Preview

Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates 'The Journey'

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
438 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates 'The Journey'
As Mandy Hale once stated, “Sometimes when you lose your way, you find yourself.” This is certainly true for the traveler, the protagonist and only character from Joyce Carol Oates’ short story “The Journey”. The traveler, who is not identified as female or male, sets out on a journey on the highway towards a city that they have visited many times. Along the way, the traveler finds themself lost after turning on a different road that they usually follow towards the city; they suppose that the new route is going to be scenic and therefore different. In Oates’ short story, it is revealed that the process of becoming and learning is vastly more important than reaching one’s end goal in life.
During the story, the traveler comes to a realization
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Themes In Joyce Carol Oates Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?
    • 137 Words
    • 1 Page

    Themes In Joyce Carol Oates Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

    In Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You been?” readers are introduced to a young female, Connie, who wants to do be herself. She wants to experience a lot of things and her experiencing got her in a stage where she cannot get out. Oates portray in the story that you should not want to be an adult before your time. Connie had not realize that she is not ready to be an adult because there is a lot of things that she do not understand yet. In Oates’ story she has several themes in which she uses them to get her point. Themes such as Connie’s search for independence, Connie’s fantasy, Connie’s freedom, Connie’s identity disclose that she wants to have her own way and not let others tell her what to…

    • 137 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Lennie's Journey In Of Mice And Men
    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Lennie's Journey In Of Mice And Men

    A journey is a physical movement from one place to another and the emotional outcome that comes with it. Obstacles and challenges are faced by both George and Lennie in “of Mice and Men” and the persona of “I was only 19”…

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Overcoming Obstacles In The Journey
    • 212 Words
    • 1 Page

    Overcoming Obstacles In The Journey

    In The Journey the author, Duane BigEagle, creates the theme of overcoming obstacles by using description and point of view. The main character, Raoul has to travel in order to survive his illness. The short story states, “There was just enough for a child's ticket to the little town of Oklahoma.” The author shows the struggle Raoul has to face in order to find the cure to his sickness. In order for Raoul to survive.…

    • 212 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Journeys- Bruce Dawe
    • 379 Words
    • 1 Page

    Journeys- Bruce Dawe

    As a teenager living in an ever-changing society, a journey is bound to happen either emotionally, physically or mentally. At any point in a persons lifetime, one may go through a journey- whether that journey takes place at a certain time or place, stemmed from a decision or the journey of ones existing lifetime. No matter what or whom, journeys are bound to change us and are inevitable. They offer us development and growth as individuals as well as altering the way we think, act or talk. This can be obtained through overcoming obstacles, achieving goals, anything really that ee encounter during a journey.We often register change as something dangerous, yet we still try our futile attempts at resisting change but at the end of it all, you yourself as a human being would have changed in either a positive or negative way. Bruce Dawe's poems, "drifters" and "migrants" emphasis on the emotional aspect of physical journeys where it is tied to the attitudes towards journey (s), the compassion in the journey, overcoming obstacles and fulfilling the desire of destination. Bruce Dawe uses language techniques such as imagery, colloquialism, tone and repetition to convey and highlight some specific aspects of physical journey(s).…

    • 379 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Themes In Pleasantville
    • 1340 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Themes In Pleasantville

    “Any Journey includes both realities and possibilities”, the three texts that we have studied in class, the film 'Pleasantville' by Gary Ross and the poems 'Road Not Taken' by Robert Frost and 'Journey to the Interior' by Margaret Atwood, support this idea as these texts include the protagonist having embarked on not only physical and interior journeys in reality but also imaginary. The journey is known to be imaginary for the audience, but for the characters of the text these journeys have led them to be in a different stage in life, not only physical but internally, evolving into different people or having what become completely different people due to these journeys.…

    • 1340 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Analyzing Joyce Carol Oates 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been'
    • 1247 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Analyzing Joyce Carol Oates 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been'

    "Database Login at Panola College Library." Database Login at Panola College Library. Web. 15 Mar.…

    • 1247 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Review Of Joyce Carol Oates 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?'
    • 369 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Review Of Joyce Carol Oates 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?'

    In Joyce Carol Oates' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" and Estrella Alfon's "Servant Girl, firm actions brought by male characters caused women to reveal their true nature. Rosa, from Estrella Alfon's Servant girl is a very humble lady who is consciously aware of two men having interest in her. First is the cochero, whom he calls Angel, is the man who lived in her fantasies after their encounter and second is Sancho, the other guy, is her admirer who seems to possess the the opposite trait of his ideal guy. Joyce Carol Oates' story describes a girl named Connie, who, in her acts, is obviously at the stage of adolescence. She is the type of girl who views only one side of her nature. She would prove her maturity through seeking…

    • 369 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Traglear In Joyce Carol Oates's Is This The Promised End?
    • 324 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Traglear In Joyce Carol Oates's Is This The Promised End?

    From the article “Is This the Promised End?” The Tragedy of King Lear, written by Joyce Carol Oates, King Lear is presented as someone who is “…overwhelmed by the authority of the title ‘King’… [becoming a] human being dying inside an archetype” (Oates 4). King Lear was someone who yearned for status and power, but never truly upheld any of the responsibilities that came with the title of being king. Because he was obsessed with keeping a royal façade, he disconnected with the ones dearest to him—his daughter, Cordelia—and in the process, even himself, as he “…attempted to escape his responsibilities as a ruler and father, while maintaining his privileges…” (Oates 3). In the case of Arthur, he is considered the modern day king—an A-list celebrity.…

    • 324 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Bruce Dawe Journeys
    • 902 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Bruce Dawe Journeys

    Without the challenges and rewards in life’s journey we would not be able to grow and become stronger individuals. Our lives are full of journeys and what we experience during these journeys often change us. Journeys can change a person’s perspective of life by providing them with new information and ideas. We often feel like the destination is the most important thing and never take into consideration what we learn on the way. Bruce Dawe expresses this idea of change in his poems ‘migrants’ and ‘enter without so much as knocking’. Dawe showcases both a positive and negative aspect of change by using poetic techniques such as personification, alliteration, metaphor and ellipsis. Journeys can be physical, emotional and inner.…

    • 902 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates's Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?
    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates's Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

    A close reading of Joyce Carol Oates's "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" reveals many layers of possible meaning, which makes it a fine example of literary merit.…

    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates 'Short Story Where Are You Going?'
    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates 'Short Story Where Are You Going?'

    It is almost disheartening to watch a child’s loss of innocence as it grows into adolescence. To know this is to observe as a child discovers that Santa Claus and the Easter bunny aren’t real, or for a parent to watch as their son or daughter make life changing decisions. Decisions like which colleges to go to, or to decide to marry their high school sweet heart. A teenager’s loss of innocence is the focal point of Joyce Carol Oates short story “Where are you going? Where have you been?” featuring the main protagonist, Connie. Connie is forced to face the ordeal of becoming an adult at the age of fifteen in a matter of minutes. She spurns her parents in an effort to be rebellious, she goes out at night with her friends in search of young…

    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?'
    • 565 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?'

    A part of Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytical theory is shown through one of Joyce Carol Oates’ characters. The psyche is made up of three parts: the id, ego, and superego. The id is the primitive and impulsive component of the human psyche. The ego and superego help us make smarter decisions because if we only made decisions based on the id everything would get chaotic. The id is also known as the pleasure principle, and reality does not affect it. This component of our personality is fantasy oriented and irrational. Joyce Carol Oates places Arnold in her short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” Arnold Friend represents the id in Connie’s personality. Everything Connie wishes about her life is exactly what Arnold represents. Arnold sets Connie free and gives her the things she has…

    • 565 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Joyce Carol Oates' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" Essay Example
    • 690 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Joyce Carol Oates' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" Essay Example

    Every person comes face to face at some point in life with vital decisions. Some of the decisions are minor ones, while others can bring turning points in life. In Joyce Carol Oates' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" she displays a particular instant in the main character's life. This character, Connie was caught in the difficult transition from her youth and innocence to a doubtful future. Throughout the story Connie alternates between two very different sides of her personality, one side where she is innocent and young, and the other where she is mature. Understanding the magnitude of Connie's character and her interaction with others is key to comprehending exactly how she came upon her final decision.…

    • 690 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Joyce Carol Oates: Music Analysis
    • 754 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Joyce Carol Oates: Music Analysis

    Oates uses music as Connie’s bridge from the real world into her fantasy world. Throughout the story Oates shows the importance of music in Connie’s life. Connie often listens to music and daydreams about boys. All of her ideas about boys come from the music she listens to. Connie thinks about one of the boys she went out with and feels as though the kind of love they had was the way it is promised in music (Oates 293). The songs she listens to give her everything she knows about romance. When Connie and her girl friend go out for the night Connie meets a boy named Eddie. During her hangout with Eddie, Oates writes that “…her face was gleaming with a joy that had nothing to do with Eddie or even this place; it might have been the music” (Oates…

    • 754 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?
    • 1088 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Analysis Of Joyce Carol Oates Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

    Joyce Carol Oates is an American writer who has published over forty novels. Most of her novels are graphic and many of them depict death. In her short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” Oates tells the story of Connie, a fifteen year old girl. Like in many of her previous novels Connie dies, or the reader is led to believe she does. Oates was inspired by Bob Dylan’s song “ It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue”, Charles Schmid, and from the book of Judges chapter 19 verse 17 in the Bible.…

    • 1088 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics