James Joyce

In her short story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”, Flannery O’Connor introduces the reader to a world of family issues, danger, and murder. The story was written in 1955 during a period of social and racial unrest in the southern United States. Mostly, the story follows O 'Connor 's basic Southern Gothic writing style, a work that is "cold and dispassionate, as well as almost absurdly stark and violent" (Galloway). While the quote gives major insight into the tone of the story, it does not offer a…

Arnold Friend, the omniscient inveigler and deceptive charmer of Joyce Carol Oates’, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” is evocative of the Devil himself. Through rich symbolism, dialogue, and characterization, Oates’ creates a twisted lie of a man whose every word is to be doubted. Friend is a great deceiver, a tempter to evil, for he not only invites Connie to her own rape and murder, but convinces her walk into his waiting arms. The first description of Arnold Friend tells of his…

Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” fictionalizes a true story that many would undoubtedly roll his or her eyes at and claim that he or she would never be so ignorant, naïve, and just plain foolish as Connie, the 15-year-old main character. Everyone would like to say that he or she would be clever enough to find a way out of Connie’s predicament without agreeing to go along with Arnold Friend, even at the age of 15, but this is highly unlikely. Given the circumstances…

“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, unrest and turbulence.…

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been as an Archetypal Tale As children, people are told tales that are meant to entertain and educate. These tales introduce children to the complexities of human behavior when trying to make the right decision. Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is an archetypal tale about fifteen year old Connie who while in this liminal phase of life makes the wrong decision and chooses to go off into thevast world with Arnold Friend. While the…

“A symbol is a person, object, action, place, or event that, in addition to its literal meaning, suggests a more complex meaning or range of meanings.” (Kirszner and Madell 403) Not only are symbols used frequently in literature, but also used in our every day lives. I never realized how many symbols I encounter on a daily basis. When I look down and see my engagement ring, it is a symbol of the relationship between my fiancé and I and a symbol of his promise to marry me. When I’m driving and…

It Might be Schizophrenia By Andres Malagon The short story, “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner, is an amazing, suspenseful story about Emily Grierson; she is the main character in the story. She is a lonely, troubled and eccentric lady who lives in the same old house where she was born and raised. Emily has been living in this house and taking care of her father all her life. However, when her father died, she decided not to leave her old house and began to develop a series of behaviors…

Is Hard to Find, The theme of fear is present throughout these stories. The ideology of fear are shown in these two stories and they connect to how fear is used to control people. Fear is seen today and was seen in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Both Joyce Carol Oates and Flannery O’Connor emphasized this throughout their stories. In Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? Arnold Friend exists as a character who is surrounded by multiple people in his daily life. He chooses Connie out of…

William Faulkner’s short story, “A Rose for Emily,” is a Southern Gothic tale published in 1930, and set in the fictional city of Jefferson, Mississippi. Emily Grierson, first introduced in the story by the occurrence of her tragic death, is characterized throughout the story by the narrator’s recollection of her quirky mannerisms. Tobe, Emily’s personal cook, gardener, and housekeeper, is the only person to regularly see her and the house. Homer Barron, who becomes important later in the story,…

We have two stories of girls just doing their best to fit in, Susie from the movie, “The Lovely Bones” directed by Peter Jackson written by Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens (All three screenplay), and Alice Sebold(Novel) and Connie from Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where are you going, where have you been?”. These girls are lured to the clutches of dangerous men that seemed harmless enough. They trusted them because they were “a man from our neighborhood” (The Lovely Bones) she knew or because…