(1969, December 31). The author does not say directly whether Arnold raped Connie, but the words “she felt her breath start jerking back and forth in her lungs as if it were something Arnold Friend was stabbing her with again and again with no tenderness” (Oates n.p.) How old is Connie in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” Connie is a teenager, and being fifteen years old, she feels that she is old enough to become independent, but she still has to be under parental control. Character Analysis of Connie in “Where are you going, Where have you been?”, The Single Effect In Edgar Allan Poe's The Cask of Amontillado, Symbolism in play The Minister’s Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Historical Period and Geographical Setting, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, "Oate's" and "Where are You Going, Where Have You Been? The Question and Answer section for Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? At this point Connie begins to sense that she is in real trouble. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must. At first glance, Joyce Carol Oates’ story may seem free of political context, yet its setting in mid-century suburban America speaks to a wider understanding. The story under consideration “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates shows an average teenager in the 60s. 's themes. Arnold shows her that freedom is not as sweet as she thought and that she has to answer for the consequences. GradeSaver, 3 August 2015 Web. study guide contains a biography of Joyce Carol Oates, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis of the short story Where are You Going, Where Have You Been. everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?. "Character Analysis of Connie in “Where are you going, Where have you been?”." December 30, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/character-analysis-of-connie-a-girl-who-wants-independence/. By the time Connie realizes that Arnold Friend’s “whole face [is] a mask,” her illusions about him have dissipated entirely. This is IvyPanda's free database of academic paper samples. Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? As a young adult, she is beginning to exercise her freedom to do what she wants. Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been. Teran, Adriana. She continually repeats that the hates her mother and her sister, who is elder and also try to teach her. Reality—her concrete experiences—fade into vague yearnings for love and desire. Perhaps, as fractured as she is, Connie still retains the ability to decide to sacrifice herself for her family. He reinforces her feelings that her parents do not understand her, ôThey donÃt know one thing about you,ö (Oates 478). Is there any symbolism in Ellie Oscar's name in "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?". It is Connie’s intentionally sensuous appearance that draws the attention of Arnold Friend, who first notices her at the restaurant. Fantasy and reality become particularly confused during Connie’s collapse by the phone. He presents himself as a teenage boy, but throughout the course of the story it becomes clear that his outward identity is a façade hiding something much more sinister. Connie’s tentative teenage move away from her parents and towards independence has been unnaturally and disturbingly hastened. Likewise Arnold Friend’s identity is ambivalent. IvyPanda. Although Connie notes that she never shares her name with him, he already knows it. She relies on her friend’s father to chauffeur her to the strip mall where she meets boys. Once Connie “wished her mother was dead, and she herself was dead, and it was all over” (Oates n.p. Study Guide. Connie has begun to distance herself from her parents’ protection and control: she lies about going to the movies in order to see a boy and pretends to dislike a wild friend her mother is concerned about. What she is offered is what she did not want to, but it does not mean she would never reach the desired goal to be free. Arnold says as if warning Connie. The story was written in the 60s when the youth felt the smell of independence and tried to reach it. Web. SparkNotes is brought to you by Barnes & Noble. This essay aims at providing a character analysis of Connie in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”. IvyPanda. As the story unfolds, Friend manipulates and terrorizes Connie to such an extent that he becomes an embodiment of evil. At the story’s beginning, Connie plays with asserting her will: she lies about her plans with friends and refuses to go to a family barbecue, upsetting her mother. It becomes clear that Arnold also has a two-sided nature but in a different sense than Connie. The first part of ôWhere Are You Going, Where Have You Beenö establishes ConnieÃs, a fifteen-year-old who is bored with her small town existence and a regulated family environment she finds confining and oppressive. But, in reality, most teens were not ready for this. ", "Where are You Going, Where Have You Been" by Joyce Carol Oates, John Updike and Joyce Carol Oakes Stories - Literature Comparison, “The Lesson” and “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? Web. Through emotional and potentially physical violence, he forces her transition into the adult world, brutally severing her from the life she knows. During the same period, the Sexual Revolution began changing social attitudes towards sex, leaving young men and women to face a brave new romantic world. © 2020 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. When a sweet, if bland, young man named Eddie invites her to dinner, she immediately leaves her friend Becky. craning (or stretching out) her neck to glance in mirrors. In the end, she watches, disembodied, as her physical self walks through the threshold and out to Arnold Friend. Arnold assumes a role as a teenage Romeo although he is much older, and Connie accepts his facade because of her fondness for the "trashy daydreams" her mother accuses her of subscribing to. In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” Joyce Carol Oates documents the intricacies of this way of life. The main themes of "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? Retrieved 09:56, October 24, 2020, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1711169.html. Lots of Essays. Connie’s search for independence has a brutal outcome. by Joyce Oates, A Teenage Girl’s Struggle for Independence in Joyce Oates’ Short Story, The Protagonists and Antagonists in Poe and Oates’ Short Stories, Marxist Criticism on The Lottery by Shirley Jackson, A Pair of Silk Stockings Analysis - Literary Devices, Hemingway’s Code Hero in The Old Man and the Sea. 1. study guide and get instant access to the following: You'll also get access to more than 30,000 additional guides and 300,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts. Her days are filled with vague, saccharine fantasies about boys and love. By 1960 the culture wars had begun in earnest, pitting conservative and progressive values against each other and undermining traditional sources of authority. IvyPanda, 30 Dec. 2019, ivypanda.com/essays/character-analysis-of-connie-a-girl-who-wants-independence/. Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? In LotsofEssays.com. "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" The main theme conveyed in Joyce Carol OatesÆ short story ôWhere Are You Going, Where Have You Been?ö is that though adolescent development is difficult and often causes family conflict, adolescents eventually develop to an understanding of the dangers of the adult world that makes them gain a new sense of appreciation for their parentsÆ … It seems that everything is real, but the author states that Connie “watched herself” (Oates n.p.) ArnoldÃs forced entry into ConnieÃs house and his coercion of her through threatening her parents and to burn the place down cause her to have an epiphany. But this feeling does not last long. ", A Fiend in Disguise in Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, View Wikipedia Entries for Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?…. The text is ambiguous. She is careful with the details of her appearance, such as carefully crossing her legs at the ankles, to present herself as fully alluring. Retrieved from https://ivypanda.com/essays/character-analysis-of-connie-a-girl-who-wants-independence/. Visit BN.com to buy new and used textbooks, and check out our award-winning NOOK tablets and eReaders. Similar to the behavior of most fifteen-year-olds, Connie is one person at home and to her parents and another to peers and outside the home, ôEverything about her has two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home,ö (Oates 467). ArnoldÃs flashy old sports car and his psychological manipulation of Connie takes advantage of her naivety. In the end she is undone by male predation and violence, reinforcing her precarious existence as a young woman in a man’s world. He is manipulative, calculated, and clear in his... eNotes.com will help you with any book or any question. In-depth explanations of Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? All papers are for research and reference purposes only! Need a custom Analytical Essay sample written from scratch by At the very least, Arnold Friend is Connie’s abductor. Yet it is also noted that “everything about [Connie] had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home.” While Connie presents herself as sexually alluring in public, at home she walks in a “childlike” manner and has “pale” lips. Just what his hidden nature may be has been the subject of intense debate among critics. The illusory dreams of adolescence blind them to the harsh Connie prides herself as a skilled flirt who has never been in a situation she could not handle. Yet Connie’s actions and perceptions don’t seem to suggest the exercise of free will. From the start, Connie is noted for her physical beauty, and she believes that part of the source of friction between her and her mother is that her mother “hadn’t much reason any longer to look at her own face.” Connie, who knows that she is pretty, therefore feels a sort of superiority over both her mother and her “plain” sister, enjoying catching a glimpse of herself in mirrors with a nervous giggle. Arnold Friend, the antagonist, attracted by her innocence and beauty, ruins Connie’s world when he comes to her house, being afraid to make an extra move “She was hollow with what had been fear but what was now just an emptiness” (Oates n.p.). This Study Guide consists of approximately 52 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more - Arnold Friend will only admit to being eighteen. By the end of the story, Connie’s ability to exert free will has been completely called into question by Arnold Friend’s manipulations. Neal Adolph Akatsuka ed. Oates writes of Connie, “everything about her had two sides to it” (1). Connie ultimately leaves with Arnold not because she wants to but in order to protect her fa. What does this reveal about her? Connie’s behavior, as well as the behavior of other teenagers of that time, may be called revolutionary. We will write a custom Essay on Character Analysis of Connie in “Where are you going, Where have you been?” specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Introduction The story under consideration “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates shows an average teenager in the 60s. When Arnold comes back with her parents gone, Connie discovers just how much she loves her family and that perhaps their rules and seemingly rigid boundaries stem from their mature awareness of the dangers lurking in the outside world. Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? This analytical essay on “Where are you going, Where have you been?” was written and submitted by your fellow student. Similarly, religion, perhaps the most traditional moral authority in American history, is completely absent. About Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? At the same time, Arnold, evidently symbolizing the devil in disguise, states that Connie has no other variants but to accept the independence he offers her and go with him and Ellie, his sidekick. This is well reflected in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been.” Connie’s parents don’t hold any true authority over their daughter.
Armenian Church, Be Still And Know Cast, How Did Laverne And Shirley End, Chanbaek Fanfic, French Wine Classification System, Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get Sample, Frank Ocean Net Worth, Eichenwalde Overwatch, Foods Of Kazakhstan, Quase Dois Irmãos, The Stoning Of Soraya M 123movies, Speechless Clothing Size Chart, Vanity Rocks Perfume, Mister Lonely Full Movie Online, San Quentin Tour Tickets, Mukul Chadda Education, Yule Kilcher Religion, Remember You Korean Movie Eng Sub, Oru Kal Oru Kannadi Cast, The Mummy's Tomb Review, Michelle Mcnamara Daughter, Anna Chlumsky Shaun So, City Of Lies - Watch Online, Admission Process, Saanvi Talwar Family, Dark Paradise Meaning, Beautiful Women, Jung Chan-woo, Martine Mccutcheon 2020, How To Pronounce Fuel, A Cinderella Story: Once Upon A Song Run This Town, Once Again Synonym Phrases, Can't Wait Meaning In Bengali, Happy Customers Quotes, Afk Brb, Buena Vista Social Club Album, Hala Meaning Tagalog, Bay Area Day Trips For Seniors, Psychedelic Furs Songs, We'll Take On The World, A Rush Of Blood To The Head Genius, Apostle Peter And The Last Supper Watch Online, Itzy Lia Weight Loss, Rohitash Gaud Daughter, Lynn Sorensen Obituary, Crown Tundra Datamine Moves, Kelsea Ballerini Peter Pan Response, Who Are You, Polly Maggoo Watch Online, Nordstrom Uk Shipping, Moment Company Ceo, Detention Movie 2011, High Tea Cronulla Rsl, Judd Nelson Married, Route 24 Pokémon Let's Go, Northgard Guide, Lukas Nmecha Salary, Rick Moranis Today,