Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been And Fences Analysis

Fences, a play by August Wilson, tells the story of a black family living in Pittsburg. Troy, the father of the family, is a problematic, lying man who experiences conflict within his family, his work and other areas of his life. Another text which deals with a problematic character is Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”. This story follows an instance from teenage Connie’s life. Two strange men appear at her house and the situation slowly becomes more bizarre. By the end, Connie is forced to come with them. Through the use of pacing, setting and dialogue both authors construct feelings of tension and surprise.
In both texts, the author uses the pacing of different scenes in order to create a feeling of tension throughout the story. In Fences, this pacing is between two different scenes. First, Troy tells his family about his abusive dad saying

In Fences, Wilson uses this literary device to create surprise felt by both the reader and Rose. While talking to Troy, Bono says “I see you run right down to Taylors’ and tell that Alberta gal” (Wilson 43) This quote shows how the setting is Troy’s house, and that he’s the only one who’s aware of his affair with Alberta. This affair happens outside of the house, therefore neither Rose nor us, the readers, know about it. This creates surprise when Troy finally admits to it. While Wilson uses setting to create surprise, Oates uses the literary device to create tension. This setting is Connie’s house and when Arnold Friend and his companion invade Connie remarks that “The kitchen looked like a place she had never seen before, some room she had run inside but that wasn’t good enough, wasn’t going to help her.” (Oates 7) This sudden invasion make her home, which is a familiar, safe setting, suddenly become foreign. When this space become dangerous, there is an over looming feeling of tension felt by both Connie and the