Richard appears to evolve from his initial condition throughout the story following the constructive reactions from his community, and close to the end, the introduction of Shawna, reaching an ostensible stability. Therefore, the main character is dynamic, he suffers a complete shift in his behavior that is clearly portrayed in the way he narrates his experiences with his friends and Shawna. Richard illustrates himself in different circumstances that give the reader different sides to his current life. He is an addict; however, he does not fulfill all the stereotypes of one, he is also browbeaten, which seems to be normal in his current life because of the way he expresses the event in which he is being robbed. Nevertheless, the reader sees him as a friend and a lover once the melioration begins. Because of this, his development as a character is round, he is battling in some of his sides as narrated during the introduction, though, he starts to find relief in some of his others. The beneficial development on Richard as the story moves forward supports the story’s…
In the story Connie meets a boy named Arnold Friend who tries to persuade her to go for a ride in his car. During this time she is faced with the conflict of temptation, whether or not she should choose to go with him. They have a long conversation and in the end she decided to go with him. The author shows that temptation can lead to unhappiness and lifelong consequences. Connie is a self-centered and conceited fifteen years old…
2. What do stalking the old man and the post-murder details reveal about the narrator’s character?…
The author conveys the protagonist’s thoughts, feelings, attitudes and beliefs through a variety of techniques. The audience is aware of Tom’s growing guilt through the technique of first person writing. ‘Like I said, that was a low point.’ (p124) The convincing, idiomatic, subjective voice of the teenage narrator creates a confidential relationship with the readers, as well as keeping them engaged. It also gives us insight into Tom’s inner most thoughts.…
The novel Montana 1948 is a series of tragic events that have a major impact on the narrator, David Hyden and his family. David’s shocking revelations lead to his painful gaining of wisdom. When David’s story begins, his life is a stable and happy one, and his family are close and loving. It is this stability and respect though, in which the much loved and admired Frank is held by both the townspeople and David, that make the events which occur so shocking, particularly for David. He must pretend, not just for the remainder of the novel, but for the rest of his life, to be ignorant of Frank’s crimes, and much of what is happening because his parents do not realise that he has overheard their discussions.…
Arnold Friend has an interesting description in this story. He is described initially with “shaggy, shabby black hair that looked crazy as a wig.” He is also wearing metallic sunglasses that reflected everything. Eyes are known to be windows into the soul. The fact that his eyes were not able to be seen may suggest that he didn’t have a soul, another reference to the possibility of Arnold being Satan. He is also described has standing awkwardly, “He was standing in a strange way, leaning back against the car as if he were balancing himself” (468). He is has trouble walking, “She watched him take a step toward the porch lurching. He almost fell. But, like a clever drunken man, he managed to catch his balance. He wobbled in his high boots and grabbed hold of one of the porch posts” (472). It also says that the boots seem to be stuffed. Some argue the fact he “stuffs” his boots was to compensate for the hooves. The narrator also comments that his legs don’t seem to function like the average human legs. This could also be a reference to the hooves of Satan. His skin seems to be painted on, “His whole face was a mask… tanned down onto his throat but then running out as if he had plastered makeup on his face but had forgotten about his throat” (472). Satan can take the shape of his victim’s weakness. Connie’s weakness is boys, he is dressed as a teenage boy and Connie says that he isn’t bad looking but his demeanor is strange. She also doesn’t believe that he is just a “few” years older than she. He appears to be over compensating, using a dated expression such as “MAN THE FLYING SAUCERS” (469). This shows that he is trying to act…
Arnold Friend portrays the devil in many ways. In the story, Where are You Going, Where Have You Been by: Joyce Carol Oates Arnold friend is the devil, he went to Connie’s house and tries to get her to go for a ride with him and his friend Elli Oscar so, he can rape and kill her. Arnold Friend is none other than the devil himself, which shows in his appearance, his speech, his actions and supernatural visions, and in clues.…
Thomas, the other main character in the story, remembers Arnold Joseph as a friendly man who saved his life from the fire. Later you learn Arnold Joseph leaves the reservation because he is racked with guilt from accidently setting the fire that killed Thomas parents. Thomas’s character is a traditionalist in practicing his oral tradition. Thomas is far less stern than his counterpart Victor is.…
Arnold Friend is a depraved man who revels in wickedness. He targets young girls in their mid-to-late teens and hangs out in areas that are populated with a variety of young people to choose from. Once he has chosen a victim he begins stalking her like prey. For Arnold the chase is part of the enjoyment. He finds out all about his victim and uses this information to later tease and torment in a way that lets his intentions is made known. While he plays the part of a friendly, jovial young guy, his façade often slips, allowing glimpses of the real Arnold to escape. In these moments his expression or his language show what he is really thinking and what he really feels. This happens as he loses his temper when he believes matters are not progressing in a way they should.…
In the beginning of this essay the narrator tells the audience of a time he encounters a women by herself on a lone road. The narrator sets the mood of the setting by informing the audience of his physical stature. He mentions he is tall, black, and bulky with a beard and rough looking. He continues on by saying the women had a look of fear in her eyes. The women caught a glimpse of this man on the street and started running away from the man in panic. This women had no idea who this man was. He could have been a killer, he could have not.…
Horowitz starts this chapter by describing the large room Mrs Rothman leads Alex to at the hotel in Positano. “There was no bed, just two chairs and a trestle table with a video player and some files”, Horowitz describes. He then engages the reader with direct speech between the two characters. He makes the text interesting by using a dash to give further information and a simile “like an actor on stage when the scenery has been removed.” This technique helps the reader to imagine the situation by comparing it to something everyone can visualise.…
In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” Connie’s decision to eventually leave with Arnold Friend is an unnatural decision for a young girl especially since he is a total stranger. Is it her love, age, or maturity that makes her decide to go along with Arnold Friend. It is likely that Connie leaves with Arnold because she is, “bowing to absolute forces beyond her youthful coquetry cannot direct- absolute forces over which she has no control” (Oates#). Arnold’s persistent and aggressive personality pushes Connie into his arms because she cannot resist his temptations which she perceives as love. In Connie’s mind she believes that “there is a fire inside [her] brain” to go against the “American Dream” of “hearth and home and innocent youth” (). In Connie’s mind was her home life pleasant? Did she have a good relationship with her family, such as her parents and or sister, June? What kind of life did she expect to live with Arnold? Also did she leave on her free will?…
Arnold Spirit “Junior” is the protagonist of our story. Funny, smart, emotional, poor, brave, persevering, all of these are traits that describe Junior. Born at the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, Washington, Junior was expected to die during the surgery, but miraculously lived. However his brain suffered major brain damage during the surgery which gave him 10 more teeth than usual, and seizures. His head was much larger than the usual, and his feet were that of a clowns; and as you may have guessed, he was bullied a lot. Fortunately, he can usually count on Rowdy to defend him from the bullies. That is not the case however when he decides to transfer to Reardan High School, a school full of rich, white kids full of hope and joy; in contrast to Wellpinit, where in Junior’s eyes is the most miserable place on Earth. At Reardan High, he learns that the white kids there are just people like him, people with their own problems. He ends up making friends with many of them, the closest of them being a boy named Gordy.…
As the Narrator meets with his friends, he examines him in discrete detail, “His actions was alternately vivacious and sullen. His voice varied rapidly from a tremulous indecision to that species of energetic concision - that abrupt, weighty, unhurried, and hollow-sounding enunciation - that leaden, self-balanced, and perfectly modulated guttural utterance, which may be observed in the lost drunkard, or the irreclaimable eater of opium, during the periods of his most intense excitement.” (pg. 417, line 157-163) “ The narrator has examined changes from his old pal, and takes the time to consider the advanced traits as detail to keep in mind about him. In front of the door of the chamber, the narrator notices the anxiety his pal has from looking at the door, “His eyes were bent fixedly before him, and throughout his whole countenance there reigned a stony rigidity. But, as I placed my hand upon his shoulder, there came a strong shudder over his whole person; a sickly smile quivered about his lips; and I saw that he spoke in a low, hurried, and gibbering murmur, as if unconscious of my presence. Bending closely over him, I am length drank in the hideous import of his words.” (pg. 429, 556-560) The narrator awaits his friend consciousness to reverse back into him, but helps but not to notice and also stands clear ahead from what he has been waiting. Nevertheless, the mysterious tone has been mentioned at the characters personalities of the story having to separately express different views of the…
The narrator’s loss of control happens before the story begins, but he tries to regain it by eliminating something that intimidated him. The reader learns of the old man, the narrator’s neighbor, through a skewed perception of the narrator. The narrator claims to…