What is the lesson in where are you going where have you been?
Table of Contents
The main themes of “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” are appearance versus reality, the embodiment of evil, and self-sacrifice. Appearance vs. reality: Both Connie and Arnold have two-sided natures, presenting an appealing self when necessary and withholding another.
What happens to Connie at the end of Where Are You Going Where have you been?
again and again with no tenderness. Oates does not say exactly what happens, but at the end of the scene, Connie is sitting on the floor, stunned and terrified. From the door, Arnold tells her to put the phone back on the hook, and she obeys.
Where Are You Going Where have you been conflicts?
In Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?, the central conflict is external. The central conflict is between Arnold Friend and Connie. Arnold Friend wants Connie to leave her home and go for a ride with him. Connie wants Arnold Friend to leave her home and leave her alone.
What does 33 19 17 mean in Where Are You Going Where have you been?
The numbers 33, 19, and 17 were painted on Friend’s car. Arnold refers to them as a secret code and watches to see if Connie responds to them when he reads them off to her, but she does not see any significance in them (676). The numbers here represent the devil’s marked number mentioned in the Bible.
Why is Arnold friend attracted to Connie?
Hover for more information. Arnold is attracted to Connie’s beauty and the innocence of her youth. As the author outlines at the beginning of the story, Connie has the type of long, dark blonde hair that attracts admiring looks—looks which, at the age of 15, she is becoming increasingly aware of.
Why does Connie finally go outside as Arnold demands?
Arnold instructs Connie to come outside and says she is better than her family because they would not sacrifice themselves for her, as she is about to sacrifice herself for them.
How does Arnold manipulate Connie?
Arnold uses several psychological weapons to lure Connie out of her house. First of all, he uses the ploy of recognition. Next, Arnold uses the weapon of flattery. He tells her that she’s cute and that he came out especially to see her.
How is Arnold Friend the Devil?
Arnold Friend clearly symbolizes the devil through his physical traits, his knowledge of Connie, and his power over her kind of like he was hypnotizing her to go with him. First, Arnold Friend’s physical traits portray him as Satan.
Is Arnold Friend real?
Oates has described how she based the character of Arnold Friend on the real life serial killer, Charles Schmid, who also wore makeup and stuffed his boots in order to alter his appearance, and was known for preying on teenage girls—taking three of their lives in Tuscon, Arizona the 1960s.
Why is Arnold friend name significant?
Arnold Friend clearly symbolizes the devil through his physical traits, his knowledge of Connie, and his power over her kind of like he was hypnotizing her to go with him. First, Arnold Friend’s physical traits portray him as Satan. What does Arnold friend look like?
What does Arnold friend’s car symbolize?
Arnold’s Car Arnold Friend’s flashy gold car, with its outdated phrases written on the sides, is an extension of Arnold himself: extreme and not entirely right. The car gives Connie her first clues that there might be something wrong with or dangerous about Arnold.
What does Arnold friend look like?
He wears mirrored sunglasses, has translucent skin, and has hair that is so wild that it looks like a wig. When he walks, he wobbles, as though his shoes don’t fit properly. Some critics suggest that his unsteadiness hints at the possibility that his feet are actually hooves, as the devil would have.
How is Arnold friend’s name symbolic and ironic?
How is Arnold Friend’s name symbolic and ironic? Arnold’s name is ironic because he is the opposite of a friend, symbolically showing that those who appear appealing or friendly at first may not be all that they seem.
What does Connie represent in the story?
Where Have You Been?” after reading an account in Life magazine of a strangely influential young man who lured and then killed several girls in Tucson, Arizona, in the early 1960s, Joyce Carol Oates’s character of Connie represents the naive, superficial, and self-centered pretty teen-aged girl with Romantic illusions.
Why is Connie’s sister June included in the story?
June serves “as the standard to which Connie’s own behavior is always compared and found wanting. Connie believes she is better than her sister because she is more beautiful.”
What is Ellie’s role in where are you going?
Ellie Oscar serves as Arnold Friend’s largely silent sidekick, sitting in the car and listening to the radio for most of the story’s action. Eventually he offers to cut Connie’s phone line, bolstering Arnold Friend’s ambiguous and seductive verbal threats with the possibility of real, physical violence.
What type of character is Connie in Where Are You Going Where have you been?
Fifteen-year-old Connie is a stereotypical teenage girl: rebellious, superficial, and vain, she often lies to her mother about where she’s going and where she’s been.
Where Are You Going Where have you been symbols?
In American culture and literature the car has long been a symbol of freedom and independence. In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” it is notable that men drive and women are passengers. When Arnold Friend offers to take Connie for a ride, he is seeking to gain control over her and her movements.
Is Connie a static or dynamic character?
As the character analysis of Connie in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” proves, even if Connie does not leave her house and does not go out with Arnold, she understands that independence is not what she has believed to be. This realization of some facts makes her a dynamic character.
What is Connie’s habit?
Connie is a typical teenager in that she is insecure and overly concerned with her appearance. Oates writes that she had a “habit of craning her neck to glance into mirrors or checking other people’s faces to make sure her own was all right.” The symbolism in Connie’s name is the word “con”, meaning deception.