Analysis Of 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?'

“Where are you going, Where have you been”
Analysis
Evette Paden
Shorter University

“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” is a chilling tale of rape and murder with a plot to create suspense. On a symbolic level it becomes a metaphor for simplicity and innocence. Oates’ use of literal and figurative, psychological and allegorical levels makes this story a powerful and fascinating story. One contributing factor to this story’s power is her depiction of the two main characters’ double identities. Connie is one way at home and a totally different person when out with her friends. Arnold dresses younger, stuff his boots to make himself appear taller, all to present himself as a younger man and hide the devil that lies within
She read the story halfway, and then she stopped reading in order for her imagination to take over and create the fictional tale. Transformed into fiction, this story was first published by the literary journal Epoch in 1966 and was included in Oates’s 1970 short story collection The Wheel of Love. Critical acclaim was so swift and certain that as early as 1972, critic Walter Sullivan noted that it was “one of her most widely reprinted stories and justly so.” Along with the story’s frequent appearance in textbooks and anthologies, Oates herself republished it in 1974 as the title story for Where are You Going, Where Have You Been?: Stories of Young America. This collection’s subtitle points to Oates’s ongoing interest in adolescence, especially the psychological and social turmoil that arises during this difficult period. Her preoccupation with these topics, along with her keen sense of the special pressures facing teenagers in contemporary society, is evident in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You