Where_Are_You_Going,_Where_Have_You_Been_Oates

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been/Oates “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been'” Joyce Carol Oates’s Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been' is an interesting dichotomy of a girl’s coming of age story and a grim fairy tale. The protagonist in this story is Connie, a vain young girl with a penchant for trashy dreams; while Arnold Friend is her antagonist, an evil force most likely, the Pied Piper or the Devil. Their interaction and foreshadowed moments bring the story to its inevitable tragic end. The character of Connie will be the first explored. Connie is established in the beginning of the story as a vain, shallow daydreamer. It’s these flaws that bring about her fall. In the first paragraph, her vanity is clearly displayed: “… craning her neck to glance into mirrors or checking other people’s faces to make sure her own was all right.” (p.60) She thinks of little else except mindless daydreams, which end up harming her later on: “… dreaming about the boys she met.” (p.62) “Connie couldn’t do a thing, her mind was all filled with trashy daydreams.” (p.60) Connie succumbs to her “trashy dreams” in the form of the evil entity that has come to take her away. arnold, story, connie, friend, music, devil, pan, piper, pied, since, herself, evil, end, way, indeed, boots, about, while, vanity, vain, trashy, sacrifice, references, mask, make, known, hooves, gold, goat