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Lost Innocence

Lost Innocence Does Connie learn her lesson in the end? In the story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, fifteen-year-old Connie is torn between two different lifestyles. The first is her home life that consists of a materialistic mother, an unemotional father and a plain sister, June. The second life is with her friends and the rebellious summer life that they live. Connie loves herself and her looks, but her narcissistic ways come to a quick end when she encounters a day with Arnold Friend, leaving Connie with a loss of innocence in an unknown world. Connie is the typical fifteen-year-old teenybopper. She spends endless moments staring at her reflection in the mirror and comparing her looks to others to make sure she is prettier than the rest because beauty is everything Connie knows. Connie lives in a fantasy world; she bases her identity on the surrounding pop culture; she is solipsistic and shapes her identity around materialistic beliefs. Connie believes these ideas because her family forced her into this type of lifestyle. The mindset Connie carries affects her family life. Her mother is jealous of Connie’s beauty and constantly puts Connie down, “Stop gawking at yourself, who are you? You think you’re so pretty “ (579: 1). Connie’s mother insults Connie because she is the image of what her mother used to be. Her jealousy takes over her sensitive side and leaves Connie without the support a mother should give a teenage girl. She comes down on Connie because she has the beauty her mother ultimately wants to hold again. Connie’s father is unemotional and obviously unaware of Connie’s teenage needs. He is not there to support or encourage Connie and help her gain confidence in her transition through adolescence. Connie also looks down on her older sister June who is quiet and a bore. June is the perfect daughter; she lives at home, works in the school and helps out in the house. June is the complete opposite of Connie. Connie tends to lead a different life around her friends. When Connie is with her friends she likes to hang out in shopping malls, dressed to the nines, always looking for attention. Occasionally, Connie and her friends would sneak across the highway to a drive-in restaurant where the older kids hang out. At the restaurant, the girls flaunted themselves, looking for older guys that they can sneak off in the cars with. Connie seems to get a lot of attention from the older guys. They gawked and cat-called which gave her an obvious sense of flattery. At the restaurant, Connie encounters a “boy with shaggy black hair, in a convertible jalopy painted gold”(581: 7). Connie glances at the boy, and there is a blunt sexual attraction to him. Arnold Friend is the pop culture fantasy of the times in this story. Connie comes into an encounter at her house with Arnold Friend. “After a while she heard a car coming up the drive. It was an open jalopy painted bright gold that caught the sunlight opaquely” (582: 15). It was Arnold Friend coming to take Connie away from the world as she knew it. Arnold is very persistent about getting Connie into his car to take a ride with him. Although she feels flattered that an older man has an attraction to her, Connie is afraid of Arnold Friend and his persistence. Connie tries to call her family to protect her but never figures out how to use the phone. She always expects that she can fall back on her family life for support even though she is never there for them. Arnold Friend begins to threaten Connie. Arnold is wearing metallic mirrored sunglasses; this allows Connie to see herself in the reflection. Through her own eyes Connie can’t see reality. In her innocence, Connie plays tricks with Arnold not knowing the danger that it will lead to. Connie threatens to call the police if he doesn’t leave; but he promises not to enter the house. Arnold retaliates to the threat of Connie calling the police by stating , “Soon as you touch that phone I don’t need to keep my promise and will come inside. You won’t want that.”(588: 117) By this statement Arnold is saying that he will enter not only her house, but into her life and take away her innocence. Arnold knows all about Connie and her life, probably more than Connie knows herself. Arnold tries to tell Connie that everything she is doing is for him; “You washed your hair for me”(589: 124). Arnold is trying to convince Connie that she looks nice for him. Arnold convinces Connie that she does everything for him. He enters the house and enters Connie’s world. Arnold takes away Connie’s innocence and all that she has. Although Connie lives in a dream world, she is innocent in her lifestyle. She never did anything that would be considered harmful to herself or to others. Connie is left with an unknowing sense around her, “I’m not going to see my mother again. She thought, I’m not going to sleep in my own bed again”(590: 151). Connie knew her world had come crashing down, her fantasy world was over. There’s now nothing left for Connie to recognize and be familiar with. Nothing would be the same for Connie anymore; she had no more security. Connie is now being forced into a third lifestyle, a life of reality. All her teenage pop culture desires have turned into non-existence. Connie is forced to grow up in an instant. Arnold Friend leaves her with a life she cannot begin to understand. She rushed to “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” shows how life can be destroyed by not living it as a person should. Connie wanted lots of attention. She never experienced reality, constantly living in a fantasy world. She based her life on looks, music, pop culture and the popular boys. Arnold Friend comes into Connie’s life and takes over. He forces her into unwanted situations, to think about new issues, when she realizes she was happy with the way everything was. Connie’s encounter with Arnold Friend changes everything, bringing her narcissistic ways to an end, and her innocence is lost. 1. Kirzner, Laurie G.; Mandell, Stephen R. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Third Edition. Harcourt Brace Publishers, Orlando. 1997 Does Connie learn her lesson in the end? In the story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, fifteen-year-old Connie is torn between two different lifestyles. The first is her home life that consists of a materialistic mother, an unemotional father and a plain sister, June. The second life is with her friends and the rebellious summer life that they live. Connie loves herself and her looks, but her narcissistic ways come to a quick end when she encounters a day with Arnold Friend, leaving Connie with a loss of innocence in an unknown world. Connie is the typical fifteen-year-old teenybopper. She spends endless moments staring at her reflection in the mirror and comparing her looks to others to make sure she is prettier than the rest because beauty is everything Connie knows. Connie lives in a fantasy world; she bases her identity on the surrounding pop culture; she is solipsistic and shapes her identity around materialistic beliefs. Connie believes these ideas because her family forced her into this type of lifestyle. The mindset Connie carries affects her family life. Her mother is jealous of Connie’s beauty and constantly puts Connie down, “Stop gawking at yourself, who are you? You think you’re so pretty “ (579: 1). Connie’s mother insults Connie because she is the image of what her mother used to be. Her jealousy takes over her sensitive side and leaves Connie without the support a mother should give a teenage girl. She comes down on Connie because she has the beauty her mother ultimately wants to hold again. Connie’s father is unemotional and obviously unaware of Connie’s teenage needs. He is not there to support or encourage Connie and help her gain confidence in her transition through adolescence. Connie also looks down on her older sister June who is quiet and a bore. June is the perfect daughter; she lives at home, works in the school and helps out in the house. June is the complete opposite of Connie. Connie tends to lead a different life around her friends. When Connie is with her friends she likes to hang out in shopping malls, dressed to the nines, always looking for attention. Occasionally, Connie and her friends would sneak across the highway to a drive-in restaurant where the older kids hang out. At the restaurant, the girls flaunted themselves, looking for older guys that they can sneak off in the cars with. Connie seems to get a lot of attention from the older guys. They gawked and cat-called which gave her an obvious sense of flattery. At the restaurant, Connie encounters a “boy with shaggy black hair, in a convertible jalopy painted gold”(581: 7). Connie glances at the boy, and there is a blunt sexual attraction to him. Arnold Friend is the pop culture fantasy of the times in this story. Connie comes into an encounter at her house with Arnold Friend. “After a while she heard a car coming up the drive. It was an open jalopy painted bright gold that caught the sunlight opaquely” (582: 15). It was Arnold Friend coming to take Connie away from the world as she knew it. Arnold is very persistent about getting Connie into his car to take a ride with him. Although she feels flattered that an older man has an attraction to her, Connie is afraid of Arnold Friend and his persistence. Connie tries to call her family to protect her but never figures out how to use the phone. She always expects that she can fall back on her family life for support even though she is never there for them. Arnold Friend begins to threaten Connie. Arnold is wearing metallic mirrored sunglasses; this allows Connie to see herself in the reflection. Through her own eyes Connie can’t see reality. In her innocence, Connie plays tricks with Arnold not knowing the danger that it will lead to. Connie threatens to call the police if he doesn’t leave; but he promises not to enter the house. Arnold retaliates to the threat of Connie calling the police by stating , “Soon as you touch that phone I don’t need to keep my promise and will come inside. You won’t want that.”(588: 117) By this statement Arnold is saying that he will enter not only her house, but into her life and take away her innocence. Arnold knows all about Connie and her life, probably more than Connie knows herself. Arnold tries to tell Connie that everything she is doing is for him; “You washed your hair for me”(589: 124). Arnold is trying to convince Connie that she looks nice for him. Arnold convinces Connie that she does everything for him. He enters the house and enters Connie’s world. Arnold takes away Connie’s innocence and all that she has. Although Connie lives in a dream world, she is innocent in her lifestyle. She never did anything that would be considered harmful to herself or to others. Connie is left with an unknowing sense around her, “I’m not going to see my mother again. She thought, I’m not going to sleep in my own bed again”(590: 151). Connie knew her world had come crashing down, her fantasy world was over. There’s now nothing left for Connie to recognize and be familiar with. Nothing would be the same for Connie anymore; she had no more security. Connie is now being forced into a third lifestyle, a life of reality. All her teenage pop culture desires have turned into non-existence. Connie is forced to grow up in an instant. Arnold Friend leaves her with a life she cannot begin to understand. She rushed to “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” shows how life can be destroyed by not living it as a person should. Connie wanted lots of attention. She never experienced reality, constantly living in a fantasy world. She based her life on looks, music, pop culture and the popular boys. Arnold Friend comes into Connie’s life and takes over. He forces her into unwanted situations, to think about new issues, when she realizes she was happy with the way everything was. Connie’s encounter with Arnold Friend changes everything, bringing her narcissistic ways to an end, and her innocence is lost. 1. Kirzner, Laurie G.; Mandell, Stephen R. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Third Edition. Harcourt Brace Publishers, Orlando. 1997 Does Connie learn her lesson in the end? In the story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, fifteen-year-old Connie is torn between two different lifestyles. The first is her home life that consists of a materialistic mother, an unemotional father and a plain sister, June. The second life is with her friends and the rebellious summer life that they live. Connie loves herself and her looks, but her narcissistic ways come to a quick end when she encounters a day with Arnold Friend, leaving Connie with a loss of innocence in an unknown world. Connie is the typical fifteen-year-old teenybopper. She spends endless moments staring at her reflection in the mirror and comparing her looks to others to make sure she is prettier than the rest because beauty is everything Connie knows. Connie lives in a fantasy world; she bases her identity on the surrounding pop culture; she is solipsistic and shapes her identity around materialistic beliefs. Connie believes these ideas because her family forced her into this type of lifestyle. The mindset Connie carries affects her family life. Her mother is jealous of Connie’s beauty and constantly puts Connie down, “Stop gawking at yourself, who are you? You think you’re so pretty “ (579: 1). Connie’s mother insults Connie because she is the image of what her mother used to be. Her jealousy takes over her sensitive side and leaves Connie without the support a mother should give a teenage girl. She comes down on Connie because she has the beauty her mother ultimately wants to hold again. Connie’s father is unemotional and obviously unaware of Connie’s teenage needs. He is not there to support or encourage Connie and help her gain confidence in her transition through adolescence. Connie also looks down on her older sister June who is quiet and a bore. June is the perfect daughter; she lives at home, works in the school and helps out in the house. June is the complete opposite of Connie. Connie tends to lead a different life around her friends. When Connie is with her friends she likes to hang out in shopping malls, dressed to the nines, always looking for attention. Occasionally, Connie and her friends would sneak across the highway to a drive-in restaurant where the older kids hang out. At the restaurant, the girls flaunted themselves, looking for older guys that they can sneak off in the cars with. Connie seems to get a lot of attention from the older guys. They gawked and cat-called which gave her an obvious sense of flattery. At the restaurant, Connie encounters a “boy with shaggy black hair, in a convertible jalopy painted gold”(581: 7). Connie glances at the boy, and there is a blunt sexual attraction to him. Arnold Friend is the pop culture fantasy of the times in this story. Connie comes into an encounter at her house with Arnold Friend. “After a while she heard a car coming up the drive. It was an open jalopy painted bright gold that caught the sunlight opaquely” (582: 15). It was Arnold Friend coming to take Connie away from the world as she knew it. Arnold is very persistent about getting Connie into his car to take a ride with him. Although she feels flattered that an older man has an attraction to her, Connie is afraid of Arnold Friend and his persistence. Connie tries to call her family to protect her but never figures out how to use the phone. She always expects that she can fall back on her family life for support even though she is never there for them. Arnold Friend begins to threaten Connie. Arnold is wearing metallic mirrored sunglasses; this allows Connie to see herself in the reflection. Through her own eyes Connie can’t see reality. In her innocence, Connie plays tricks with Arnold not knowing the danger that it will lead to. Connie threatens to call the police if he doesn’t leave; but he promises not to enter the house. Arnold retaliates to the threat of Connie calling the police by stating , “Soon as you touch that phone I don’t need to keep my promise and will come inside. You won’t want that.”(588: 117) By this statement Arnold is saying that he will enter not only her house, but into her life and take away her innocence. Arnold knows all about Connie and her life, probably more than Connie knows herself. Arnold tries to tell Connie that everything she is doing is for him; “You washed your hair for me”(589: 124). Arnold is trying to convince Connie that she looks nice for him. Arnold convinces Connie that she does everything for him. He enters the house and enters Connie’s world. Arnold takes away Connie’s innocence and all that she has. Although Connie lives in a dream world, she is innocent in her lifestyle. She never did anything that would be considered harmful to herself or to others. Connie is left with an unknowing sense around her, “I’m not going to see my mother again. She thought, I’m not going to sleep in my own bed again”(590: 151). Connie knew her world had come crashing down, her fantasy world was over. There’s now nothing left for Connie to recognize and be familiar with. Nothing would be the same for Connie anymore; she had no more security. Connie is now being forced into a third lifestyle, a life of reality. All her teenage pop culture desires have turned into non-existence. Connie is forced to grow up in an instant. Arnold Friend leaves her with a life she cannot begin to understand. She rushed to “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” shows how life can be destroyed by not living it as a person should. Connie wanted lots of attention. She never experienced reality, constantly living in a fantasy world. She based her life on looks, music, pop culture and the popular boys. Arnold Friend comes into Connie’s life and takes over. He forces her into unwanted situations, to think about new issues, when she realizes she was happy with the way everything was. Connie’s encounter with Arnold Friend changes everything, bringing her narcissistic ways to an end, and her innocence is lost. 1. Kirzner, Laurie G.; Mandell, Stephen R. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Third Edition. Harcourt Brace Publishers, Orlando. 1997 Bibliography:

Word Count: 3216