Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?
Connie is a young fifteen year old who cares about her sexual drive that men have toward her. “The 1960s unleashed the so called sexual revolution. It seemed more a source of comic relief and tragic nostalgic recirculation than political inspiration…” This revolution consisted of women demanding their own rights so they could become more and more independent. There were significant shifts in social attitudes, behaviors, and institutional regulations at the beginning of the 60’s and also lasted through the 70’s. The sexual drive increased majorly and the amount of women that had sex before marriage also sky rocketed. In Where Are you Going, Where Have You Been, Connie wants sexual attention from men, and that hurts her self-confidence and puts a real strain on her self-esteem. The theme of this story is that younger women going through their sexual maturation have a hard time dealing with the changes of emotions towards the opposite sex. It is about the stage of life when young woman are going through their search for independence.
The first reason why the theme of this story is the search for independence is because Connie is a typical teenager back in the 60’s and 70’s. The sexual radicalism which argued that capitalism sexually repressed the masses in the interests of its life negating and exploitative goals. Capitalism demanded self-restraint and compulsive work. It is argued and it is also contrary to any liberated and spontaneous sexual expression. Sexual liberty has been colonized and brought into the service of capitalism’s nexus of production and consumption. Women back in that generation and decade were just being introduced to such sexual nature and liberty. Those women didn’t have anything stopping them from committing these sexual acts with such a new found freedom. The first guy that Connie comes into contact with when she leaves her friend during the story, it was the first sign of how the rest of her search for independence is going to pan out.
The first reason why the theme of this story is the search for independence is because Connie is a typical teenager back in the 60’s and 70’s. The sexual radicalism which argued that capitalism sexually repressed the masses in the interests of its life negating and exploitative goals. Capitalism demanded self-restraint and compulsive work. It is argued and it is also contrary to any liberated and spontaneous sexual expression. Sexual liberty has been colonized and brought into the service of capitalism’s nexus of production and consumption. Women back in that generation and decade were just being introduced to such sexual nature and liberty. Those women didn’t have anything stopping them from committing these sexual acts with such a new found freedom. The first guy that Connie comes into contact with when she leaves her friend during the story, it was the first sign of how the rest of her search for independence is going to pan out.
Cited: Cormier, Robert. "Themes and Characters." Novel Explorer. N. Design Studio, 26 Jan 2009. Web. 26 Mar 2013. <http://www.novelexplorer.com/where-are-you-going-where-have-you-been/themes-and-characters-76/>. Shmoop Editorial Team. "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? Themes" Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 26 Mar. 2013.