Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been By Carol Oates

“At the root of a traumatic reaction is the 280-million-year-old heritage that we share with nearly every crawling creature on earth--a heritage that resides in the area of the nervous system known as the reptilian brain” (Levine). Therefore, experiencing trauma is nothing new to beings living on Earth, and their responses all have something in common. The short story "How to Talk to Girls at Parties" by Niel Gaiman displays the experience of two young boys attending a party (one who is far more interested in going than the other). During the party, they encounter social pressure to conform which leads to them making decisions they deeply regret. On the other hand, the short story "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" by Carol Oates displays the

After Vic stated this, Enn thought to himself, “I wondered what had occurred in that upstairs room to make him behave like that, to scare him so, and I could not even begin to guess” (Gaiman). This displays Enn’s curiosity about what happened due to how drastically Vic’s feelings about the party had changed. Despite Vic seemingly willingly going to the room with said girl, it is obvious that what he experienced with her will likely haunt him for the rest of his life. On the other hand, in the short story "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" the author, Carol Oates, does not directly display Connie’s reflection on what she experienced or trauma. However, Oates does display the current feeling of disassociation Connie is experiencing, “She put her hand against the screen. She watched herself push the door slowly open as if she were back safe somewhere in the other doorway, watching this body and this head of long hair moving out into the sunlight where Arnold Friend waited” (Oates). This displays the severity of the fear that Connie is facing and how it is physically affecting