The Father and I

The symbolism in the second half of “The Father and I” represents the death of childhood.
“The fire blazed in the huge engine as they shoveled in coal; sparks whirled out into the night. It was terrible. The driver stood there in the light of the fire, pale, motionless, his features as though turned to stone.”

In “The Father and I,” the boy saw the train and became scared, because the train, described as, “The fire blazed in the huge engine as they shoveled in coal; sparks whirled out into the night. It was terrible. The driver stood there in the light of the fire, pale, motionless, his features as though turned to stone.,” represents death. We know this because the narrator uses words like “Pale, motionless,” and “Turned to stone.” These words, which are used to describe the driver, resemble words which would commonly be used to describe a corpse. Also, the mood and words of the second half of the story indicate fear and worrisome.

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been
Allusions to popular music reveal the shallow character of Connie and her friends in the short story, “Where are You Going, Where Have You Been,” by Joyce Carol Oates.
“And Connie paid close attention herself, bathed in a glow of slow-pulsed joy that seemed to rise mysteriously out of the music itself and lay languidly about the airless little room, breathed in and breathed out with each gentle rise and fall of her chest.” In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” by Joyce Carol Oates, we find Connie and her friends are/seem shallow. We know this because they worship the Big Boy at the hamburger restaurant. Alternatively when she’s home alone, she’s always obsessed with the music as we are told by the narrator, “And Connie paid close attention herself, bathed in a glow of slow-pulsed joy that seemed to rise mysteriously out of the music itself and lay languidly