Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been Essay

"Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" by Joyce Carol Oates is a story about a teenage girl in the 1960's, named Connie, and her struggle to escape reality while simultaneously resisting authority and playing the role of beauty queen. Connie wants nothing less than to be like her mother or sister. She thinks that because she is prettier than them that she is above them. Connie's fascination with her beauty and her inability to distinguish reality from fantasy ultimately lead to her own…

socially. The 1960’s were a time period when American women were restricted in almost every aspect of life and as a result several feminist movements occurred encouraging women to support the cause. In Joyce Carol Oates’ short story, Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? the author illustrates that during this time period women were disrespected and looked down upon, this creates a feminist work by demonstrating that women should fight back and demand to be treated with respect. Throughout…

Charles Schmid or “The Pied Piper of Tuscon,” in the story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” is a serial killer who has a name for himself. Throughout his life, Charles Schmid manages to kill three teenage girls from 1964 to 1965 by beguiling them to him by altering his appearance and intriguing his victims by his persuasive choice of words . In 1966, Joyce Carol Oates found inspiration to write ,“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” in a Life Magazine starring Schmid’s…

destroy a human. These three feelings and actions that if compiled in the correct way can bend a person to do anything. Most importantly though, deception, the lies that create false hope and a brighter future. In Joyce Carol Oates’s, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, we watch as a young girl named connie falls victim to Fear, lust, and deception through a man named Arnold Friend, who she encounters while hanging out with a friend. We watch as he slowly changes his role in Connie’s…

Question 4, Pg 1153 After reading, Joyce Carol Oates’es Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? the readers are often frustrated with Connie’s hesitation and inability to take appropriate actions in the face of danger. This feeling of frustration in the reader is understandable and can be explained by the many suspicions signs that Connie fails to notice about Arnold. The first obvious clue that should tell Connie that perhaps Arnold Friend is dangerous happens when they see each other for a…

Paper Choosing one short story to write about was somewhat hard, but my favorite short story with such a message behind it is “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”? I chose this short story because I only remember being truly moved by this. Past tense me is triggered especially heartbreaking for me. Joyce Carol Oates in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” starts off with description of the protagonist, Connie. Connie is depicted as superficial fifteen-year-old girl. She is only…

Williams Mrs. Garcia EG 103 B 16 November 2017 Friend or Foe? The phrase being in the wrong place at the wrong time, fits the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” written by Joyce Carol Oates. Connie who is fifteen is concerned about her looks and is obsessed with boys, adulthood and sexuality, which annoys her mother. Instead of going to the barbecue with her mom,dad and sister June, she stays home,and as she is there, she is welcomed by an older man named Arnold Friend and…

In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” the protagonist, Connie, fails to resist temptation of her secret sexual desire. Throughout the story Connie wants to develop her sexual curiosities. Her inability to look past her beauty, her family life, and her sexual curiosities ultimately contributes to her final decision and tragic end, epitomizing both Structuralism and Phenomenology criticism theory. The story opens with Oates introducing the protagonist, Connie who is, “fifteen and [has…

In the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, character is an important element, as shown at the beginning when the narrator says, “she was fifteen and she had a quick, nervous giggling habit of craning her neck to glance into mirrors or checking other people’s faces to make sure her own was all right” (Oates). The narrator is referring to the protagonist of this story, whose name is Connie. Connie’s character is important throughout the entire story,…

that, confidence, cool under pressure, ready to take on a challenge. But the main character, Connie, in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” exhibits much less of a confident role in the story as the pages turn. Connie’s character is an example of a person who flaunts false confidence in any reasonably comfortable situation, only to drop it all in the face of danger. Connie is not what you would expect from a major character and ultimately pays for her over abundance of false confidence…