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Arnold Friend Critique

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“Where Are You Going, Where Have You been” was a short fictional story (based on real events) written by Joyce Carol Oates in 1966. In her story, a young teenage girl has an encounter with another “teenager” that had been hitting on her previously. Little did she know that he was actually a serial killer that had been stalking her in order to make her his new victim. The story takes place at the house of the young teenager, Connie, after she is left home alone for an afternoon. At the end, Arnold Friend (the serial killer) ends up getting what he wants and leaves with Connie. This short story is rich in literature and easily adaptable to various forms of criticisms. Although one can use a Psychoanalytical criticism or Gender criticism, to me, …show more content…

She gives in to Arnold Friend and does not bother to fight him back any longer. In Greek mythology, Apollo (the god of music) challenged the Satyr Marsyas to a musical contest after finding out that he was spectacular at playing the double flute. Though beliefs like this seem to have nothing in common with this story, they do. Apollo challenges Satyr to prove who is the best and Arnold Friend challenges Connie to come to him and be his. Apollo, knowing that he is a god, is confident that he will win and Friend, knowing that had the ability to manipulate, is confident as well. At the end, even though both Satyr and Connie put up a fight, they both eventually lose the battle and their life. Oates story, “Where are you going, Where have you been?” is a story filled with various different forms of symbols and ideas that an ordinary reader would not realize they represent more than just what they appear to be. Oates incorporates several literary elements that can be used to take different critical approaches. With that stated, the Archetypes approach was the most appealing to me because it exposes the reader to a different perspective to the short story that she

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In Joyce Carole Oates short story,” Where Are You Going, Where Have you Been”, the battle of perception and reality comes into play when Connie ,a young teenage girl tries to portray herself as an adult by using her appearance as well as attitude in order to attract the attentions of older men. This fantasy world of Connie’s is eventually overthrown by Arnold Friend, causing her to snap back into the realization that her sexual fantasies will soon be a reality. This overall theme of sexual reality is reinforced by the different uses of music and character symbolisms of Connie and Arnold

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In Joyce Carol Oates fictional short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” the majority of the story lies beneath the surface. More specifically than just the story, you realize that there is more to the character Arnold Friend than what may appear. The author has always remained silent and ambiguous about the real meaning of Arnold Friend’s true nature and she leaves room for the readers to make their own interpretation of him. Readers can analyze Arnold Friend and see him as the devil, he could just be the personification of popular music imagined by Connie in a dream, but Arnold Friend could also be the result of drug use.

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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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984 Words | 4 Pages

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804 Words | 4 Pages

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