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

Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been? By Joyce Carol Oates is the story of Connie, a 15 year old Texan girl, and one fateful summer day. Through characterization and symbolism the author shows that often teenagers rush into the fantasy of adulthood, never expecting how real it can get. By using the summer to represent her fall from innocence, music to show how Connie feels, and her habit of checking her reflection to prove she’s still young and insecure- despite how she may act, Oates provides an intense look at how there is always more to what is going on than initially appears. Summer days are almost always reminders of relaxing days in the sun, good times with friends, perhaps a romantic summer fling. This day starts off much like …show more content…
There’s the music at the diner, “... the music that made everything so good: the music was always in the background… it was something to depend on” (75). It backs Connie and her pal sitting at the counter, waiting to catch the eye of some boy. It was the night that a boy named Eddie picked her up and bought her food that she first encountered Arnold Friend. He had leaned out of his car, and they’d had a confusing interaction, that Connie thought nothing of. Back at the restaurant, with the music still playing the boy bought Connie dinner. That was one of many boys that Connie would meet up with over the summer, all of whom were just adding to her attempt to be grown. Then there’s Bobby King, Connie loves his music, plays it on her radio that Sunday in Summer. Arnold Friend likes him too, the same station Connie had been listening too is on the transistor radio in Arnold’s car. This connection puts Connie at ease at first. If he likes the same music- the music that makes everything so so good- what could be so bad about him. The music plays all through their encounter, and what she once appreciated as a soundtrack to her life, became the sound that represented the worst day of her life. The music connect Connie to the world, and Connie to Arnold, and that connection is made clear through their …show more content…
Too often teenagers romanticize those older than them, and lust after the freedom they believe it will give them, yet they are not prepared for the reality that they face. Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? shows the reader that just because they expect something to be one way, doesn’t mean it won’t be another, and that growing up is all part of the process. Your teenage years are the years you have to figure out yourself, don’t rush them because eventually, you will get to where you’re going, you just have to give it