” by Joyce Carol Oats introduces us to a very complex character, labeled the stranger. The author uses the method of indirect characterization, which results in the reader making their own assumptions of the character. Indirect characterization includes some of the following: stranger’s appearance, speech, actions, private thoughts, as well as the reactions of others. The previously stated categories are the things we will analyze and draw conclusions from.

Where is Here? was written by Joyce Carol Oates. Joyce wrote novels and stories concerning individuals whose ordinary lives are suddenly upset by mysterious forces beyond their control. The mysterious force in this story is the stranger. The family is interrupted in the preparation of supper by the stranger who wants to look around his childhood home. The mysterious force of the stranger brings into question whether or not he is a ghost or time traveler, and what has happened to the sister.

In the American society, when individuals reach adolescence, they begin to search for their identity by exploring their interests and opening their mind to new notions and ideas. This is the psychological and physical human development that ultimately leads them to their adulthood. Joyce Carol Oates' short story depicts a fifteen year old girl with typical teenage concerns. She has to face the realization of the meaning of maturity in the American civilization when she is ripped out of her childhood by Arnold Friend. In the short story, "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?", Joyce Carol Oates suggests that when teenagers are in the coming of age, they are easily fooled and taken

Music used to be about connections between listeners and the song lyrics. Now it is not much about the connection, but rather people just trying to keep up with the in-crowd. This often leads people into listening to music they dislike only to gain popularity or to feel like they fit in. In Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?,” the role of music is considerably more than first appeared within the story. It is much more than just background noise and should not be overlooked. Music influences people’s characters from the way they act, to what they think, and even what they want. It is not as innocent as first thought.

Joyce Carol Oates plays upon the stereotypic female gender role through her adolescent character, Connie, in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” The story was written at a significant time in America’s history. It was a season when social and moral conventions were challenged. This period experienced the rise of women struggling for sexual freedom and gender equality in a patriarchal society. Oates portrays the protagonist, Connie, as naive, unaware and inexperienced; she has yet to find her identity and fully understand her place as a women in the world. She believes she has learned to play the game of the sexes and that she has the upper hand. This belief, though, is quickly subverted when she is confronted by Arnold Friend, a man who works to reinforce patriarchal standards by punishing Connie for acting outside stereotypic female role boundaries, she then realizes as a women, she has very little power.

“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates is based on a real-life event of Charles Schmid Jr. and the murder of multiple girls. The short story is designed around this historical event and has several key points that are comparable to both the story and the event. This story starts with a girl Connie who, like any typical teenager, is very flirtatious with a lot of guys; one person, in particular, Arnold Friend, is portrayed as a cougar. He shows up to Connie’s place, takes her somewhere and what's left is an inferred cliffhanger. The short story gives a more effective ending as it leaves the reader in a state of deep and complex thought in relations to the sudden and abrupt ending. Threats such as burning Connie’s house down, stopping her heart, and “going for a ride” are red flags that hint at Connie’s near future.

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.

The story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” by Joyce Carol Oates is very much different from the movie Smooth Talk directed by Joyce Chopra in many ways. The story and film were both made to relate to the real life serial killer Charles Howard Schmid Jr. and his crimes committed, while also reflecting a passage from the Old Testament that states “Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou?” (Judges, 19:17) The three ways that the story and the film are very different are, how Connie’s vainness is portrayed, the importance of the mother daughter relationship, and finally the conclusion of the storyline.

What would you do if you and your families lives were at stake? This was something that I pondered about while interpreting the story of,” Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” by Joyce Carol Oates. Oates wrote this short story to create suspense. It really leaves you on edge. The most suspense would have to be at the end of the story. Oates leaves you falling off of a cliff as to what would happen to Connie and her family. It makes me ponder if this was just a dream or reality to them.

“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” written by Joyce Carol Oates is an unsettling and incredibly formidable story of a young woman’s loss of innocence during a time of social change and turbulent times. The story’s protagonist is Connie, a self-absorbed, yet beautiful fifteen year old girl, who not only is at odds with her family but also the conservative values handed down by her family. She, unknowing to her parents, spends her evenings exploring her independence and individuality as well as by flirting and picking up boys at a local diner. One evening she catches the attention of a strange, creepy boy who drives a gold, dilapidated convertible. While alone at home one Sunday afternoon, this same creepy boy driving the gold

We all have been there. After a long days work, all we are thinking about is getting home. As you head towards your car, you notice the darkness around you and suddenly feel that you are not alone. Your pace increases and you begin to sweat mildly. If you could just get there, you’d be safe. Suddenly, you hear a noise and decide the best thing for you to do is ignore it. As you approach you car and unlock it, you sigh with relief that you’ve finally have made it. For many, our minds play tricks on us when we feel a moment of fear, however for others it may turn out to be their worst nightmare. In the story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, a young girl is forced to make a decision

A short story by Joyce Carol Oates called “Where are you going, where have you been?” reflects the writer’s point of view of the way society looked to women in the sixties. The story takes place in the 1960’s when almost everything reached a turning point at that time. It talks about a teenager who wanted boys’ attention, but she ended up leaving her family house with a stranger. Connie represented most teenage girls, and their destiny at that time. The story can be looked at from many different points of view such as feminist, social, psychological and historical (Purdue (OWL)). The time this story had taken place is what makes it important. The story was written when the feminist movement was established, and the American society

This story is a classic theme of stranger danger. These stories give moral ideas to all listeners, both young and old. Oral tradition is the way that people

After the murder, the narrator hears a knock at the door. He proceeds to open the door to find that it is three policemen, who were there because of a disturbance call. The police tells the narrator for why they are there, which a neighbor heard a scream in the night. When the narrator hears this, he tells the police that it was his scream. Once the narrator welcomes the police to search the home, the narrator goes as far as leading police into the room where he had committed a murder and hid the body. The narrator cleverly comes up with an idea to hide the murder, “The old man, I mentioned, was absent in the country. I took my visitors all over the house. I bade them search-search well. I led them, at length, to his chamber” (Poe, 887). The narrator shows the police that there was nothing abnormal in the house, he proceeds to talk to them while feeling at ease.