Where Are You Going Where have you been theme analysis

The main themes of “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” are appearance versus reality, the embodiment of evil, and self-sacrifice. Appearance vs. reality: Both Connie and Arnold have two-sided natures, presenting an appealing self when necessary and withholding another.

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been theme of evil?

In the story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, Connie and Arnold clearly symbolize the theme of good versus evil, and Joyce Carol Oates portrays that the strength of evil can easily overpower good. Arnold embodies the fundamental nature of evil, while Connie’s soul is pure and innocent.

Where Are Going Where Have You Been symbolism?

“[The] story is clearly an allegory of the fatal attractions of death (or the devil),” Oates explains. “An innocent young girl is seduced by way of her own vanity; she mistakes death for erotic romance of a particularly American/trashy sort” (source).

What is the thesis of Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

Thesis: ”Where are you going, where have you been?” by Joyce Carol Oates uses symbolism to portray youths’ desire for independence but overall gullibility to life’s illusions. … Arnold friend himself is symbolic of the evil that lurks hidden with the world.

What happens to Connie at the end of Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

Connie is compelled to leave with him and do what he demands of her. The story ends as Connie leaves her front porch; her eventual fate is left ambiguous.”

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been mood?

Sympathetic, Serious (This reminds us a little of the tone of Jane Austen’s Emma). The tone of those vivid and sensuous descriptions of Connie as she daydreams, for example, is in marked contrast to the dismissive tone her mother takes toward her fantasies.

Why does Connie go with Arnold and Ellie?

This fear, this defense that Connie has developed, is another reason that she ends up with Arnold Friend in the end. … Her insecurity, her low self-esteem, and her fear of intimacy all aid her in her unconscious decision to leave her house and go with the devious Arnold Friend in his gold convertible jalopy.

Why is music so important to Connie?

Music Symbol Analysis. From the outset of the story, music symbolizes Connie’s inner life, specifically the pleasure she takes in romantic relationships and romantic ideals themselves. Whenever she goes to the plaza with her friends, music is always playing in the background.

How is Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been a coming of age story?

Oates has described “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” as slipping and sliding between genres. She suggests the terms “psychological realism” and “realistic allegory” (source). The story also fits within the coming-of-age genre as it follows its adolescent protagonist as she faces some tough decisions.

What is written on Arnold's car?

Arnold’s Car She complains that the color of the car is so bright that it hurts her eyes, and she is puzzled by the phrase “Man the flying saucers” on the front fender, which was an expression that her peers used to use but that has fallen out of fashion.

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How does Arnold Friend manipulate Connie?

Friend seems to know that he can control Connie with his words: if she simply listens to him for long enough, the desired effect will take hold. … Friend’s use of manipulative language makes her believe she not only has no other option than to go with him, but that she has chosen to go with him.

Who is Arnold Friend based on?

Oates has described how she based the character of Arnold Friend on the real life serial killer, Charles Schmid, who also wore makeup and stuffed his boots in order to alter his appearance, and was known for preying on teenage girls—taking three of their lives in Tuscon, Arizona the 1960s.

What does Arnold Friend want Connie?

Arnold Friend: A mysterious figure who visits Connie while her family is not at home and continuously demands that Connie to get in the car and go on a ride with him.

What is Connie's American Dream?

Connie is attempting to overcome her plain life by living an alternate life on the weekends. Joyce Carol Oates characters frequently fall short of their dreams, mainly because their dreams are unobtainable. Connie’s dream of the American rock-star does not exist, This preview is partially blurred.

Is Connie a sympathetic or unsympathetic character?

Dynamic Character: In Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?, Connie is a dynamic character because her character evolves during the story. In the story, Connie is transformed from an unsympathetic to a sympathetic character.

Why do you think that Connie gives in to Arnold explain?

Connie knows that if she gives in to Friend’s demands, she saves the rest of her family from Friend’s threats. In Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” Connie submits to Arnold because she fears for her family’s safety. For majority of the story, Connie had shown a level of disdain for her family.

Where do Connie and her friends go when they leave the shopping plaza?

Connie and her friends enjoy being dropped off at a shopping plaza without adult supervision, wearing ballerina slippers and charm bracelets. Often after being dropped off, they run across the highway to a drive-in where older kids gather.

Why does Connie act like an adult?

“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.

How is Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been a realistic allegory?

Oates has described the form of “Where Are You Going” as “psychological realism”; or “realistic allegory,” a fictional mode that is “Hawthornean, romantic, shading into parable.”2 At the same time, the story deals with a terrifying possibility of contemporary American life, a situation of invasion, abduction, and …

How does Connie lose her innocence?

Loss of Innocence Theme Analysis. … Friend forces a heightened level of sexual awareness upon Connie—and then presumably rapes her, forcing her to give up her sexual innocence.

What role does music play in the story Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

Music. Music functions as Connie’s bridge from the real world to her fantasy world. Connie enjoys escaping her life by listening to music and daydreaming about boys, and she gathers her ideas about romance primarily from songs on the radio.

What role does music play in Oates story?

Oates also uses music references as a means of conveying Connie’s vulnerability. The music in the story does not have a specific title or description. … From this, the reader realizes that Connie is excited by the music, and that to her it functions as a substitute for religion.

What do the numbers in Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been mean?

When Connie asks him what the stuff painted on his car means, Arnold goes through the various sayings and eventually comes to the numbers 33,19, 17. … Harold Hurley posits that the numbers carry a sexual connotations because when added together they equal 69, a sexual position.

What do cars symbolize to teenagers?

To teenagers, cars can represent anything from maturity to freedom to being ‘cool’. To Connie, it initially represents the unknown as well as her own vanity: It was a car she didn’t know.

What does the secret code in Where Are You Going Where have you been?

The Code On the Car The code, 33, 19, 17 has at least two meanings. First, the reader can discover the title of the story. By counting backwards in the Old Testament of the Bible, 33 books, you will arrive at the book of Judges.

Who is Ellie in where are you going?

Arnold Friend’s sidekick, Ellie is passive and quietly disturbing character in the story. He sits in the passenger seat of Friend’s car holding the transistor radio. Connie observes that while, like Friend, Ellie is also older than he originally appeared, he is also strangely undeveloped and completely submissive.

What are the signs that suggest Arnold Friend is a supernatural being in Where Are You Going Where have you been?

Indeed, he looks strange enough to suggest that he has mental problems or is even somehow otherworldly. He wears mirrored sunglasses, has translucent skin, and has hair that is so wild that it looks like a wig.

How is Arnold Friend characterized?

Oates characterizes Arnold Friend at first glance as “a boy with shaggy, black hair, in a convertible jalopy painted gold”(581). … Oates does make Arnold out to be a psychopathic stalker, but never objectively states the diabolical nature of his character.

Who is the antagonist in Where Are You Going Where have you been?

Arnold Friend is Connie’s antagonist.

What did Connie do instead of go to a barbecue with her family?

Connie spends the summer avoiding her mother’s prying questions and dreaming about the boys she meets. One Sunday, her parents and June leave her at home alone while they go to a family barbeque. Connie washes her hair and dozes while she lets it dry in the sun.

Is Where Are You Going Where have you been based on a true story?

Sources. Joyce Carol Oates based “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” on a true story of rape and murder in Tucson, Arizona, in 1965. Charles Schmid, a twenty-three-year-old man, was arrested for the rapes and murders of several teenage girls.