Analysis Of Where Are You Going Where Have You Been

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The short story “Where are you going, where have you been” by Joyce Oates, has a darkness around it. An aspect that has been praised by readers. The story revolves around the main character, Connie, a rebellious teenager. Connie’s character suffers from many transformations throughout the story. She starts off as a rebellious girl with a superficial personality. Underneath her annoying act, hides her real self. A young girl who wishes to receive her mothers love and appreciation. She has always lived underneath her sister's shadow, almost as if her life depended on competing with her sister for their mother's love. Connie’s unlikable and rebellious personality comes from her internal issues. Issues she has had to deal with since a young age, …show more content…

Her character experiences two sides of an identity. Connie deals with deciding between being a daughter at home, or a free spirited woman outside of her home. The boundary between home or not home is remarkable throughout the story. Connie is limited in her own house but being a free spirit means leaving her home, and in her case she suffers a traumatic event by trying to be a free spirit. The idea of home and not home is used in great measure throughout the story. It represents many young girls suffering with being limited by their parents or not being able to be themselves at their home. Many girls feel repressed in their own homes, and once they live they find their true selves. In this case, Connie does not find herself, or becomes a free spirit. Instead she suffers from a traumatic experience that changes her life forever. Where she was meant to go is no longer an option. She had a future for herself, she was a good young girl and daughter, even if her mother couldn’t appreciate her enough. After experiencing a traumatic event, most people, especially teenagers or children will suffer from this event and its representation for the rest of their life’s. Connie becomes forced to transition early into adulthood. Traumatic events can shape a person for the better or worse. Either way, Connie was forcibly pushed to mature, she could no longer keep being and acting like a child. She now had to experience and deal with future internal issues caused by the wrongdoings of older and evil men. The story shifts between conflicts. It initially starts with the conflict between Connie and her mother, as she feels unloved by her mother. Connie also feels limited in her own home. Later changer to conflict between Connie and the older men and her friends. And lastly it turns into a conflict between Connie and

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