Going‚ Where Have You Been?” is the suspenseful tale of fifteen year old Connie and her situation with a strange man. Connie‚ who usually enjoys the attention of the older boys‚ sees the man randomly when she is on a date. Some time later‚ the man shows up to Connie’s house and asks her if she wants to go for a ride with him and his friend. The man introduces himself as Arnold Friend‚ claiming to be eighteen years old. Connie soon begins to realize the two men look much older than eighteen‚ and she
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the theme of identity and the search for self. During the summer‚ Connie spends most of her time hanging out with her friends or hanging out with boys. One night when Connie and her friends came out of a movie‚ she was greeted by a strange man who made a threatening
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(Muuss 5). The decisions can be difficult‚ but with a parent ’s help‚ things can run more smoothly. In Joyce Oates ’ "Where are you going‚ Where have you been?" Connie experiences not having an active mother or father in her life. As a result‚ she takes her life into her own hands and makes decisions based on how she feels. For example‚ Connie has a different personality when she is at home than when she is with her friend(s) (Oates 496). This change can be a result of her parents not taking part in
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teenager’s concerns‚ but Connie is like two personalities in one person‚ “Everything about her had two sides to it‚ one for home and one for anywhere that was not home: her walk‚ which could be childlike and bobbing‚ or languid enough to make anyone think she was hearing music in her head; her mouth‚ which was pale and smirking most of the time‚ but bright and pink on these evenings out” (Oates 110). Interestingly‚ most of the time‚ her two sides seem to function in harmony and Connie smoothly changes from
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and the coming of age effectively in “Where Are You Going‚ Where Have You Been”‚ “Four Summers”‚ and “The Girl with the Blackened Eye”. She uses it to connect the three stories to each other. Connie and the girl in “The Girl with the Blackened Eye” are connected because they were both violated by a man. Connie and Sissie were both connected because they were both influenced by their families’ ways on how they lived their lives. Joyce Carol Oates is noted for her ability to create stories with terror
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Are You Going‚ Where Have You Been? Innocent‚ young‚ naïve; this is how Connie was at her age of fifteen. She liked the attention boys gave her and how it made her feel. A man named Arnold Friend‚ whose much older than her‚ has stalked Connie and wants to convince her to go for a ride in his car. Connie doesn’t notice the man’s older features and this causes her young mind to contemplate going with Arnold in his car. Connie is more conflicted with herself‚ she battles to make the right choices especially
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Friend is a character that is also controlled by his id. When he first makes contact with Connie he smiles and says “Gonna get you‚ baby” (Oates 1). In that instance‚ his id is controlling his decision-making. Arnold immediately determined that he wanted Connie without taking any time to process his thoughts. Later in the story‚ Arnold shows up at Connie’s house with his friend Ellie. At first he asks Connie to get in the car‚ but as time progresses he becomes more aggressive‚ demanding that she gets
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In Joyce Carol Oates story‚ "Where Are You Going Where Have You Been?" there are two main characters in the story one of them is Connie. She was a naïve fifteen year old teenage girl‚ and the other character is a psychopath named Arnold Friend. Connie is a typical teenager she hangs out with her friends going to the mall and movies‚ just basically out having fun without a care in the world. Arnold is a psychopath who appears to be like any human. In many cases‚ one would not be able to
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” is a vain and stubborn girl named Connie. Fifteen years old‚ she believes beauty is everything and is nothing short of rebellious‚ maintaining two different personas: one for at home with her family and one for going out with her friends. One night out with her girl friends‚ Connie spots a young man watching her. He promises to come get her. The next day‚ the man comes to Connie’s house‚ keeping his word‚ and spends the remainder of the story convincing Connie to come along with him in his golden
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young‚ naïve girl named Connie‚ and her deranged abductor‚ Arnold Friend. Oates uses the setting in Connie’s life to create a very realistic situation. Oates also uses descriptive language to create vivid images of the setting‚ charters‚ and the emotions Connie feels. By analyzing Connie’s home setting and the descriptive language Oates uses‚ we will be able to further understand how Connie’s thoughts and actions were effected by her setting. In the beginning of the story‚ Connie is said to have a habit
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