Are You Going, Where Have You Been? By Joyce Carol Oates: Summary
Debrionna Mulhall
Jennifer Schaller
English 1102 Sec. 53
10 October 2014
Peeling Back The Label “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is a short story written by Joyce Carol Oates. This popular short story made its debut in 1966. Dependent upon the interpreter, this short story may seem to be based upon many different themes, although my goal is to focus on analyzing the author’s use of stylistic devices such as a recognizable setting, and symbolism that Oates has effectively implemented in this story to convey the most important theme, which is maturity and coming of age. Oates uses many symbolic devices such as; words/thoughts, relationships amongst characters, and even objects to effectively symbolize Connie’s coming of age adventure. …show more content…
I will also relate the use of a setting that is recognizable to many teenage girls, with my own experiences of maturing, as it seems not to long ago I was a naïve teenage girl in search of my own maturity. The story begins by introducing us to Connie, a pretty but air-headed teenager who seems terribly ordinary. She doesn 't get along with her mom, she 's annoyed by her sister, she is distant from her father, she likes listening to music and watching movies, and she spends a lot of time going out with her friends and meeting boys. The setting of the story is easily relatable for most American teenagers, as it is based around drive-in restaurants, movie theaters, and shopping malls. All of which are common places that many teenage girls spend time in during the typical coming of age years. Within the first paragraph of the story we see Connie visualizing as Oates writes; "into a shadowy vision of herself as she was right at that moment: she knew she was pretty and that was everything" (1). Similar statements referring to Connie’s beauty come up frequently throughout the story. It is obvious to the reader that Connie is the pretty girl in her family. Her beauty, or as some readers may interpret it, her vanity without a doubt plays a huge role in the theme of sexual maturity. Oates writes “Everything about her had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home” (1). Although it was some time ago, I can reflect on my own thoughts of beauty in my young teenage years. Nothing mattered more to me during those years than my appearance, especially as perceived by my peers. Like the character in the story, I remember having two sides, “one for home and one for anywhere that was not home” (Oates 1). I remember sneaking clothes that my parents did not approve of in my back pack as I walked out the door to meet up with friends. It is common for a teenage girl, to use her beauty to portray herself as being older, or to gain the attention of the opposite sex. The constant search for sex appeal and attractiveness displayed throughout the story is symbolic, of Connie’s desire to mature and become her own person. Nestor Lopez-Duran PhD writes in an article titled “Father-daughter bond”, “Researchers have noted for decades that children view their home environment and relationship with their parents as models, and that this is usually reflected in how these children interact in new environments in the future”.
Throughout the story the author conveys Connie’s relationships with her immediate family members as being relationships that are dysfunctional, especially the relationship between Connie and her mother. "Why don 't you keep your room clean like your sister? How 've you got your hair fixed—what the hell stinks? Hairspray? You don 't see your sister using that junk." (Oates 1). The constant comparison the mother makes between Connie and her sister June, is symbolic of Connie not yet having an identity of her own. I don’t think her mother is aware of the negative effect that the comparison will ultimately have on Connie, but without a doubt, all the comparison does is make Connie more rebellious and defiant against her mother’s wishes. These comparisons also motivate Connie to quickly become her own person. Connie’s relationship with her father is also portrayed as being a negative relationship. He is explained as the type of father who goes to work every day and comes home to eat and go to sleep. Connie didn 't seem to have a lot of attention from her father, which may have been what was encouraging her to find male attention somewhere else. Does this have an effect on the
outtake of the story? If the father was more social with his daughters, the array of conflicts between family members possibly wouldn’t exist. The role of a father’s absence on the reproductive and psychological behavior of their daughters has been a subject of considerable interest from a developmental, psychological, and sociological perspective. For many girls inevitably it is our relationship with our fathers that determines how we view the opposite sex, the outside world and ourselves. If a girl’s father and mother are positive role models, the daughter will be more likely to grow into a socially productive young woman. Connie’s lack of relationship with her parents also proves to be symbolic of her un-healthy and perhaps premature desire to mature. Throughout this tale, Connie, the main character, goes back and forth between innocence and maturity, showing two very different sides. The way Connie behaved with friends showed how she longed to grow up and have adult relations. When Arnold Friend arrives, he yanks her out of her childhood adventures and places her firmly into an adult world. The conversation that Arnold and Connie have accurately represents the search she has undertaken seeking maturity. For example he says; "Yes, I 'm your lover. You don 't know what that is but you will," (Oates 6). The majority of the story, after Arnold Friend shows up, takes place with Connie standing in the doorway. The door way is an object in the story that symbolizes Connie being stuck between childhood and adulthood. Connie’s search for independence ultimately has a brutal outcome. In the end she chooses to walk through the doorway which is symbolic of her walking into adulthood. In Joyce Carol Oates ' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?", the author dramatizes the story, and draws in the reader by using symbolism in addition to a grounding and recognizable ordinary setting, to make the theme of coming of age believable from a psychological point of view. Both literary tools the author chose to use are effective in examining the decisive moment many people face when at the crossroads between the innocence of youth and the uncertain future that awaits them.
Works Cited
Lopez-Duran, Nestor PhD “Father-daughter bond” ChildPsych.Org, 27 May 2009. Web. 18 October 2014
Oates, carol Joyce “where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” 1966. Print
Jennifer Schaller
English 1102 Sec. 53
10 October 2014
Peeling Back The Label “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is a short story written by Joyce Carol Oates. This popular short story made its debut in 1966. Dependent upon the interpreter, this short story may seem to be based upon many different themes, although my goal is to focus on analyzing the author’s use of stylistic devices such as a recognizable setting, and symbolism that Oates has effectively implemented in this story to convey the most important theme, which is maturity and coming of age. Oates uses many symbolic devices such as; words/thoughts, relationships amongst characters, and even objects to effectively symbolize Connie’s coming of age adventure. …show more content…
I will also relate the use of a setting that is recognizable to many teenage girls, with my own experiences of maturing, as it seems not to long ago I was a naïve teenage girl in search of my own maturity. The story begins by introducing us to Connie, a pretty but air-headed teenager who seems terribly ordinary. She doesn 't get along with her mom, she 's annoyed by her sister, she is distant from her father, she likes listening to music and watching movies, and she spends a lot of time going out with her friends and meeting boys. The setting of the story is easily relatable for most American teenagers, as it is based around drive-in restaurants, movie theaters, and shopping malls. All of which are common places that many teenage girls spend time in during the typical coming of age years. Within the first paragraph of the story we see Connie visualizing as Oates writes; "into a shadowy vision of herself as she was right at that moment: she knew she was pretty and that was everything" (1). Similar statements referring to Connie’s beauty come up frequently throughout the story. It is obvious to the reader that Connie is the pretty girl in her family. Her beauty, or as some readers may interpret it, her vanity without a doubt plays a huge role in the theme of sexual maturity. Oates writes “Everything about her had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home” (1). Although it was some time ago, I can reflect on my own thoughts of beauty in my young teenage years. Nothing mattered more to me during those years than my appearance, especially as perceived by my peers. Like the character in the story, I remember having two sides, “one for home and one for anywhere that was not home” (Oates 1). I remember sneaking clothes that my parents did not approve of in my back pack as I walked out the door to meet up with friends. It is common for a teenage girl, to use her beauty to portray herself as being older, or to gain the attention of the opposite sex. The constant search for sex appeal and attractiveness displayed throughout the story is symbolic, of Connie’s desire to mature and become her own person. Nestor Lopez-Duran PhD writes in an article titled “Father-daughter bond”, “Researchers have noted for decades that children view their home environment and relationship with their parents as models, and that this is usually reflected in how these children interact in new environments in the future”.
Throughout the story the author conveys Connie’s relationships with her immediate family members as being relationships that are dysfunctional, especially the relationship between Connie and her mother. "Why don 't you keep your room clean like your sister? How 've you got your hair fixed—what the hell stinks? Hairspray? You don 't see your sister using that junk." (Oates 1). The constant comparison the mother makes between Connie and her sister June, is symbolic of Connie not yet having an identity of her own. I don’t think her mother is aware of the negative effect that the comparison will ultimately have on Connie, but without a doubt, all the comparison does is make Connie more rebellious and defiant against her mother’s wishes. These comparisons also motivate Connie to quickly become her own person. Connie’s relationship with her father is also portrayed as being a negative relationship. He is explained as the type of father who goes to work every day and comes home to eat and go to sleep. Connie didn 't seem to have a lot of attention from her father, which may have been what was encouraging her to find male attention somewhere else. Does this have an effect on the
outtake of the story? If the father was more social with his daughters, the array of conflicts between family members possibly wouldn’t exist. The role of a father’s absence on the reproductive and psychological behavior of their daughters has been a subject of considerable interest from a developmental, psychological, and sociological perspective. For many girls inevitably it is our relationship with our fathers that determines how we view the opposite sex, the outside world and ourselves. If a girl’s father and mother are positive role models, the daughter will be more likely to grow into a socially productive young woman. Connie’s lack of relationship with her parents also proves to be symbolic of her un-healthy and perhaps premature desire to mature. Throughout this tale, Connie, the main character, goes back and forth between innocence and maturity, showing two very different sides. The way Connie behaved with friends showed how she longed to grow up and have adult relations. When Arnold Friend arrives, he yanks her out of her childhood adventures and places her firmly into an adult world. The conversation that Arnold and Connie have accurately represents the search she has undertaken seeking maturity. For example he says; "Yes, I 'm your lover. You don 't know what that is but you will," (Oates 6). The majority of the story, after Arnold Friend shows up, takes place with Connie standing in the doorway. The door way is an object in the story that symbolizes Connie being stuck between childhood and adulthood. Connie’s search for independence ultimately has a brutal outcome. In the end she chooses to walk through the doorway which is symbolic of her walking into adulthood. In Joyce Carol Oates ' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?", the author dramatizes the story, and draws in the reader by using symbolism in addition to a grounding and recognizable ordinary setting, to make the theme of coming of age believable from a psychological point of view. Both literary tools the author chose to use are effective in examining the decisive moment many people face when at the crossroads between the innocence of youth and the uncertain future that awaits them.
Works Cited
Lopez-Duran, Nestor PhD “Father-daughter bond” ChildPsych.Org, 27 May 2009. Web. 18 October 2014
Oates, carol Joyce “where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” 1966. Print