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Character Analysis Of Connie In 'Where Are You Going Where Have You Been'

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6.6 million people in the United States are stalked each year, one in six women and one in nineteen men have experienced stalking victimization during their lives at some point. In the story “Where Are You Going Where Have You Been” by Joyce Carol Oates the main character, Connie, becomes a victim herself. Throughout the story, there are two main conflicts that arise for her, one of them having an extreme impact on her and the people around her. The first conflict Connie experiences is one between her and herself, which could’ve been brought on by her mother's attitude and behavior towards her. Connie is in a constant battle with her mother about the way she looks and how she behaves, often comparing Connie to her older sister. Her mother, once like Connie, realizes she is no longer the beauty she once was and takes it out on her daughter. Connie has a “highly charged relationship with her mother” which shows the reader “both her mother's attempt to control and protect her youngest daughter, and her feelings that Connie is developing into a younger version of herself” (Caldwell). Due to this continuous judgment towards Connie from her mother, Connie …show more content…

The man's’ name is Arthur Friend, his age isn’t said in the story but from his description, he’s much older than Connie. Arthur shows up to Connie’s house, knowing she’s home alone, harassing her to come out so they can take a drive. However, Connie rejects his offer continuously to which Arthur doesn’t take well and ends up threatening to kill her family if she doesn’t cooperate. Somehow Arthur knows Connie is home alone, as well as the whereabouts of her parents, and what they’re doing at that exact moment, all without Connie revealing any of this information to him. Due to his “uncanny knowledge of his victim,” Arthur can be a seen as “a devil, a satyr, and a psychic projection” (Ellis

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Arnold Friend’s sudden appearance in Connie’s life takes her from childhood to adulthood in the blink of an eye and she ultimately becomes a passive victim. Not many fifteen-year-old girls are considered mature at that age and Connie is certainly no exception to that. She is presented as quite vain in her views of herself and those around her. Her mother, once a beauty herself, is constantly nagging at her and telling her to stop gawking at herself in the mirror. Connie considers her older sister June to be somewhat of a spinster who is described as “plain and chunky” (Oates

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In Joyce Carol Oates’s Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been , there certainly is no clear cut way to interpret the story. Oates includes symbolism throughout the story that adds depth and requires the reader to look farther into the reasons behind the details that are included the work. She writes about a fifteen year old girl, Connie, who becomes a victim of Arnold Friend while left home alone . Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been was written in 1966, a time during which a social revolution for American women was in full swing. This empowerment that woman had, as they pushed for complete gender equality, inspired the character of Connie.

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Joyce Carol Oates’ short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” focuses on how the character Arnold Friend actually defies the common archetype of enemy and instead acts as a savior, rescuing Connie from her misery. Connie, a fifteen year old girl, frequently goes out with her friends to escape from her family. One day when her parents are gone, a man, Arnold Friend, appears in her driveway requesting that she goes with him for a ride. She is persistent in staying at home, but eventually gives into him and goes with him because Connie’s life at home is not great. Her mother is always complaining about Connie’s actions and one day “Connie’s mother kept picking on her until Connie wished her mother was dead and she herself was dead and it

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Oate’s story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” examines a young girl that is caught up, in a religion of her own making leading to the worship of a false idol or image. As she approaches an age of not quite a woman but, yet not a child she faces many challenging choices. As she relies on her own form of religion she lacks the guidance to make moral decisions with any certainty. Arnold Friend enters her world and portrays himself as a friend and lover however, this seems to be a trap for the young girl. There are many signs that Connie is at a crossroads in her life and must choose a path to follow.

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Apparent in the beginning stages of the short story, Connie despises her sister, June, for the glory she receives for being the reliable child. She hates her mother for liking her sister more than her,

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Connie in Joyce Carol Oates’s story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” desperately wants to be independent from her family, while Gregor Samsa in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” pathetically yearns for inclusion. In this story, Oates pays special attention to the mother-daughter relationship and the lack of meaningful communication between them. Connie's mother is an image of the future Connie doesn't want – the life of a domestic housewife. Connie has a love-hate relationship with her mother, with whom she identifies, but at the same time she has to distance herself from her mother in order to establish her independence. On the other hand, The Metamorphosis, a story by Franz Kafka, is about a man who has been transformed into a giant beetle

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The short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” was written by the author Joyce Carol Oates in 1966. Oates describes her idea for the story after briefly reading an article about the real-life murderer, Charles Schmid, who lured and murdered three teenage girls (Kirszner & Mandell 523). She uses this idea to create the character, Arnold Friend, and his victim, Connie. Connie is a typical teenage girl portrayed as naïve and self-centered. The short story appears realistic, given that the conflict in the story is based off of real events.

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In Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” the main protagonist finds herself in a very hostile situation. With an all most fateful encounter with a man known as Arnold Friend. Forcing her to choose whether to run off with him or taking her by force. This man known as Arnold Friend to the reader comes off as almost a demon. A person who uses many temptations, word play, and threats to take advantage of the young protagonist Connie.

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Again, the reader sees traditional values placed against changing times, reinforcing Connie’s internal struggle to define

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Connie’s mother wants her to be more like her sister, June. Connie perceives her older sister as the typical boring older sibling. One flaw I see in her problem with her sister is Connie thinks she is better than her sister. She believes the reason she and her mother do not get along is that Connie is more beautiful than June. There are few things Connie truly cares about, such as hanging out with her friends, listening to music,

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“But now her looks were gone and that was why she was always after Connie.” (Oates ). Also, there is another opportunity for friendship within the family, between Connie and her sister, however, that is lost in their rivalry and hostility. “Her sister was so plain and chunky and steady that Connie had to hear her praised all the time – by her mother and her mother's sisters.” ( ).

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You think you’re so pretty she would say” (Oates, 389). From this statement we can quickly review that Connie’s mom obviously has a jealous reaction to Connie’s appearance. She is threatened by

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“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” In the short story written by Joyce Carol Oates “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”, the main character is Connie. Connie is a typical fifteen year old, she acts older than she is and has a split personality when it comes to how she acts around certain people. In the story Connie's mother resents her because she was once pretty just like Connie.

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“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” is about a teenager named Connie who is trying to come to terms with her transformation from childhood to adulthood. Through this process, Connie attempts to act older than she is an tries to gain the attention of boys. In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” Joyce Oates portrays Connie as obsessed with men to symbolize how one’s obsession and narcissistic attitude can cause danger to seem surreal. In the short story, Carol Oates describes Connie as having two different personalities, one being a narcissistic attitude.

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The short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates can be interpreted in a multitude of ways due to its ambiguity. A psychological lens, however, provides the most accurate viewpoint for analyzing the story as it clarifies certain obscure scenes and actions of Connie. One psychological issue of Connie that is easily inferred from the beginning of the story is her insecurity about her looks. Connie constantly worries about the way that she looks and takes any opportunity to do so, “craning her neck to glance into mirrors or checking other people's faces to make sure her own was all right” (1).

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