More handpicked essays just for you.
Essay analyzing arnold friend where are you going where have you been
Essay analyzing arnold friend where are you going where have you been
Essay analyzing arnold friend where are you going where have you been
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
A major part of “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” revolves around the true identity of both of the main characters. Though they act in a certain manner to present a specific identity to society, it is not really their true selves. Connie is introduced as a vain and conceited teenage girl, caring nothing for her family and even less about the boys she occasionally messes around with. Early in the story it is said that “Everything about her has two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home” (3123). Though she is only fifteen years old she wants to grow up quicker and therefore pushes forward her sexuality because it is the only way she can think to make herself feel more grown up. To Connie, this is her true self. In her mind the mask she must don is that of the youthful and innocent girl who is not ready for the world around her. However, when Arnold Friend steps into the picture it is made clear to the audience that she was mistaken. She truly is an innocent teen who does not understand how harsh the world can be because she has been living in this ‘Eden’ and doing as she pleases which is how she takes on the Eve identity. She in not innately sinful, but her curiosity is ultimately what causes her downfall.
Arnold Friend, the antagonist of the plot, is clearly the physical representation of the devil within the story. The dual nature within him is what allows him to tempt Connie away from the safety of her haven. His name alone holds several clues towards his duplicity. On the surface he is simply Arnold Friend, A. Friend, who is trying to ask Connie out because he thinks she is beautiful. This makes the reader assume, at first, that he is actually a good guy. However, as the story progresses it ...
... middle of paper ...
...nd, her soul, is where she wishes her physical self could remain – in the house.
As Connie exits the house Arnold is content that he has finally reached his fairy-tale ending. It is in this moment that the audience sees the last glimpse of the Devil inside of him. When Connie reaches him he says, “My sweet little blue-eyed girl”, yet it is explained that she has brown eyes (3135). This proves that Connie was never anything special to him. In his mind she is simply another conquest to cross off his list and another secret to paint into the story on his car. Though she is standing before him, he cannot be bothered to notice the color of his eyes. He is already lost in the idea that he has won. His script has played out exactly as he wanted it to and, at that moment, that’s all that matters. She is simply another innocent girl whose simple naiveté he can whisk away.
At the end of the movie, a stranger named Arnold Friend encountered Connie at her home while she was home alone. Arnold was a vicious, but alluring character. The way he dressed was as if he tried to imitate a young teenage boy. First, his intentions for Connie were kind of blurry. Connie, being as
Where Are You Going, Where have You Been by Joyce Carol Oates is a tale of a naive young lass taking her first steps into the illusion of the teenage dream. For the regular viewer of the film Smooth Talk, one would not pick up on the elaborate history behind the movie. Dating back to the 1960’s, the written story sheds very little light on the true sadistic nature of the means and intentions of Arnold Friend. Going back even further, the written tale is based on Life Magazine's article “The Pied Piper of Tucson” the true story of a middle aged man who preys on adolescent girls, getting away with devious sexual acts and sometimes murdering said adolescents. Without this previous knowledge, both the story and the movie seem for the most part innocent, with only a tad of creepiness generated
A spider, a zombie, a serial killer, all of these things would scare most but why do people pay good money to be scared by all these things? Because people like to be scared. Ever since people could speak to one another, they have been telling these stories. whether it be around a dim lit campfire, in the form of a book, or even on the big screen. these stories stand out through time because of their graphic word choice, unique characters, and suspense. Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Black Cat” and Joyce Carol Oates “Where Are You Going Where Have You Been?” both possess these elements of word choice and suspense along with psychotic like characters such as Arnold Friend (WAYG) and the narrator (The Black Cat). Poe's character the
Connie, from “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”, wants to rebel against her family. She uses her attractiveness to flirt with boys at the local restaurant behind their backs as a form of rebellion. She feels as though her family does not appreciate her; her father does not pay any attention to her and her mother constantly compares her to her sister, criticizing her every move and asking why she cares so much about her appearance. On one of her outings she sees a boy who she vainly chooses to ignore. Later he shows up at her house posing as her friend, calling himself Arnold Friend, and talking to her as though he is another boy she flirts with down at the diner and pretending to be her age. She subtly flirts with him at first, only realizing the danger when it is too late.
"Connie, don't fool around with me. I mean—I mean, don't fool around," he said, shaking his head. He laughed incredulously. He placed his sunglasses on top of his head, carefully, as if he were indeed wearing a wig…” (Oates 6). Joyce Carol Oates’ short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” highlights an altercation, meeting, conflict and dispute between a teenage girl, named Connie, and a psychotic rapist named Arnold Friend. Throughout their altercation, Arnold Friend tempts and encourages Connie to get in the car with him and lead her to a variety of possible dangerous situations, one of which includes her getting raped . There is no doubt that Joyce Carol Oates’ uses Arnold Friend in her short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” to symbolize the Devil and embody all of the evil and sinister forces that are present in our world. This becomes apparent when the reader focuses on how deranged Arnold Friend is and begins to
The Theme of Temptation in “Where Are You Going , Where Are you Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates
Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” clearly illustrates the loss of innocence adolescents experience as they seek maturity, represented by Connie's dangerous encounter with Arnold Friend. Connie symbolizes the many teens that seek independence from their family in pursuit of maturity. Connie’s great desire to grow up is apparent from the beginning of the story, as she experiments with her sexuality. However, it is clear that Connie is not interested in pursuing a relationship, but relishes the maturity she feels after being with the opposite sex. After following a boy to his car, she was “gleaming with a joy that had nothing to do with Eddie or even this place” (2). This suggests that Connie's exploits
Arnold Friend’s layers of deception. Connie’s blindness is the pretext of her loss of innocence
A mysterious car pulled into Connie’s driveway and the driver proceeds to get out of his vehicle, showing that he belonged there, not recognizing the car Connie opens the door to her house and leans out it. “She went into the kitchen and approached the door slowly, then hung out the screen door,” (2). Without even knowing who or why this person has come to her house, Connie opens her door and leans out to possible talk to the driver, who would turn out to be Arnold Friend and wants to take her on a “date”. Connie’s ignorance towards Arnold and his arrival almost immediately puts her in a vulnerable state without her even realizing it, this vulnerability would be the first event to foreshadow Connie’s inevitable kidnapping. After greeting and talking to Arnold for a little, he proceeds to ask Connie if she wants to go for a ride in his car. Instead of turning down the offer since she barely, if at all, knew Arnold, Connie somewhat debates it. “Connie smirked and let her hair fall loose over her shoulder,” (3). Though she lacks any information about Arnold, Connie kind of debates taking up his offer to go for a ride, further letting her ignorance towards the entire situation usher her into an even more vulnerable
When approached by Arnold Friend at first, she was skeptical but was still charmed by him. As she began to feel uneasy, Connie could have used her intuition to realize that he was trouble. Once she had been engaged by Arnold, her life was over. The influences on Connie and her lack of instilled reasoning led to her down fall. Her family’s fragmented nature was echoed in her actions; consequently, she was unable to communicate with her parents, and she was never was able to learn anything of significance. She felt abandoned and rejected, because no one took the initiative to teach her how to make good decisions. Connie was unable to mature until she was faced with death and self sacrifice. In the end, her situation made it difficult for her to think and reason beyond the position she was in. By not being able apply insight, she fell into Arnold Friends lure. Misguidance by the parents strongly contributed to Connie’s
Where Are You Going, Where have you been? is a short story written by Joyce Carol Oates. The 75 year old American author and professor at Princeton University, introduce the story of 15 year old Connie who is rebelling against her mother’s whishes. A very arrogant and selfish girl that in her world the only thing that matters is how many heads she can turn when walking into a room. Through the story life gives her a test, to confront Arnold Friend, the antagonist of the story; who possesses a nefarious power beyond her own experience.
The character Arnold Friend in Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is a dangerous figure who comes to Connie’s house to threatens her. Even when throughout the story the character of Arnold Friend can be seen merely as a criminal or a psychopath, this character in fact epitomizes the symbolic figure of Satan.
Oates uses a great number of symbols in her short story "Where are you going? Where have you been? to create an aura of unease and Devilishness. Her principal symbols are Arnold Friend, his disguise, and the music Connie listens to. Oates' use of symbolism and Biblical allusions to Satan force the reader to raise an eyebrow to the character of Arnold Friend and the doomed future of Connie.
I agree with your theory that Connie is the black sheep in her family and her family adores Connie’s sister, June. The author, Joyce Carol Oates, symbolized Connie as a vain average teenage girl who agured with her mother. Connie received less affection from her family which led to her probably feeling neglected. And the threats that Arnold made towards Connie were direct threats about Connie’s family, described what June looked like and the location of her family. Another theory for why Connie decided to go with Arnold is that she longed for acceptance in her family. Connie decision of going with Arnold was protective instinct because she wanted to do the right thing of protecting her family, even though she does not feel acceptance.
In Joyce Carol Oates's short story, "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" the protagonist introduced is Connie, who is an interesting and strong character. Just like every other teenager, she is searching for a purpose and trying to find her place in society. Although Connie seems to be an incredibly self absorbed teenage girl, there is a part of her personality that is different than the rest. She lives a double life, having one personality around her house, with her family, and the other when she is hanging out with friends in public. Due to this double personality, the reader can't help but become intrigued and question which girl she truly is.