What do the numbers 33 19 17 mean in Where Are You Going Where have you been?
In interpreting the numbers 33, 19, 17, which are painted on the side of Arnold Friend’s jalopy in Joyce Carol Oates’s story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” (in The Wheel of Love and Other Stories [New York: Vanguard Press, 1970]), Mark Robson claims that there exists an allusion to Judges 19:17–the number …
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.
What does Connie do at the end of the story?
Connie is compelled to leave with him and do what he demands of her. The story ends as Connie leaves her front porch; her eventual fate is left ambiguous.”
How does Arnold friend know so much about Connie?
He invites her to go for a ride. Arnold Friend seems to know many things about Connie: her name, who her friends are, and the fact that her family is gone for the afternoon. When Arnold’s friend Ellie turns around, Connie sees he looks like a forty-year-old baby.
What is the first thing Arnold friend says to Connie?
It was there, while enjoying the company of a boy, that she first sees Arnold Friend, a stranger in a gold convertible covered with cryptic writing. He says “Gonna get you, baby” to her, and she turns away from him. A while later, her family goes to a Sunday barbeque, leaving Connie home alone.
What did Arnold Friend do to Connie?
These are all parts of his attempt to manipulate Connie into coming out of her house so that he can abduct her and, it is implied, rape and murder 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.
How does Arnold Friend manipulate Connie?
When he first arrives at Connie’s house, Friend behaves and speaks as though his presence makes perfect sense. As the story comes to a close, Friend successfully manipulates Connie: he has worn down her agency and free will so completely that she is unable to act in her own best interests.
What does Connie symbolize?
Many critics have interpreted Arnold Friend as a symbol of some larger idea or force, such as the devil, death, or sexuality. Connie, also, has been said to represent many things: Eve, troubled youth, or spiritually unenlightened humanity.
What does Arnold friend symbolize?
Arnold Friend could be said to symbolize the devil. Like the devil, he’s superficially friendly and charming, but in actual fact turns out to be the incarnation of evil. Arnold’s physical traits, as well as his behavior towards Connie, point towards his representing the devil himself.
Is Arnold Friend a static character?
From the very beginning, Arnold is the eerie static character and that eerie feeling is what compels Connie to look at him twice. …
Is Connie flat or round character?
Since Connie is lured from her life of innocence and teenage games into realizing that flirting with men/boys can have dire consequences, this learning curve harshly proves that Connie is a round character.
Why is Connie’s sister June included in the story?
Having June as a sort of foil or point of comparison to Connie is important to establish Connie’s sense of her place in the family structure; just as Connie compares herself to her friends or other girls in her school.
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.
How did Connie die?
While trying to escape a hungry walker horde inside of a Whisperer cave, Magna and Connie became trapped inside after a dynamite explosion caused a cave in. Separated from the rest of the group and likely crushed by several hundred rocks, Magna and Connie were thought to have died in the explosion.
What does June symbolize in Where Are You Going Where have you been?
Oates’ uses June in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” to provide a contrasting portrayal of feminity against Connie’s wild, reckless behavior.
How would you describe Connie’s relationship with her sister?
The examples of Connie’s fear of intimacy are numerous throughout the story. Her relationship with her sister, June, also seems to be rather nonexistent. Through Connie’s eyes, June “was so plain and chunky and steady that Connie had to hear her praised all the time by her mother and her mother’s sisters” (Oates 250).
What is the role of music in Where Are You Going Where have you been?
Music. Music functions as Connie’s bridge from the real world to her fantasy world. Connie enjoys escaping her life by listening to music and daydreaming about boys, and she gathers her ideas about romance primarily from songs on the radio.
How does Arnold know Connie’s name?
Arnold Friend knows Connie’s name without being told and, more disturbingly, seems able to see across town and into her aunt’s barbeque. One critic suggests the reason for Arnold Friend’s ill-fitting boots are his cloven hooves (Wegs 69). Others have likened the name Arnold Friend to Arch Fiend or An Old Fiend.
How would you describe Connie’s relationship with her mother sister and father what is missing from the family?
Describe Connie’s relationship with her mother, sister, and father. What is missing from this family? Her father isn’t close to her or her sister at all. Connie makes fun of her older sister but also likes her sister because she gets to go out and do things because her sister does too.
Why does Connie wish her mother was dead and she dead herself?
He didn’t bother talking much to them, but around his bent head Connie’s mother kept picking at her until Connie wished her mother was dead and she herself was dead and it was all over. Connie wishes for death to end her toxic family dynamic.
What is the plot in Where Are You Going Where have you been?
It’s summer, and fifteen-year-old Connie spends much of her time lounging around the house, going out with friends, and meeting boys. She’s a little vain, spends way too much time looking at herself in the mirror, and is perpetually annoyed with her entire family—especially her mom and older sister.
Where Are You Going Where Have You Been point of view?
“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is told by a third-person limited omniscient narrator who focuses on Connie’s point of view. This narrative choice allows readers to empathize with Connie while at the same time maintain some distance from the events.
Is Arnold Friend omniscient?
Arnold Friend, the omniscient inveigler and deceptive charmer of Joyce Carol Oates’, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” is evocative of the Devil himself. Through rich symbolism, dialogue, and characterization, Oates’ creates a twisted lie of a man whose every word is to be doubted.
How is foreshadowing used in Where Are You Going Where have you been?
Foreshadowing. When Connie sees Arnold Friend in a restaurant parking lot he yells over, “Gonna get you, baby” (2). In another instance of foreshadowing, Connie awakens from a nap and is temporarily disoriented, momentarily failing to recognize her backyard.
What is the significance of the title Where Are You Going Where have you been?
The allusion parallels Connie’s decision to sacrifice herself so that Arnold Friend will not harm her family. The title also points to the strained relationship between Connie and her parents, who nag her about her behavior but do not question her actions.