The short story Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? was written by author Joyce Carol Oates and published in 1966. Oates was inspired to write this story after hearing the song “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue” by Bob Dylan (book). She also got inspiration to write the story from the true happenings of serial killer, Charles Schmid, whom was also known as “The Pied Piper of Tucson” (book). Oates uses the literary elements of symbolism, character development and the short story being based on a true story and a song, helps the reader relate to the story in a more realistic way to see the real evil in Arnold Friend. There is some mystery in Oates’s short story. On Arnold Friend’s car, there are three numbers painted on the side; 33,19, and …show more content…
The sum of the numbers appears to be one of many hints of Arnold Friend’s “sexual …show more content…
Charles Schmid, also known as the Pied Piper of Tucson, murdered three girls using his charm with teenage girls (Moser #), while Friend hints at raping and murdering Connie. There are many similarities in the story that almost directly relate Schmid to Friend. Firstly, both Charles Schmid and Arnold Friend are not very tall. Schmid was known to fill old rags and cans in his boots to make him taller than his height of five-foot-three (Moser 19). In Oates’s story it states, “the boots must have been stuffed with something so that he would appear taller” (book 1043). Friend’s height is described and compared to Connie’s height in as “only an inch or so taller than she would be…” (book 1038). In addition to having short stature, both Friend and Schmid are muscular. Moser describes Schmid as a “fine athlete” and states that he was a gymnastic state champion in 1960 (19). Friend is found to be muscular with his white pullover shirt that “showed the hard small muscles of his arms and shoulders…Even his neck looked muscular” (book 1038). Also, both of the men wore makeup. Friend’s eyelashes are said to be “thick and black as if painted with a black tar-like material” (book 1040), with the material being heavily coated mascara. Oates states that Friend is even wearing what looks like a mask and states “as if he had plastered makeup on his face” (1042). Friend even
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
Joyce Carol Oates' short story "Where are you going? Where have you been?" 'runneth over' with Biblical allusion and symbolism. The symbols of Arnold Friend, his disguise, and the music that runs through the story contribute to an overall feeling of devilishness, deception, and unease.
There are many notorious characters in literature, all with their own menacing qualities and depraved actions. None, however, have struck such a devastatingly creepy chord as Arnold Friend of Joyce Carol Oates "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" Seducer of young girls and embodiment of Lucifer, Arnold Friend is anything but a friend. Arnold Friend is presented through both actions and appearances, and these combine to diminish his likeability, while adding to his devilish persona. Although Arnold Friend's traits are never stated outright, they are presented through his speech and interaction with other characters, which ultimately creates a more impacting effect and lasting impression.
In the story “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?” Arnold Friend is depicted as the antagonist of the book, trying to seduce Connie into going with him on a ride. He could be shown as an evil person intent on doing harm to Connie, but by the way Oates wrote the book you can almost feel the frustration building up in him as Connie keeps denying him the satisfaction of Connie saying yes. This can essence can be felt when Arnold Friend “wobbled again and out of the side of his mouth came a fast spat curse, an aside not meant for [Connie] to hear. But even this ‘Christ!’ sounded forced. Then he began to smile again,” As if Arnold friend is trying to hide something from Connie, “She watched this smile...
Friend says, “‘Now these numbers are a secret code, honey’... he read off the numbers 33,19,17” (Oates). After research of the meaning behind these numbers, I discovered that 33,19,17 is actually Bible verse, Judges 19:17. Judges being the thirty-third book in the bible. The verse reads this, “...and he lifted up his eyes and saw the traveler in the open square of the city; and the old man said, "Where are you going, and where do you come from?" (Judges 19:17 is actually the title of the story, meaning that this story, as a whole, is a biblical allusion. During their confrontation, Connie noticed Friend’s “feet did not go all the way down” (Oates) and that “the boots must have been stuffed with something so that he would seem taller” (Oates). Connie also said that Friend almost lost his balance. In the bible, it says that the devil has hooves as feet. In this situation, Arnold is losing his balance and is having to stuff his boots because he must compensate for his lack of feet. Arnold Friend is tempting Connie to come and get in his car to go for a ride the same way Eve was tempted to eat the forbidden fruit. This again shows Friend as a symbol of the true nature of
The narrator implies that Arnold Friend is Satan by giving certain clues that the reader can easily deduce. The name that Oates gives to the character is one hint to the reader: “Connie looked away from Friend's smile to the car, which was painted so bright it almost hurt her eyes to look at it. She looked at the name, Arnold Friend. She looked at it for a while as if the words meant something to her that she did not yet know” (583). The name “friend” was commonly used by the Protestants to refer to evil or the devil. Moreover, Arnold Friend's appearance also hints that he is Satan: “There were two boys in the car and now she recognizes the driver: he had shaggy, shabby black hair that looked as a crazy wig”(583). The narrator emphasizes the “wig” to make the reader think that he is wearing it for a purpose, which is hide his devil’s horns. Also, the fact that Arnold Friend's eyes are covered is another stragedy use by Oates to confirm the assumption of the diabolic presence: “ He took off the sunglasses and she saw how pale the skin around his eyes was it, like holes that were not in shadow but in...
Gale Kozikowski, Stan. " The Wishes and Dreams Our Hearts Make in Oates's 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?'. " Journal of the Short Story in English. 33 (Autumn 1999): 89-103.
Joyce Carol Oates' "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" is about a young girl's struggle to escape reality while defying authority and portraying herself as a beauty queen; ultimately, she is forced back to reality when confronted by a man who symbolizes her demise. The young girl, Connie, is hell- bent on not becoming like her mother or sister. She feels she is above them because she is prettier. She wants to live in a "dream world" where she listens to music all day and lives with Prince Charming. She does not encounter Prince Charming but is visited by someone, Arnold Friend, who embodies the soul of something evil. Arnold Friend symbolizes "Death" in that he is going to take Connie away from the world she once knew. Even if she is not dead, she will never be the same person again, and will be dead in spirit. With the incorporation of irony, Oates illustrates how Connie's self-infatuation, her sole reason for living, is the reason she is faced with such a terrible situation possibly ending her life.
Arnold Friend?s power proves to be so strong that Connie, in the end, finally cracks and surrenders. Joyce Carol Oates?s images of Arnold Friend, suggesting that he is the Devil in disguise, make the story both moving and successful. Connie?s fright at the face of the Devil is shared by Oates?s audience, making it easier for them to understand both the emotional impact of her struggle and the gravity of the lesson being taught by the story: things are not always as they seem.
Nmachiavelli, et al. “Question: What do the numbers 33, 19, 17 signify in the story? They are written along the side of Arnold Friend’s car.” Enotes.com. Enotes.com, Inc., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2010. .
Oats creates her devil-like character with a more physical approach than O’Connor. Friend appears to Connie as a young man however, his disguise is not completely put together. For example, his hair is “shaggy, shabby… [and] looked crazy as a wig” and his gait mocks an animal with hooves. (Oates 6) This allusion to the Devil, who possesses hooves and horns disguising
Oates, Joyce Carol. “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”. Backpack Literature. An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X.J. Kennedy & Dana Gioia. 4th ed. New Jersey: Pearson, 2006. (323-336). Print.
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.
The story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” has many underlying themes and can be subject to different interpretations.
The short story, Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?, written by the author, Joyce Carol Oates, resembles the unpredictable life of Connie, the main character who hopes to achieve adulthood but in reality acting childlike, to the rushing adult quest teenagers hope to attain with an outcome of false illusions and disappointment. In the short story, the author describes the main character, Connie, as a young, coquettish girl who undergoes different bizarre phases throughout the story that alternated her mentality from the opening to the concluding end of the story.