Archetypes In Where Are You Going Where Have You Been

The character Connie in Joyce Carol Oates short story “Where Are Going, Where Have You Been?” has a lot of issues. The problems Connie has with her social life, family, and the people that she talks to come to control her future which anticipates the development of her character, this correlating to her unfortunate death. The Bob Dylan song “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue,” perfectly describes her situation which was the inspiration for Oates 's story. In 'Where Are You Going Where Have You Been ' music is a big influence on Connie and Friend specifically rock ‘n ' roll music. Throughout this story, there are plenty of references to music becoming a lifestyle and characters mimicking their favorite artists ' clothing trends. The revolution

Culture is an embodiment of a society’s values. The representation of American culture is rapidly changing, showing a plethora of beliefs over the decades. Every change comes with controversy, new radical ideas of the upcoming generation challenging the previous. Once deemed taboos become socially acceptable and ideas once thought absurd are altered to become social norms. For example, when rock and roll debuted in the late nineteen sixties it caused conservative Americans belonging to the fifties to believe the new music of the generation was causing internal decadence. Joyce Carol Oates’ short story, “Where are You Going, Where Have you been” represents this time in American history through the use of a symbolism. The reoccurrence of music and its influence on Connie, the main character in the story, symbolize the demoralization of American society.

The short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” was written by the author Joyce Carol Oates in 1966. Oates describes her idea for the story after briefly reading an article about the real-life murderer, Charles Schmid, who lured and murdered three teenage girls (Kirszner & Mandell 523). She uses this idea to create the character, Arnold Friend, and his victim, Connie. Connie is a typical teenage girl portrayed as naïve and self-centered. The short story appears realistic, given that the conflict in the story is based off of real events. Oates unexpectedly adds allusions to fairy tales throughout the story that suggest a much deeper meaning than the initial realistic interpretation. The use of fairy tales adds a vitally important element to the story that evil can be lurking in unexpected places.

“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” is about a teenager named Connie who is trying to come to terms with her transformation from childhood to adulthood. Through this process, Connie attempts to act older than she is an tries to gain the attention of boys. In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” Joyce Oates portrays Connie as obsessed with men to symbolize how one’s obsession and narcissistic attitude can cause danger to seem surreal.

In Joyce Carole Oates short story,” Where Are You Going, Where Have you Been”, the battle of perception and reality comes into play when Connie ,a young teenage girl tries to portray herself as an adult by using her appearance as well as attitude in order to attract the attentions of older men. This fantasy world of Connie’s is eventually overthrown by Arnold Friend, causing her to snap back into the realization that her sexual fantasies will soon be a reality. This overall theme of sexual reality is reinforced by the different uses of music and character symbolisms of Connie and Arnold

In the coming of age story “Where Are You Going Where Have You Been?” Joyce Carol Oates uses symbolism, conflict, and the third person to foreshadow fifteen-year-old Connie’s unfortunate, yet untimely fate. While one may think that the conflict stems from Connie’s promiscuity, it is clear to see her promiscuity is only a result to a much bigger conflict, her mother’s constant nagging and disapproval, alongside the lack of attention from her father. the author paints a vivid picture of what happens when a fifteen-year-old girl such as Connie goes elsewhere to find to find the love, attention, and approval that she lacks at home. All which is vital for her growth and wellbeing as a person.

In her short story "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?", Joyce Carol Oates utilizes a variety of literary devices to strengthen the story in its entirety. This short story is essentially about a 16-year-old girl named Connie and the conflict between her desire to be mature and her desire to remain an adolescent. Throughout the story, the audience sees this conflict through her words in addition to through her behavior. The audience is also introduced to Arnold Friend, a rather peculiar man, who essentially kidnaps her. This short story by Joyce Carol Oates functions and is additionally meaningful because of her usage of literary devices.

The story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” was written by Joyce Carol Oates, published in 1966. In this short story, we are introduced to a 15 year old girl Connie. She is described to be very conceited, and she is always obsessing over her physical appearance. Her family life is perceived as very dysfunctional. Her mother is always comparing her to her older sister June, and Connie’s father is pretty much absent from her life. Because the lack of family support and guidance, Connie lies to her parents of her whereabouts, and she sneaks away to local hangouts. While being out, she unfortunately catches the eye of Arnold Friend. This man will erase Connie’s innosense and expose her to how cruel the world can actually be. Many literary

The short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates is about a teenage girl named Connie who is in the mist of her adolescent rebellion. She wants to prove her maturity to others and herself. In the story, Oates describes that Connie always lets her mind flow freely in between her daydream. She even creates and keeps dreaming about her ideal male figure in her mind to make her happy and satisfied. Oates allows the reader to step into Connie’s “dream world” through the appearance of Arnold Friend. Throughout the story, there are many instances: the illogical time and settings, the similarity between Arnold and Connie and the unrealistic events show that the meeting between Connie and Arnold Friend is a dream. The dream is also a preparation for Connie before she steps onto the stage of being an adult.

Connie’s character “ . . . heavily [depends] upon [music] [and] it even becomes her breath of life” (Tierce and Crafton). Friend knows this and uses it to show her that he’s not evil. Connie “ . . . [listens] to the music that [makes] everything so good . . . ” (Oates 2). When Friend first arrives at Connie’s house, “ . . . [she] [begins] to hear the music. It [is] the same program that [is] playing inside the house” (Oates 4). By showing interest in the same music as Connie, Friend shows that he can be trusted by her because he understands something so important to her life. For Connie, music is an escape. Friend is the person who can help her escape and be her savior. Friend’s character is based off of the music legend Bob Dylan, as expressed by the dedication of the story and his character description. It is said that “ . . . Bob Dylan’s followers [perceive] him to be a messiah” (Tierce and Crafton 2). If Friend is based on Dylan, then he is Connie’s messiah, or savior, not a representation of Satan. Marie Urbanski compares “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” to Adam and Eve from the Bible and states that “[it] is music - instead of an apple - which lures Connie . . . ” to leave with Friend (Urbanski 2). Music is not used by Friend to lure Connie away from her home. It is used to show that Friend and Connie have a connection through it and that he can be trusted to save her, not to harm

In Joyce Carol Oates’s “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, Connie is a fifteen-year-old girl, who does not necessarily get along with her family. During the week, she often times goes to a shopping plaza with some of her friends. However, they sneak across the highway to go to a popular diner where the older crowd hangs out at. At home, Connie is often times arguing with her family. One day her family is invited to her aunt's barbecue but Connie refuses to go. Reluctantly, her parents allow her to stay home alone. A few hours later, a familiar gold jalopy pulls up to her house. The driver announces to Connie that his name is Arnold Friend. His unusual physical appearance, his tone of voice, and what he may symbolize frighten the Connie.

Religion and temptation of a forbidden object is a major theme in Joyce Carol Oate’s “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”. The story features Connie, a pretty 15-year-old girl who is given the opportunity to go on a date with Arnold Friend, who is described as being a mysterious man of 30 years of age or older. While this first excites Connie, she becomes increasingly hesitant as to whether or not going with Friend is a good idea as she starts to notice flaws in his character. Arnold Friend takes the form of a devil-like character and displays both physical and mental characteristics of this biblical creature. Friend makes multiple references to numbers and symbols that would give up his identity, and each time he makes these references

Joyce Carol Oates dedicated “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” to Bob Dylan, the story was influenced by Dylan’s haunting song “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue.” Many aspects of Bob Dylan are mirrored is the character Arnold Friend. Author considered them as a physical double; In the 1960s, people had an idea of Dylan being otherworldly or messiah person. However; Arnold Friend was a darker version of this type of figure. In the story, Arnold came to take Connie away, and she is ultimately powerless to defy him. Oates’s recreation of Bob Dylan is purposeful, and meaningful particularly during the time period in which it takes place. In the 1960s, when Oates wrote “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” a social revolution was happening. American women were stating with confidence about their rights and getting independence from men. Also, people were claiming their sexuality rights. One of the discussed topics was youth age and the struggles or anxieties that many young girls suffered as they lost their innocence and

Joyce Carol Oates is a famous American writer. Oates has published numerous plays, poetry, novels, novellas, and volumes of short stories. One of her most controversial short stories is, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”, because of one of her main characters, Arnold Friend. In her story, Arnold Friend can be portrayed as a negative entity, but Oates does not explain when she is asked about it. Arnold Friend can be seen as a demonic figure in the story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”, because of the way he looks, the way he interacts with Connie, and the symbolism in the story.

In “Where Are You Going, Where Have you Been?”, Connie, is fifteen years old and is just like any other teenage girl. She daydreams, loves music, and likes to flirt. She is one of the main characters and has a personality that sets her apart from others in the story. In her mind she is the center of everything and she the only one that understands anything going on, “Connie would raise her eyebrows at these familiar complaints and look right through her mother, into a shadowy vision of herself as she was right at that moment: she knew she was pretty and that was everything.”(Oates 233) This sets her as someone that only cares about herself and that doesn’t really care what others say.