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The stories of Joyce Carol Oates "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" and William W. Jacobs "The Monkey's Paw" have several different degrees of symbols and themes that warn the characters of emitted danger or bad outcomes in their stories that can be mirrored of each other. In, these stories the characters do not follow the warnings from these symbols and themes from the clues that are presented to them. From these terrible choices that are decided, they find themselves in situations that could have been avoided, but they did not proceed with. My analysis of these symbols and themes will demonstrate what they are and show the obvious of what to look for. So, let us begin on this analysis and see how the symbols and themes could have …show more content…
Connie went to pick the phone up "the telephone was clammy and very heavy and her fingers groped down to dial but were too weak to touch it. She began to scream into the phone, into the roaring."(Oates 8) Because did not make that call she had lost all hope. She gave up on herself and gave into Arnold Friend's demands. The phone was the last hope she had for the conclusion of the terrible warning to escape her possible death. The other story "The Monkey's Paw" by William W. Jacobs also demonstrated symbols and themes that warnings bad outcomes are coming if not taken the signs. The symbols and themes that are going to be analytical are the chessboard game monkey paw, and the gentle men's warning to not use it. The beginning of the story starts with the father and son playing chess. The father's rash determination to distract the son, so he could try and win is one example of poor choice …show more content…
Oates's Connie was a pretty, flirtatious, naive young girl who flaunted herself without any concern of what bad outcomes could happen. Oates had an idea of how to prepare young women from being aware of their situation, so they would not draw too much attention on themselves. In the case of Connie, she was not careful, and because of her unselfish awareness she was abducted and possibly taken to her death. Now with Jacobs characters in the "Monkey's Paw", they were desperate to gain an advantage in life by making 3 wishes. Jacobs was trying to convey that sometimes when something is too good to be true that it probably is not. Jacobs characters did not follow the wariness and in the process they lost their son. I feel that if you are not cautious and do not prepare or grab to surreality usually resorts into more harm than good. For those two situations, that was the outcome. One should be aware of what going on in life. If there are warnings of a series of events put in front of them take the threats as a clue and walk away or go where it is
Author Joyce Carol Oates writes about a girl named Connie during the early 1970s who has a hard time facing reality and womanhood in the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” This fifteen-year-old girl is stuck in childhood in the beginning of the story and by the end of the story she is forced into adulthood due to an experience that is almost unreal. It is hard for Connie to determine if the experience was fantasy or if it was reality. Fantasy versus reality is one of the main themes in this short story and is shown through many different elements. The elements that writer Joyce Carol Oates uses are characters and symbols to create the theme of the story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”
In the story The Monkey's Paw the foreshadowing creates tension and suspense because during the story there was so many things going on and you didn't know what was going to happen next. I say this because in the Monkey's Paw the author writes He raised his hand. "I wish my son alive again." This quote explains foreshadowing by suspense because when he wishes for his son to be alive again it gives the audience suspense if he is going to actually be alive again or if it's not going to come true and they are going to be disappointed.
Joyce Carol Oates intrigues readers in her fictional piece “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” by examining the life of a fifteen year old girl. She is beautiful, and her name is Connie. Oates lets the reader know that “everything about her [Connie] had two sides to it, one for home, and one for anywhere but home (27). When Connie goes out, she acts and dresses more mature than she probably should. However, when she is at home, she spends the majority of her time absorbed with daydreams “about the boys she met”(28). This daydreaming behavior is observable to the reader throughout the story. From theories about dreams, theories about subconscious thought, and the clues that Oates provides, the reader is lead to believe that Connie’s experience with Arnold Friend is a nightmare used to awaken her to the consequences that her behavior could result in.
In the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, many elements of fiction are used to convey subject of themes represented throughout the story, such as disguises. Throughout the story the use of characterization, detail, and allusions represents the presence evil in the modern world. Oates used these elements to capture evil that illustrates the theme that ‘Looks can be deceiving’.
Friend lies in Connie’s blindness; she misses what any reader could easily miss. Through Oates’
Joyce Carol Oates' short story "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" written in the late sixties, reveals several explanations of its plot. The story revolves around a young girl being seduced, kidnapped, raped and then killed. The story is purposely vague and that may lead to different interpretations. Teenage sex is one way to look at it while drug use or the eerie thought that something supernatural may be happening may be another. The story combines elements of what everyone may have experienced as an adolescent mixed with the unexpected dangers of vanity, drugs, music and trust at an early age. Ultimately, it is up to the reader to choose what the real meaning of this story is. At one point or another one has encountered, either through personal experience or through observation, a teenager who believes that the world is plotting against them. The angst of older siblings, peer pressure set upon them by their friends, the need for individualism, and the false pretense that at fifteen years of age, they are grown are all factors which affect the main character in this story.
...nie receives little attention at home and therefore craves attention from boys. Teenagers at Connie's age search for connections and companionship while evolving into young adults, discovering the powers of independence. Connie is searching for the good in Arnold as she is enjoying the attention he gives her. It is possible that in this state of wonder, Connie may not realize she is in danger until control over the situation is lost. Readers are left waiting for Connie to be rescued, fighting for her to be safe. One would like to think that she should have and could have gotten out of the situation had she not have been so naïve. However, the fear and anxiety Joyce Carol Oates portrays through Connie's character leaves Connie unable to protect herself from harm. Although this may seem unreasonable, could you be absolutely sure of what you would do in such a situation?
Joyce Carol Oates began her short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?,” with a 15 year old girl named Connie whose mother that had always compared her to her sister June. This gave the reader a chance to establish a connection with Connie. Since almost every teenager has felt a comparison to another sibling at least once in their life, unless they were an only child, but then they were probably compared to family friend’s child. Her mother would say things like “Why don’t you keep your room clean like your sister?” or “How’ve you got your hair fixed – what the hell stinks? Hair spray? You don’t see your sister using that junk” (Oates, 1). Perhaps this is the reason that Connie has created a fantasy against the reality of the life she lives where “everything about her had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home” (Oates, 1). However, this is challenged when Connie meets the strange figure of Arnold Friend, who ultimately ends up changing Connie.
Joyce Carol Oates’s “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” tells the tale of a fifteen year old girl named Connie living in the early 1960’s who is stalked and ultimately abducted by a man who calls himself Arnold Friend. The short story is based on a true event, but has been analyzed by many literary scholars and allegedly possesses numerous underlying themes. Two of the most popular interpretations of the story are that the entire scenario is only dreamt by Connie (Rubin, 58) and that the abductor is really the devil in disguise (Easterly, 537). But the truth is that sometimes people really can just be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Connie, a victim of terrifying circumstance will be forever changed by her interactions with Friend.
Quite often in life we wish for things bigger than ourselves. Seeming to get wrapped up in our own minds we do not pay attention to reality. As reality comes full force we are not sure how to take it, so we let it take us. In the writing “Where are you going, where have you been?” we see Oates craft archetypes and allegories into the work through detail and word choice in order to help the reader understand the shocking outdistancing of day dreams and the overshadowing sockdolager called reality. These archetypes and allegories provide a way for the reader to join Connie in the story, but also to see the danger of what Connie doesn’t see.
How can the thrilling Monkey's Paw story be similar to the petrifying Hitchhiker story? how can they be different ? we can compare and contrast both stories according to various examination ,such as in the writers style in the plot and his/her use of words, techniques used to make suspense , the way they tell the story ,the type of narrator ,and the way they end .
put on it by an old fakir. The story continues and then Mr.White and the
In the short story, "The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs, I came to the conclusion that Sergeant Major Morris was responsible for the sorrows that resulted from the monkey's paw. For instance, he was the one who owned the paw in the first place, allowed Mr. White to keep it, and even told them how to use it, stating on page 377, "Hold it up in your right hand and wish aloud."
In the short story “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?”, by Joyce Carol Oates, the use of the symbolism of Connie’s clothes, her fascination with her beauty, Arnold Friend’s car and Arnold Friend himself help to understand the story’s theme of evil and manipulation. The story, peppered with underlying tones of evil, finds Oates writing about 15-year-old Connie, the protagonist of the story, a pretty girl who is a little too into her own attractiveness, which eventually gets her into trouble with a man named Arnold Friend. The story is liberally doused with symbolism, from the way Connie dresses to the shoes on Arnold Friend’s feet. In “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?” the reader can pick up on some of the symbols very easily, while others need deeper thought. The subtle hints of symbolism throughout the story create a riveting tale that draws the reader in. Connie finally succumbs to Arnold Friend at the end of the story, it then becomes obvious that he represents the devil and the symbolism of her clothing and Arnold’s car all tie together to create a better understanding of the story.
Have you ever wanted to make an important wish? One you’ve always wished to make. You thought it would change you, your life, your personality, your friendships into the perfect life. You’ve always wished for it, but didn’t think of the consequences behind that wish, consequences you can’t take back or repay. In “Monkey’s Paw “by W.W. Jacobs Mr. White makes a wish, not thinking of the horrible consequences that would follow, from that one wish. There are several reasons show how and why Herbert White to me was responsible for his own death. “Well wish for two hundred pounds, then that’ll just do. “said Herbert. Mr. White had nothing to wish for therefore Herbert decided to tell his father what to wish for. Herbert sat gazing at the fire alone