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

Without exception, every human being born will experience distinctive transitions throughout their lifetime. It could be as simple as moving from one side of town to the other. While at other times, a change can be as major as transitioning from childhood to adulthood. For much of the 20th century in America, the dynamics of communication among parents and their children was not fundamental. “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” written by Joyce Carol Oates introduces these “ills” of the 20th century to be examined in a more psychological depth. This ominous literal piece unfolds the story of protagonist Connie, a self-absorbed, disoriented, beautiful fifteen-year old girl, living in the early 1960’s who is placed with fear, stalked, and eventually abducted by antagonist Arnold Fiend. Connie not only is at odds with her family but also at a crossroad between defining the peculiarities and realisms one experiences as an adolescent.
What we learn as we age making the right choices, learning from errors, and using the support that we have around, like our parents, make us who we are.
She, unknowing to her parents, is our typical teenager exploring her independence and individuality. Connie kept her thoughts and feelings to herself due to the consistent rebuking and criticism she received from her mother. Connie’s mom was verbally abusive as seen when she said, “Stop gawking at yourself. Who are you? You think you’re so pretty?” (Oates). This affected the ability for Connie to communicate with her mother about any issue occurring in her adolescent
life. At the same time, Connie felt the constant rivalry her mother pinpointed between her and her sister June. Connie’s mother words, “June did this, June did that, she saved money and helped clean the house and cooked and Connie couldn’t do a thing, her mind was all filled with trashy daydreams.” (Oates). She was withstanding a point in her life where she grew conscious that her mother did not comprehend her, leading Connie to even wishing her mother death: “Connie’s mother kept picking at her until Connie wished her mother was dead and she herself was dead and it was all over.” (Oates). These where thoughts of a neglected and abused adolescent going through a stormy time. To make matters worse, Connie’s father was inferior to her as well, giving an unsympathetic environment for her and her sister, June. Accordant with this extract, “Their father was away at work most of the time and when he came home he wanted supper and he read the newspaper at supper and after supper he went to bed. He didn’t bother talking much to them.” (Oates). The absence of the father also eliminated the possibility to develop a meaningful relationship with an imperative male figure. Adolescence is a turbulent time which children are in greater need of support from parents, who need to give them room for growth and guide them when confronting hard-hitting issues.

To concluded, Oates invites us to have a glance on how rapists construct psychological fear into their victims and not having a strong support system can go awry. The author is trying to convey the idea of controversial passages one endures in life, especially in this story that deals with adolescent dilemmas. In this narrative, Oates rear us with being more outspoken to these matters that society likes to keep silent. Society has the responsibility to yield comprehensive age-related appropriate adolescent sexual education, as well as, parent-child communication.