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Similarities Between 'Between The World And Me And Where Are You Going?'

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Recommended: Critical analysis of where are you going, where have you been

People with power maintain their power by control over bodies, legacy and false appearances. To initiate, people maintain their power by having control over bodies as shown in the book “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates and the short story “Where have you been? Where are you going?” by Joyce Carol Oates. Coates describes how white people have maintained their power within society through the following quote: “As for now, it must be said that the process of washing the disparate tribes white, the elevation of the belief in being white, was not achieved through wine tasting and ice cream socials, but rather through the pillaging of life, liberty, labor and land; through the flaying of backs; the chaining of limbs; the strangling …show more content…

In addition, Oates expresses Arnold Friends control over Connie’s body through this quote, “She thought for the first time in her life that it was nothing that was hers, that belonged to her, but just a pounding, living this inside this body that wasn’t really hers either. You don’t want them to get hurt. Arnold Friend went on. Now get up, honey. Get up all by yourself. She stood. Now, turn this way. That’s right, Come over here to me” (Pg.6). Arnold Friend had control over Connie’s body because she had no other choice or at least she felt that way. She could not decide for herself what she wanted to do. She felt like it was not up to her to make a decision. Even though she wanted to leave, run away from Arnold Friend and the dangerous situation he had her under. Connie did not want to jeopardize the life of her family. Arnold used the excuse of hurting her family members as a manipulation strategy to control her actions and decisions. As the quote stated, that her body wasn’t hers it empathized that her body was Arnolds. Arnold from that point on basically owned her body, controlled her body and in which made her do everything he wanted. This shows how she is

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With the stories “A Good Man Is Hard To Find” by Flannery O’ Connor, and “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, happen to have some common ideas throughout each story. One common idea happens to be that their is a main antagonist or predator, who seem to attack/prey on the women. In each story, it shows that there was a part where each woman took time to talk to these men who were controlling the situation and deceiving the women, using violence to kill the poor innocent women. Both antagonists are good at ‘killing’ and they both know that they are, because they know what they are doing- causing tragic problems. Ideas like these are important because you see how men, in that time period, were being perceived and portrayed-

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A repetitive notion made in the story, as June is used as a meter to compare Connie too; which naturally, no one would like: “June did this, June did that, she saved money and helped clean the house and cooked and Connie couldn 't do a thing, her mind was all filled with trashy daydreams” (308). Ellie 's character, even as quite as he remains, presents a conflict with Arnold. First when he over steps his boundary with Arnold and asked "You want me to pull out the phone?" (318), then being told by Arnold to "Shut your mouth and keep it shut" (318), only to ask about the phone again. To which Arnold responds with more conflict: "you 're deaf, get a hearing aid, right?

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He mysteriously knows where Connie lives and invites himself to drive over to her house. Arnold assumes Connie’s friendship by convincing her that he knows everything and everybody, “I know your name and all about you” (Oates 201) when she never told him her name in the first place. He knew her friends, their names as well as what she did the night before. He also knew exactly where Connie’s family was, at a BBQ at Connie’s aunt Tille’s.

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