Joyce Carol Oates

by Joyce Carol Oates, in the essay she talks about her personal experiences with a neighboring family in her childhood town. Oates begins by telling us about her fascination with abandoned houses, hinting to us that her neighbor’s house will eventually become abandoned. She then introduces us to the Weidel family, a family with a mother, father, and their six children. One day, the father, who was a drunk and abusive man who beats his wife and two daughters, then sets the house on fire. Oates…

The short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates is a unique one. In this story, Oates presents to us a teenage character named Connie who seems to represent the irony of a teenager’s innocence and their willingness to explore an unrealistic world, while another character, Arnold, seems to symbolize the experience and relentlessness of the real world. Evil seems to be lurking around every corner and even more so for teen Connie and as she grows up and enters into…

Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where is Here” transformation scares because the story goes from being this loving family to the dad hitting the mother. This is effective because on a normal day a stranger pops up and ask if he can have a tour. This is effective because…

To begin with, symbolism played a huge role in helping Joyce Carol Oates get her purpose of writing “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” out to the reader. The character’s name Connie was shown throughout the passage to represent the word ‘concubine’, which is defined as a mistress. One way of supporting this claim is when Oates announced that “Everything about her had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home…” (pg 1). She could be called a concubine for her…

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 ending…

Where are you going, Where have you been was the most interesting Joyce Carol Oates short story I have read so far. She dedicated this short story to Bob Dylan, and you can see in the story the inspiration she drew from his song “It's All Over Now, Baby Blue. The two main correlations from the song in the short story that stood out to me was, the lyrics “The highway is for gamblers, better use your sense” and “Your lover who just walked out the door”. I relate the lyrics “The highway is for…

Humans in the past did not know as much as they do today. In the article, “Where are You Going, Where Have You Been” by Joyce Carol Oates show that people back in the day did not know what was the best thing to do when it comes to a situation. The article tells us about a danger in society who is a guy named, Arnold Friend who “threatened” a girl named Connie. Arnold Friend represents the story of the Pipe Piper of Tucson and also the devil. Arnold represents the Pipe Piper of Tucson because…

In the short story, Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?, Joyce Carol Oates’ depicts the life of a young, narcissistic girl who lives in her own little unrealistic word of beauty, popularity, and boys. Connie’s sister and mother are the complete opposite of what the young, self-centered girl represents. Connie’s entire life consists of making sure she is always looking young and beautiful for the boys out on the town. One day, Connie’s vain lifestyle bites back when a boy that goes by the…

"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…

Joyce Carol Oates is known for writing demented stories about adolescent girls craving attention from the opposite sex and trying and failing to find their path in life. Her most popular story with that such plot is “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?” In this story, a fifteen-year-old girl named Connie who, like every teenage girl, loves spending weekend nights in town and attention from the opposite sex. However, her innocence and vulnerability eventually lead her into the trap of a…