...the film “Smooth Talk” & Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” are supposed to be the same story, one can only wonder if the same message is actually being presented. Through extensive research on the criticisms of both the story and the film, I have come to the realization that the overall moral & the characters of the story have been changed so much for the film version that at the end it’s questionable at best if the overall message of the story comes across as intended. Beginning with the moral of the story, in an article by Joyce Carol Oates herself entitled "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? & Smooth Talk: Short Story into Film” she discusses how she “deferred in the end to Joyce Chopra's [The Film’s Director] decision to reverse the story's conclusion… [in which] the film ends not with death, not with a sleepwalker's crossing over to her fate, but upon a scene of reconciliation, rejuvenation” (Oates, “Where” para 10). Yet, as this deferral might seem slight, in actuality it changes the whole tone of the story, as critic John Simon put it, “[this] disgraceful ending… turns allegory, Gothic horror, and tragedy into soap opera” (Simon, “Lowering” para 1). Yet, besides the ending Joyce Carol Oates did approve of the film, in the same article she also stated, that “Laura Dern is so dazzlingly right as "my" Connie that I may come to think I modeled the fictitious girl on her” (Oates, “Where” para 9). Before I go on I would...
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...Kyle Nerbonne English 1102 Dr. Wilson Spring 2011 Title Joyce Carol Oates, an American fiction writer, was born in 1938, in Lockport, New York and many hold Oates as "America's preeminent master of the short story.” Her literary career began with her first novel, With Shuddering Fall, in 1964. Soon after she wrote her most noted work, “Where are you going, where have you been.” She grew up in the Erie County countryside near Lockport, which provided the setting for some of her stories and novels. I believe that this area where she grew up was where she based her story “Where are you going, Where have you been.” She was raised in a catholic household, but now is an Atheist, which could be why in “Where are you going, Where have you been” she is portraying the battle between good and evil. Oates’s critics argue that this short story is about sexual innocence, but I believe that Oates is portraying the religious battle between good and evil and she describes real life in her fictional work. In “Where are you going, Where have you been,” Connie, the young girl, hates her mom because her mom is jealous that her daughter is so beautiful. So Connie and her mom are always fighting and arguing about how Connie needs to be careful. When Connie leaves her house and goes out with her friends she dresses modestly just to make her mom happy, but when her friend’s dad drops her off she rolls up her shirt so that she is showing off some skin. She and her friends go to a fly infested,...
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...archetype as the enemy in Joyce Carol Oates’s “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been.” Between the archetypes of the shapeshifter and the enemy, Arnold is much more of an adversary than an undecided figure. Oates first introduces the audience to Arnold when Connie sees him, while out on a date. “Connie slit her eyes at him and turned away, but she couldn’t help glancing back and there he was, still watching her. He wagged a finger and laughed and said, ‘Gonna get you baby,’ and Connie turned away again without Eddie noticing anything.” (Oates 4) This is foreshadowing for the terrifying fate that Connie will eventually meet at the end of this story. He later ends up coming to her house offering to take her for a drive, and never allow her to return....
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...In the Romantic Works, Joyce Carol Oates, and Edgar Allen Poe explore the nature of violence through Gothic Elements. In Joyce Carol Oates works such as “Where is Here?”, and “Where Are You Going,Where Have You’ve Been”, and Edgar Allen Poe’s works such as “The Raven”, “A Tell-Tale Heart”, and “The Black Cat”, both of the author's give a form of imagery to create the feeling of violence. Such as Oates creates indirect violence, hidden within the lines, where Poe, has more explicit and direct violence not hidden between the lines. In Oates's works such as ,” Where is Here?”, violence is not told to be happening within the context of the writing, but one has to look more closely to actually see it. For example, in Oates work “Where is Her?” in his writing it says,” This was one of my happy places!-at least when my father was not home. “. When Oates writes about it being peaceful when the father was not home. It suggests that the father in a way was abusive, or in any form violent because in the tex . “The father violently jerked his arm and thrust her away”.In quote to this shows one of the rare direct violence in Oates writing where the father directly jerks the mother's hand away, and where the mother walks away, KNOWING that a bruise the size of a pear would appear on her arm in the morning. In oates other story “Where Are You...
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...Who is the Real Arnold Friend? Joyce Carol Oates’s “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is a chilling tale based on true events that involved a serial killer and his young victims that occurred in the 1960’s. “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? “ Is a story about a young girl’s daydream that turn into a nightmare as she faces the evil of reality in the form of Arnold Friend. Arnold Friend represents a supernatural figure that creates a forbidden dream life that Connie craves, but fears at the same time. Arnold has set his sight on Connie; he will become something so familiar to Connie that she will lose her ability to discern fantasy from reality. Arnold Friend will take Connie from the safety of her home and childhood dreams...
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...Richard McQuitery Analyzing “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” English 221 Westwood College “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates is a story with connections to Bob Dylan, has themes of control and family, and has an antagonist that is believed to have been based on a serial killer. It is one of many stories of the ages that will be discussed for years to come. Joyce Carol Oates dedicated this short story to Bob Dylan. Oates admitted in an interview that after hearing Bob Dylan’s “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue” she was inspired to write the story. (Davidson, 1997) Leave your stepping stones behind, something calls for you Forget the dead you’ve left, they will not follow you The vagabond who’s rapping at your door Is standing in the clothes that you once wore Strike another match, go start anew And it’s all over now, Baby Blue (Dylan, 1965) After hearing these lyrics in Dylan’s song, it is very easy to identify the scene with Connie speaking to Arnold Friend through the screen door. The song’s eerie tone adds a greater depth to Arnold and Connie’s conversation. In an interview on Youtube, Oates was asked why she dedicated the story to Bob Dylan, and her response was: “…Dylan was in a phase where he was writing music like “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue” and that song, and some others on the same album were rather like fairy tales and nursery rhymes that had gone wrong. He had taken a kind of simplicity of imagery...
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...What changes have you experienced? Introduction Imagine a person that had to experience a major change during his/her life that concluded in short or long term effects on the individual. For example, death of a person that was close to his/her heart, moving to a different city and/or state, and coping with the changes that one may experience during middle to high school. Previously listed are events that may occur during one’s life, which could develop into an Initiation/Rite of passage story. In the two given short stories, “Reunion” by John Cheever and “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Oates, the genre Initiation/Rite of passage is expressed. In Cheever’s story a boy and fathers had been separated for a given amount of time, while in Oates’s story a teenaged girl experienced changes regarding emotions. As both stories experienced different examples of the genre, I feel as if they both offer good and bad examples throughout the stories. Summary Beginning the story, “Reunion”, the boy had taken a train from his grandmother’s home to a cottage that his mother had rented. While traveling, the boy, Charlie, had encountered a layover time in New York where his father worked. He had not seen his father during the past three years of his life because he had moved when they encountered the divorce. Therefore, Charlie had asked to meet his father for lunch during his layover time so that he could see him again. As they had gone from place to place to try to find...
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...Fantasy versus Reality Joyce Carol Oates’s story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” presents the theme of fantasy versus reality. Oates Writes, “Shut up! You’re Crazy! Connie said. She backed away from the door. She put her hands against her ears as if she’d heard something terrible, something not meant for her” (Oates, 1966). Connie puts on this front that being pretty is “everything,” you can see that through her clothing, hairstyle, and behavior that she acts as if she is a mature women. Connie has this obsession with sexuality and desires attention from men. That’s when Arnold Friend comes into play and we are never really made aware if Arnold Friend is a reality or a scary fantasy to Connie. As you read further into the story Arnold Friend, someone Connie really doesn’t know begins to show the knowledge he has of Connie, her family, her friends, and her life. This is when you see Connie’s Fantasy become a scary reality because the persona of the mature women she puts on in the beginning slowly begins to fade and you see the personality of the fifteen year...
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...Joyce Carol Oates's "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" explores the psychological and physical complexities of growing up in 1950’s America through the eyes of fifteen year old Connie. While many themes were explored, two of the most prevalent are fate versus free will and the loss of innocence, which are intricately intertwined throughout the text. Arnold Friend joins the story as a disturbing force that challenges Connie's sense of self and safety, highlighting the often unspoken vulnerabilities that accompany the transition from childhood to adulthood. At the beginning of the story, Connie seemed to believe that she had complete control over her life. She could sneak around, hang out with whomever she wanted, all while dodging any...
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...How many young girls do you know who have had their innocence taken from them? A fifteen year old girl named Connie is forced to grow up entirely too fast by a man named Arnold Friend. Without meaning any harm, she flaunts herself around town acting like a mature woman, showing the world she thinks she ready to grow up. Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” illustrates how evil and manipulative one man is to a not so innocent Connie. Although Connie thinks she wants her independence as a woman, Arnold Friend, who is not who he seems to be, destroys her youthful innocence and introduces her to a world of evil. Connie begins to find independence in her appearance. She is constantly admiring herself in the mirror and being scolded for it by her mother. She tries to make herself sexually attractive in search of her own independence (SparkNotes Web). Connie goes out with her friends and flaunts her beauty and body, making herself look interested in older men; she thinks she is doing no harm when she is flirting. Like most teenagers, Connie wants to express her independence by going places alone with her friends. Being only fifteen, she is not able to drive, so she is dependent on the older people in her life. Connie is resentful of not having her full independence, but her family and friends constitute as the only life she knows. While Connie believes she is only making herself look older in order to appear beautiful, she is actually luring an...
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...NO THANKSGET THE APP Where are you going, Where have you Been? Holzinger 1 Anna Holzinger Mr. Zameroski Honors English 9 7 February 2016 Word Count: 1002 “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” A savior figure is kind and can be heroic, while a satanic figure is viewed mostly as an evil, hateful character. Throughout the story the reader will find hints or clues regarding which figure Arnold is displayed as. Joyce Carol Oates's short story presents him in two different ways, either a savior or satan. Arnold Friend is represented as a savior figure...
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...Jackson State University Department of English and Modern Foreign Languages English 105 Research Paper Rubric ____ I have included my title page. ____ I have included my sentence outline. ____ I have included my table of contents page. ____ I have included my five page body of my research paper. ____ I have included my Works Cited page. ____ I have checked my paper for grammatical accuracy. ____ I have been careful to give my authors credit for the sources I have used. Grammar and Mechanics ________of 20% The writer displays mastery of punctuation and mechanics adhering to grammatical rules. The student uses formal and Standard English avoiding slang and casual language. Content and Subject matter ________of 20% The writer has successfully created a paper displaying original, creative thought and content. There is no redundancy and the writer stays on topic creating an interesting essay for readers. Parallelism, unity, and coherence ________of 20% The writer’s work is clearly organized, and each paragraph adheres to the topic sentence. Additionally, the paper does not ramble and is easily understandable and rational using transitional devices. MLA formatting and documentation ________of 10% The paper adheres to all the strictures of the MLA format including in text citations, direct quotations, and proper Works Cited documentation. Thesis Statement and Application ________of 10% The thesis statement is present and concise...
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...Where Is Your ID Going Where Has Your Superego Been? Connie, the main character in Carol Oates’ short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” is a self conscious teenage girl with a quirky personality. Her condescending mother constantly measures her up against her older sister June, which leads to resentment and tension between Connie and her otherwise admirable sister. On a night out with her friend, Connie has a strange encounter with a boy at a drive in restaurant which introduces the personified Freudian struggle between the ID, Ego, and Superego. First, it is necessary to comprehend how Connie’s family is the personification of the Freudian Superego. By simply relating the characteristics used to describe each family member to the concept of a Superego, the reader can condense their apparent individuality into this definitive Freudian ideal. June, a twenty-four year old still living and working from her parents home, serves as an example of low-risk and conservative decision making. Early in the story Oates writes, “June did this, June did that, she saved money and helped clean the house and cooked and Connie couldn't do a thing, her mind was all filled with trashy daydreams” (Oates, 1), which provides supporting evidence in proving June’s...
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...Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” alludes to the mythical tale of Hades and Persephone throughout the story. The two stories express the relationship of life and death. The love and desire are emotions that are connected with life and death. The dark and wickedness invades the mind and thoughts of a person, and he or she cannot control that desire. The lust and desire for another person leads to drastic measures. Death is a natural way of life. Everyone experiences death and the baggage of emotions that comes with the loss. Hades is the god of the underworld, which is where all mortals spend all of eternity; so Hades is a symbol of death. In the story of Hades and Persephone, Hades is dark,...
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...Who are you? The story “Where are you going; Where have you been?” by Joyce Carol Oates is a popular story among the younger college audience. It is without a doubt considered a classis, as it has stood the test of time and been passed down for almost 50 years since its original publication. Not only is it a marvel because of its lengthy existence in schools around the country, but also because of the lessons that it teaches and how they can still relate to people in today’s changed society. Miraculously, different readers can find different meanings whilst reading the same story, however it is most certain that the moral of the story is based around deception. First of all, Connie was a self-absorbed 15-year old girl that - without a doubt - believed she was beautiful. Her mother would often scold her for spending so much time being distracted by her own looks, but in Connie’s eyes, “[H]er [mothers] looks were gone and that was why she was always after Connie.” (389). It was apparent that Connie knew she was beautiful and her life was strung around it. Her room being a mess and her priorities even messier; the relationship between her and her mother was not as strong as it should have been. In spite of this, she turned to her friends for an outlet. A few times a week, Connie would meet up with her friends to escape her life of boredom and what she thought was a sense of jealousy at home. Instead of going to the movies like they said, they would lie and go to the local diner...
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