'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?'

The New York Times states, "Individuals who often read fiction appear to be better able to understand other people, empathize with them and view the world from their perspective" (Paul). Three key ways that literature could transform someone 's life. Reading, in general, can also help improve sensory detail, emotional and moral complexity. Reading enriches all minds and should be encouraged. Reading literature instead of news articles about a celebrity online can create a brighter and healthier mind. I found this out through the readings "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" by Joyce Carol Oates, "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" by Flannery O 'Connor, and “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry. First, the short story "Where Are You …show more content…
This short story has made me a better person because it makes someone think about what they would do if they were in the horrible situation of their whole family being shot to death. All of the themes and analysis 's beside what would someone do in that situation? I personally would probably be would be angry. If someone took my family into the woods with a gun and then seconds later I heard gunshots I would lose it. After I took the time to actually think about this, I really asked myself what you would do. It became clear that I did not know. That has never happened to me and probably won’t so I would not know what I would do or how I would feel. I could guess how I would feel but in the moment everything goes blank. This made me realize that when deeply reading a piece of literature there is so much emotion that follows. Deeply reading this short story made me a better person because it made me realize how important family is. The grandma 's family was taken away and she then realized how much her family meant to her even though they were so nasty towards her. There were some good times in the story where the grandmother had hope for the family. “The grandmother offered to hold the baby and the children 's mother passed him over the front seat to her. She set him on her knee and bounced him and told him about the things they were passing. She rolled her eyes and screwed up her mouth and stuck her leathery thin face into his smooth bland one (22)” (505). The grandmother was a sensitive woman and she loved her family. I had the same realization. Family is important and stopping everyday stressors and deeply thinking about this scenario made me realize how much I appreciate my family and what they do for