Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been Essay

In Oates’ short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” an essential theme is Connie’s search for independence from her family, which results in her own careless and rebellious decisions and ultimately leads to her demise. Connie grows up with familial conflicts and lacks knowledge of the world's dangers. When Connie decides she wants to get away from her family, discover her true identity, and experiment with what she wants, she lacks the basic knowledge to do this. Because of Connie’s

their own identity, some experimenting through sex and drugs. In the short story Joyce Carol Oates “Where Are You Going Where Have You Been?” uses conflict and characterization to show that even though teenagers crave independence they are not always socially mature enough to handle the freedom. “Where Are You Going Where Have You Been?” takes place during the 1960s in suburban America. During this time young adults were beginning to

After coming to the realization she is not safe, Connie utters “What are you going to do?”, which is her last word. “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is a short story written by Joyce Carol Oates and Connie portrays the protagonist. Connie’s parents were present in her life, which made her stray away and become independent. She wants attention from boys, until she realizes that may not be a good idea when Arnold Friend shows up at her house while her parents leave the house. Friend, around

Fear has the capability to could judgment and to make irrational decisions which allows authors to manipulate characters, plots, and identities. “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oats illustrates a self-absorbed teen that is overcoming by fear when confronted with Arnold Friend. “In a Grove” by Rynosuke Akutagawa documents a slain husband and the fearful truth that is exposed through witnesses’ statements. “A Little Respect” by Herbert Selby Jr. describes a father’s rising

Arnold Friend, a main character founded in the short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, is often a debated by many readers to be a demon, a crazed stalker and maniac, or in fact Lucifer himself. After reading the short story and analyzing the details of the characters, Arnold Friend really stands out and leaves many unanswered questions on what the author was intending to do with this particular character in identifying who he really is. After thoroughly analyzing

Immaturity is a term most commonly associated with adolescence. As a young adolescent, high school is the center of the world and it is difficult to see beyond that. Social status is vital to Connie, the lead character in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?,” written by Joyce Carol Oats. School is her chance to be who she does not get to be at home. Like Connie, many other adolescents try to act older than they really are. Teenagers are especially prone to this because their brains are not

In the short fiction Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? tells a story about a young 15-year-old girl named, Connie. Connie spends her time meeting boys, lounging around the house and going out with her friends. One night an unusual man makes a threatening gesture to her in the parking lot of a local drive-in restaurant. Until, one day the unusual man pulls up in her driveway in a gold colored car. The man introduces himself as Arnold Friend and asks Connie to join him for a ride. During their

surprised me despite the fact that I should already know about the story as I talked about what I knew in reading response for “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” For example, while I did know that she was out in the sun, I didn’t think that it would possibly affect her mentally. That is why I never thought that strange, stupid acts that she done when she should have noticed and react properly to danger was probably caused because she wasn’t focused due to hot sun. While I think that this is

Throughout many cultures, age has been seen as a determinate factor of maturity. And with this maturity, comes power. This belief is clearly defined in Joyce Carol Oates’ short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”. In this story, the main character, Connie, struggles to reach maturity. Wielding her sexuality in hand, Connie charges into the battle for power, leaving her vulnerable to Arnold Friend’s temptation. Through the use of a symbolic figure, Arnold Friend, who represents

In 1966, Joyce carol oates wrote a short story called “Where are you going? Where have you been?”. The story is about a young girl name connie who is very beautiful, and because of this her mother hates her. Connie is a troubled teen who finds herself the center a man, Arnold Friend. He first meets her when she went to a drive in restaurant with her friends. On sunday arnold came to her house and tried to get her to take a ride with him. As she became scared and tried to get him to go away, he wouldn